Summary:
Brian Greathouse of Burch & Cracchiolo, P.A, on behalf of Little Sunshine’s Playhouse and Preschool is requesting to rezone 1.9 acres from Suburban Ranch 43 (SR-43) to Convenience Commercial (C-1).
The site consists of two (2) parcels (APN 201-08-049J and 201-16-015H) comprising approximately 1.9 acres and is generally located at the southeast corner of Lake Pleasant Parkway and the Avenida Del Sol alignment. The site is within a pocket of smaller, privately-owned lots with access and visibility along the heavily-travelled Lake Pleasant Parkway. Contextually, this corridor is proximate to larger residential lots on both sides of Lake Pleasant Parkway, within unincorporated Maricopa County.
Rezone Request:
The applicant is seeking to rezone the subject site from Suburban Ranch (SR-43) to Convenience Commercial (C-1) to facilitate the development of the site into a daycare and preschool facility. The existing SR-43 district provides for low-density residential development (minimum lot size 1-acre) in areas with a semi-rural character. The C-1 zoning district is one of eight (8) commercial zoning districts and one of the least-intense or permissive. This district facilitates transitional or small-scale development and generally permits uses such as office, restaurants (no drive-through), retail, studios, galleries and other light commercial types of activities. A preschool and daycare would be a permitted use in the C-1 zoning district. Buildings would be limited to 30' in height which is the standard for residential districts.
The evaluation criteria of a zoning request focuses on elements such as land use designation, context of the surrounding area, stated goals and policies of the General Plan, the access to the site, and the availability of utilities and infrastructure to the site.
Analysis of Request:
The existing Office and Local Commercial land use designation on the subject site supports low-intensity commercial development such as offices, medical clinics, retail, and the proposed preschool. Staff finds that the C-1 district is in conformance with the General Plan land use designation; hence, there is no change necessary to the General Plan land use designation.
Currently, water and sewer is adjacent to the site and there is capacity to serve commercial uses. The proposed public access to the site is limited to one (1) driveway along Lake Pleasant Parkway, with no public access to Avenida Del Sol. The proposed low-intensity commercial zoning serves as a transition between the adjacent single family residential and the Limited Access Parkway of Lake Pleasant Parkway addressing Smart Growth goals outlined in the City’s General Plan. Given the characteristics of the property located between low density residential and Lake Pleasant Parkway, the existing Office and Local Commercial land use designation, and the existing capacity for utilities to serve the commercial use, staff believes the proposed zoning district is in keeping with the criteria as outlined by applicable regulations.
PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT PROCESS:
Public Notification:
The application was properly noticed pursuant to Section 21-315 of the Peoria Zoning Ordinance, which includes notification to all property owners within 600 feet of the site and registered HOAs within one (1) mile, posting of a sign on the site, and placing an ad in the Peoria Times at least 15 days prior to the Public Hearing.
As a requirement of the rezoning application process, the applicant conducted a neighborhood meeting on October 12, 2023. There were three (3) members of the public in attendance at the meeting, in addition to the development team for the project and city staff. A summary of the comments along with the applicant’s responses are enclosed within Citizen Participation Plan within Exhibit 2 of the Planning and Zoning Commission Report.
Support / Opposition:
At the time of this writing, Staff has not received any stated opposition or support.