Discussion and possible action to concur with the Planning and Zoning Commission’s recommendation and adopt ORD. 2024-21, amending Sections 21-400 and 21-500 of the Peoria Zoning Ordinance pertaining to the adaptive reuse of commercial, office or mixed-use buildings for multi-family residential in response to the passage of House Bill HB2297.

This is a city-initiated text amendment to the Zoning Ordinance regarding Sections 21-400 and 21-500 pertaining to adaptive reuse of commercial, office or mixed-use buildings for multi-family residential in response to the passage of House Bill HB2297.

If approved, staff believes these code modifications will bring the Zoning Ordinance into compliance with the regulatory requirements and provisions of House Bill HB2297.

Background:

The 56th Arizona state legislature passed a number of bills this session that have been signed into adoption by the Governor pertaining to municipal zoning, including House Bill HB 2297:  Adaptive Reuse for Multifamily Development. More specifically, HB2297 requires that by January 1, 2025, municipalities with 150,000 or more persons must allow multifamily residential development or adaptive reuse of any commercial, office or mixed-use building on not more than 10% of existing inventory of existing buildings citywide. Additionally, a municipality cannot require discretionary review with conversion but can designate “commercial or employment hubs” where buildings are excluded from the inventory.  Along with these provisions, the bill contains a number of modified development standards which are pre-defined within the bill.

Proposed Regulations:

HB2297 requires the City to establish ‘objective standards’ to allow multifamily residential or adaptive reuse on up to ten (10) percent of the existing commercial, office or mixed-use buildings without requiring a type of application that requires a public hearing. (Exhibit B) Secondarily, the bill goes further by obligating municipalities to adopt specific provisions associated with parking, setbacks, building height, and density. As these specific development standards are mandated without allowance for deviation or exception, they were transmitted into the proposed Zoning Code revisions without alteration. Whereas the adopted legislation is prescriptive in most areas, there were four specific policy considerations when drafting the proposed code changes. These were identified and discussed within the attached Planning and Zoning Commission staff report as attached in Exhibit 2.

Community Involvement:

Public Meetings:

•  Legislative Briefing to City Council on September 17, 2024.
•  Legislative Briefing to Planning and Zoning Commission on October 3, 2024.
•  Planning and Zoning Commission Study Session on October 17, 2024.
•  Planning and Zoning Commission Public Hearing on November 14, 2024.

Public Noticing:

The application was properly noticed pursuant to Section 21-315 of the Peoria Zoning Ordinance, which includes placing a legal ad in the Peoria Times at least 15 days prior to the Public Hearing.

Support / Opposition:

No opposition or support for this proposal was received.

• On September 17, 2024, a Study Session was held with the City Council to discuss the proposed Code Amendment prompted by the legislative action.
• On October 17, 2024, a Study Session was held with the Planning and Zoning Commission. No members of the public spoke in support or opposition to the item.

•  On November 14, 2024, the Planning and Zoning Commission held a public hearing, and after deliberation, the Commission voted 5-0 recommending approval of the proposed changes to the Zoning Ordinance as outlined in the attached Ordinance. No members of the public spoke in support or opposition to the item.

A: Approve as recommended by the Planning & Zoning Commission; or

B: Approve with modifications; or

C: Deny; or

D: Continue action to a date certain or indefinitely; or