Navajo County planning commissioners approve Starlight Ridge Estates Unit 3 tentative plat

Navajo County planning commissioners voted to approve the tentative plat for Starlight Ridge Estates Unit 3, a proposed subdivision that would create 49 single-family lots and 74 townhome units across approximately 52.96 acres in the Wagon Wheel area.

County planning staff presented the proposal and recommended approval subject to 14 staff conditions. The staff presentation, given by Tyler (planning staff), described a three-phase development: phases 1 and 2 would comprise the single-family lots on the northern roughly 32 acres and phase 3 would include the 74 townhome units on the southern roughly 21 acres. Staff said the project meets multiple goals and policies of the comprehensive plan and listed utility and design provisions, including water service from the City of Show Low, sewer service from the Pinetop Sanitary Sewer District, and fire hydrants spaced at 400-foot intervals.

Emery Ellsworth of Paint and Sky Engineering and Survey, the project engineer, told commissioners the developer has worked with county staff, made changes to the plan, and hopes the project will add single-family housing to the area. "The developer's been very open to working with the county, working through the planning and zoning department, made some changes to the plan," Ellsworth said. He declined to provide an estimate for home prices when asked.

The commission opened a public-comment period and received no favorable or opposition comments. With no substantive follow-up questions from commissioners, an unidentified commissioner moved to approve the tentative plat subject to the staff-recommended conditions; a second was recorded. The commission approved the motion by voice vote and the chair stated the motion passes.

The approval of the tentative plat authorizes the developer to proceed with the next steps in the county's subdivision review process but does not constitute final plat approval or construction permits; the action taken was explicitly subject to the 14 conditions recommended by staff.

Details provided during the hearing included the project's APN numbers as listed in the agenda, typical lot setbacks of 20 feet front, 10 feet side and 15 feet rear, and access via Rim Road and Wagon Wheel/Zodiac connections. The agent for the project was listed as Doug Brimhall and the owner as Starlight Ridge Unit 3 LLC. The commission did not record individual roll-call votes or named vote tallies in the transcript; the approval was taken as a voice vote.

What happens next: the tentative-plat approval allows the applicant to pursue final-plat and permitting steps required by Navajo County and applicable service providers. The record indicates the approval is conditioned on staff's 14 items; the transcript does not enumerate those conditions in full during the hearing.