Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Fountain Hills adopts new mural rules, removes citizen oversight committee and emphasizes maintenance
Summary
The council adopted Ordinance 26‑06 to add a mural definition, allow site‑plan review of exterior murals, permit more than five colors under standards tied to a 'call to artist' program limited to Arizona residents, and remove a proposed oversight committee in favor of staff review with enforcement mechanisms.
Fountain Hills’ Town Council on June 2 adopted Ordinance 26‑06, updating the zoning code to regulate murals on private property and public infrastructure.
Planning staff presented changes that add a definition for 'mural', give staff site‑plan review authority for exterior paint modifications, and create a new section (19.06H) listing design and maintenance standards. The ordinance allows murals to use more than the existing five‑color limit for building paint, but it bars profanity, graphic violence and advertising; it also ties acceptable work to themes established through the town’s existing ‘call to artist’ program.
Amanda Jacobs, who administers the call‑to‑artist process, told council that the program’s eligibility requires artists to live in Arizona. John Wesley, presenting the ordinance language, said the prequalified artist list and theme‑driven process are intended to steer design while protecting community aesthetics.
Council debated three principal questions raised by the Planning & Zoning Commission: stronger language to ensure murals are maintained, whether the prequalified artist list should be limited to Arizona residents (staff noted the call‑to‑artist already includes that requirement), and whether review should be done by a new oversight committee or by staff. Several council members said a committee risks adding delay; staff recommended leaving review with staff and using existing enforcement tools under the zoning code.
Council amended the draft to remove the proposed oversight committee and to keep the maintenance and Arizona‑artist provisions, and then approved the ordinance by unanimous vote. Town staff and the town attorney said the code already provides enforcement options—including notices, fines and abatement procedures—that can be used if a property owner fails to maintain an approved mural; staff said the town can seek corrective action and assess costs to recover repainting or abatement work if necessary.
What’s next: staff will implement the amended code, apply the call‑to‑artist eligibility standards, and use existing enforcement procedures to ensure murals remain in good repair.
