Dozens of residents urged the Tempe City Council on Monday to reject proposals to rezone the Shalimar Golf Course, arguing the site provides rare green space and neighborhood cohesion that would be lost if the property were rezoned for denser housing.

"Shalimar is one of the biggest generators of social capital in Tempe," said Eric Johnson, an Arizona State University professor and co-director of the Center for Smart Cities and Regions. "If there has ever been a unanimous consent of the public, this is it — do not rezone it." His remarks came during the meeting's public-comment period.

Speakers representing the "Safe Shalimar" campaign described the course as a 60-year-stable ecosystem and warned rezoning would bring higher traffic volumes, reduce open space and change the neighborhood's character. "The Shalimar proposal is not affordable housing," said Loretta O'Connor, a long-time neighbor, adding that plans shown on a developer website were "distorted" and would not help the city's affordability problem.

Other residents said the property owner had curtailed watering in April, a change they said appeared to be hastening the loss of the green space. "We personally get several calls a week from people wanting to purchase our property," said Trudy Musickman, adding that unchecked density could push older residents and single-family households out of the neighborhood.

Supporters of preserving the course framed the issue as both environmental and social: Robert Kaplan, a Shalimar homeowner of three decades, said higher vehicle and pedestrian volumes would put pressure on Country Club Way and Golf Street, the neighborhood's two access roads.

City staff and the developer were present earlier in the meeting with materials about the property's status; however, the item was presented during the public-comment portion and no rezoning vote or formal action on the property was taken at this meeting. The council did not vote on any rezoning measure Monday and no motion to rezone was introduced. Several speakers thanked staff for timely responses to information requests and asked councilmembers to prohibit rezoning.

The council will consider any formal rezoning proposal through the regular planning and public-hearing process; residents and councilmembers will have additional opportunities to comment and to view staff reports should an application be filed.