Prescott Valley planning commission approves recommendation to rezone site for Waste Management transfer station

The Prescott Valley Planning and Zoning Commission voted unanimously to approve ZMC 24-6, recommending that about 3.42 acres at 9434 East Valley Road be rezoned from C-1 (commercial/minor industrial) to IG (Industrial General Limited) to allow a new Waste Management hauling facility and a transfer station. Staff advised the change would consolidate the parcel under a single industrial zoning designation and included conditions in the staff report.

Chris Norlock, Development Services urban planner II, told commissioners the northern portion of the parcel sits in the Big Sky Business Park and that the project proposal includes roughly a 22,500-square-foot hauling facility, a new 21,000-square-foot transfer station, a compressed natural gas station and a diesel fuel island. "Staff recommends approval of the ZMC 24-6 with the conditions listed," Norlock said. He added that a revised landscape plan shows a 10-foot landscape buffer on the north, south and west sides and clarified that an 8-foot slat fence will be installed only along the west property line.

Applicants described construction phasing and site details. Justin Cassidy, project architect with Colie Architects, and Jessica Walo, engineering manager for Waste Management, said the site will be built in phases so operations can continue: the new transfer station will be constructed first, operations moved to it, the old transfer station demolished and the hauling facility built. Walo said the company expects the modification to take about two years from start to finish and confirmed two on-site fire hydrants will be provided. "We will actually be constructing in phases so we will make the brand new transfer station first, move the waste to the new transfer station, demo the old transfer station then build the hauling company," Cassidy said.

A resident who identified herself as Patricia Betal urged commissioners to scrutinize the proposal. Betal said she was concerned a traffic-impact statement was not attached to the packet and warned that trucks could route into nearby residential streets. "They lower all their prices until they eliminate all the competition and then they raise all the rates," Betal said, arguing the company has market power and raising worries about truck traffic, early-morning noise and possible odors. She requested restrictions on truck routing and additional traffic mitigation.

Town Engineer John Laer said staff has requested updates to the traffic-impact statement because the site plan and operations have changed during development. "Those numbers of vehicles, routing and turning movements — those will all be covered in the traffic statement that we're expecting," Laer said, and added that the town will coordinate review with the Arizona Department of Transportation because State Route 69 is involved.

Commissioners asked technical questions — including whether household hazardous waste would be accepted (applicants said not currently) and whether proposed building heights comply with the 35-foot limit (presentations showed the buildings are below the limit). Vice Chair Evans moved to approve the zoning map change; Commissioner BB seconded, and the commission approved the motion by voice vote. Because the Planning and Zoning Commission serves in an advisory capacity, its approval will be forwarded to the Prescott Valley Town Council for final action.

The commission also approved minor items in the meeting and then adjourned. The staff report and the applicant's updated traffic-impact statement will be the documents staff uses to finalize conditions before the council sees the recommendation.