Gilbert council reviews state-mandated zoning amendment to allow "international headquarters" campuses with housing and hotels

Nicole Russell, senior planner in Gilbert’s Development Services department, told the Town Council at a March 3 study session that staff has drafted a Land Development Code text amendment, Z2512, to implement recent state legislation allowing "international headquarters" campuses with ancillary residential and hotel uses.

Russell said HB1543 requires municipalities with populations between 200,000 and 500,000 to allow ancillary uses — including hotels and multifamily housing — as part of an international headquarters campus. "I am Nicole Russell, senior planner with development services, and today I will be talking to you about Z2512, the LDC text amendment for international headquarters," she said.

The draft ordinance would incorporate definitions from state law (referenced in the presentation as SB543), and set thresholds and limits for qualifying campuses. Staff said a qualifying campus must be a contiguous area of at least 40 acres in business-park, light-industrial or general-industrial zoning, owned by a single or related entity, employ more than 1,000 full-time staff and pay an average annual salary above 125% of the county median (staff cited roughly $111,000 based on older Maricopa County data).

Under the draft text, allowable ancillary uses would be capped: multifamily housing up to 27 dwelling units per gross acre; hotels not to exceed 10 rooms per gross acre (with up to 10% of hotel rooms convertible to four residential units); and supporting retail/restaurant uses limited to 20% of gross floor area. Russell said height limits would restrict ancillary buildings to two stories if they are adjacent to or within 100 feet of single-family homes, and allow up to six stories where that 100-foot buffer does not apply.

Russell also described a required design review and a recorded instrument that staff may require before approval. That instrument could restrict occupancy so that at least 30% of multifamily units are reserved for international-headquarters employees or for police officers, firefighters, teachers, veterans or health-care workers who live within five miles of the campus; the draft would prohibit occupancy shorter than 90 consecutive days unless the tenant is an employee or contractor. Russell noted that multifamily units platted for individual ownership would be exempt from the occupancy restriction.

During questions, Council Member Bobby Buckley asked whether the town is anticipating any projects under the new standard and "why has this come up now?" Russell replied that the town has not heard of any applicants or projects in Gilbert’s pipeline but that, because the state has mandated allowing these uses, the town must adopt conforming ordinance language and that any development would still be subject to local design review.

The council did not take formal action at the study session; staff said Z2512 will appear on the regular evening agenda for further consideration. The study session was adjourned and the council planned to reconvene for its regular meeting later that evening.