Florence council approves Skyview Farms PUD amendment, redevelopment boundary change and a package of other measures

The Florence Town Council on Oct. 21 approved a major amendment to the Skyview Farms planned unit development and a series of other ordinances and resolutions, including a change to the downtown redevelopment boundary and a minor general-plan amendment for a proposed rock and landscape-supply site.

The Skyview Farms amendment adds roughly 605 acres into the existing planned unit development, consolidates adjacent PUD parcels, revises the roadway network and land-use table to introduce a 100-acre “mixed use” category and new circulation, and proposes nearly 9,975 residential units and about 80 acres of parks and nearly 26 miles of trails. Town staff said the amendment follows public-notice requirements and that the Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously recommended approval to council. The council approved the ordinance with stipulated edits.

Why it matters: the Skyview amendment changes the scale and connectivity of a large master-planned area south of Arizona Farms Road and east of the Central Arizona Project canal, adds mixed-use acreage intended to support commercial and higher-density residential uses, and establishes a trail and park framework the town says will connect to the CAP recreational trail.

Council members and the applicant discussed circulation improvements, open-space locations, the requirement that at least 25% of each mixed-use parcel be commercial, and availability of park and…