Goodyear seeks council direction on zoning rewrite: signage, notice, permitted uses and housing types

City of Goodyear planning staff and their consultant asked the City Council on Nov. 3 for guidance on how to modernize the city's zoning ordinance, touching on temporary signage in multifamily developments, public-notification standards, which uses should require a special use permit, and where to allow new housing types.

Christian Williams, planning manager, opened the work session by noting the existing ordinance dates to 1999 and said the rewrite is intended to update outdated terms and standards. "The zoning ordinance was last written in 1999," Williams said, arguing the age of the code explains why terms such as "tannery" still appear.

The consultant team, led by Matt Kliesico of Michael Baker International, described temporary-sign types and current local limits. Kliesico said Goodyear generally limits temporary signs to 32 square feet and typically allows them for 10 to 30 days, though some sign types require permits. "Goodyear has many different temporary sign types...the size of signs is limited to 32 square feet or less," Kliesico said, and he emphasized enforcement as the primary tool to prevent excessive or lingering signs.

Councilmembers asked whether multifamily projects should receive the same temporary-sign allowances as commercial properties and whether the city should allow longer or tiered durations for leasing periods. Several council members suggested expanding duration windows (for example, 30 to 60 days or a two-tier system) for situations where leasing activity lags. Staff said they will consider flexible windows for construction versus occupancy and examine enforcement and sign-quality standards.

Guadalupe Ortiz Cortez, principal planner and project lead, walked the council through noticing practices and state requirements. Ortiz Cortez said the city currently notifies property owners within 500 feet of projects requiring a public hearing, while state law requires a 300-foot buffer; she described the city's practice of sign postings, postcards and legal ads. "The city currently notifies property owners within 500 feet of projects that require public hearings," Ortiz Cortez said.

On benchmarks, the consultant suggested raising Goodyear's baseline notice radius to 600 feet to align with some peer cities, codifying HOA notification (proposed minimum of 1,000 feet) and applying expanded distances for larger or more intensive projects (up to 1,200 feet in specified cases). Staff noted posting costs are charged to applicants. Councilmembers expressed varying preferences: some favored a single simplified buffer (e.g., 600 or 1,000 feet) to reduce confusion; others warned a 1,200-foot standard could meaningfully increase the number of notified properties.

On permitted uses, staff explained the difference between uses allowed by right and those that require a use permit. Guadalupe Ortiz Cortez and the consultant recommended that a small set of historically permitted special uses ' such as assisted-living facilities (10+ beds), certain hospitals in specific multifamily districts and limited direct-sales agricultural stands ' could be codified with objective conditions rather than requiring a discretionary use-permit hearing in every case. "If you meet these conditions, you're permitted," Kliesico said of the recommended approach for some uses; staff said more intensive or unusual proposals would still proceed through the use-permit process.

Council discussion probed distinctions between assisted living, group homes and behavioral-health facilities and asked staff to check statutory definitions and fair-housing implications before finalizing recommendations.

The presentation closed with staff's housing-diversity analysis. Williams cited a 2024 study by Elliot Pollock & Company showing Goodyear currently exceeds short-term housing demand and has roughly five years of supply under present approvals; staff proposed targeted changes to allow more owner-occupied products (e.g., condos, duplexes/attached units, select manufactured homes that meet design standards) and to prepare the code for new state middle-housing requirements. "The study concluded...the city currently exceeds the demand for housing both in single family and multifamily housing categories," Williams said, noting the rewrite will include provisions required by recent state bills.

Next steps: staff said drafting is underway and that the council will see additional, more comprehensive code drafts in spring 2026; staff also noted targeted text amendments to meet a December deadline for middle-housing statutory changes. Council members requested follow-up information on enforcement, sign-size comparisons with peers, sign legibility and website access to development applications.

The presentation generated extensive council feedback but no formal policy decisions; staff will incorporate the council's direction into upcoming drafts and return with code language and implementation details.