Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Economic Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board approves two Opportunity Zones 2.0 tracts; ranks Rio Rico (108) as top priority
Summary
The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors approved submission of two Opportunity Zones 2.0 census tracts to the Arizona Commerce Authority and ranked track 108 (Rio Rico west of I-19) as the county—'s first priority, directing county management to submit the recommendation; staff said both tracts are strong candidates but send different investment signals.
Deputy County Manager Chris Young and Community Development Director Colin Bishop presented Arizona—Opportunity Zones 2.0 at the June 17 meeting and recommended two census tracts for Santa Cruz County. The board voted to forward both tracts to the Arizona Commerce Authority and ranked track 108 (Rio Rico, west of I-19) as the county—'s first preference and track 200 (northwest Ngalas) as the second priority.
Chris Young explained the program and the state-level decision process: the governor ultimately forwards selections to the federal government, and counties can nominate tracks with a 1,000-word justification. He emphasized that opportunity-zone designation does not change zoning or make a bad investment good; it incentivizes investors where projects are already plausibly profitable and ready for development.
Colin Bishop described the county's two recommended tracks: track 200 overlays northwest Ngalas and aligns with an identified growth area in the Ngalas general plan, favoring near-term border commerce and hospitality investment; track 108 covers Rio Rico west of I-19 and ties to the county—'s vitality-district planning, offering a plug-and-play opportunity to diversify investment into a second population center. Bishop said both are strong candidates and the county—'s public meeting produced a unanimous recommendation to submit those two tracks.
Board members debated tradeoffs and community readiness. Supporters of prioritizing 108 noted existing planning documents and potential to spread investment beyond Ngalas; supporters of 200 pointed to immediate near-border development already underway. "We want both and we really hope that we get both of them," Bishop said, while explaining that the county must provide a ranked preference if only one track is awarded by the state.
The board approved the motion to submit tracks 200 and 108, with track 108 as the first-ranked choice, and authorized county management to submit the application and required justification to the Arizona Commerce Authority.
Next steps: county staff will finalize the 1,000-word justification and submit the ranked recommendation to the Arizona Commerce Authority for Governor Hobbs—consideration.
