Goodyear advances zoning overhaul eliminating permits for storage, gas stations, car washes, drive-throughs, auto repair
GOODYEAR, ARIZONA — March 14, 2024

Goodyear advances zoning overhaul eliminating permits for storage, gas stations, car washes, drive-throughs, auto repair

Planning and Zoning Commission held work session on proposed zoning ordinance updates to streamline approval processes for mini storage, gas stations, car washes, drive-throughs, and auto repair facilities with new distance requirements, density limitations, and design standards.

Goodyear Planning Commission Charts New Course on Commercial Uses: From Discretionary Permits to Objective Standards

The Goodyear Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously endorsed a sweeping overhaul of zoning standards for six commercial use categories on March 13, 2024, signaling a strategic pivot toward administrative efficiency and residential protection. Planning Manager Christian Williams presented a proposal that would eliminate special-use-permit (SUP) requirements for mini storage, gas stations, car washes, drive-throughs, and auto repair facilities—replacing discretionary review with objective distance requirements, density caps, and design controls. If approved by the City Council, the changes would codify years of commission feedback into binding code language, giving staff enforcement "teeth" while providing developers certainty about what uses are permitted where.

The work session—the first major initiative under Williams' newly permanent appointment—set the stage for Council work sessions on March 18 and 25, followed by public hearings. The proposal directly addresses concerns raised during recent rezoning cases, including the Australia Commons mixed-use development, which sparked debate over clustering of multiple drive-throughs and gas stations on a single commercial pad.

Key Speeches

"The overreaching aim is to streamline the process and save time practically, enhancing efficiencies. This entails exploring administrative solutions and staff-level adjustments within policy frameworks, thus minimizing the need for commission and Council involvement." — Christian Williams, Planning Manager

"This provides you certainty. I mean, as a resident who backs to a dirt lot and that lot's been a dirt lot for years, and you don't know if there's going to be a public hearing for a use permit for any of these uses, this provides you certainty that this dirt lot may have those uses, but there are minimum standards, minimum distances, and minimum provisions adjacent to your property." — Planning Manager Williams, addressing resident concerns about development uncertainty

"If we don't ask for something, they could always push for less anyway." — Commissioner Maria Hegedus, responding to staff discussion on whether to encourage reverse-oriented gas-station canopies

Mini Storage: Preserving Commercial Corners

The commission strongly endorsed the mini-storage recommendations, which would permit the use in C1 and C2 commercial zones under objective standards rather than a case-by-case special-use-permit process. The key restrictions include:

Commissioner Hegedus praised the approach, noting that existing examples like Palm Verde Storage and Palm Valley storage set the design standard the city wants to replicate administratively. She asked whether storage buildings would be subject to height restrictions if located close to residential uses. Williams clarified that C2 zoning ordinance height stepback rules (one foot of additional setback per foot of building height above 30 feet) would still apply, preventing the scenario of a three-story, 40-foot storage building built 20 feet from a home.

Commissioner Booth raised the market saturation question, asking whether Goodyear has reached a point of overbuilding storage. Williams acknowledged it is fundamentally a market question but noted that the 1,500-foot separation requirement and prohibition on consuming entire commercial centers with storage would provide some natural clustering protections. Commissioner Hegedus observed that the separation rule effectively prevents four storage facilities at a single arterial intersection and encourages uses to spread to alternative commercial zones.

Williams noted that storage can serve as excellent infill for odd-shaped or topographically challenged commercial parcels, giving the example of a grocery store at the front of a center with storage tucked into the rear—a model the standards would encourage.

Gas Stations: The Reverse-Orientation Debate

Gas stations generated the most substantive discussion on design orientation. The proposal would permit gas stations in C1 and C2 zones with the following requirements:

Williams presented examples from neighboring communities showing a single intersection with three to four gas stations—a scenario Goodyear has largely avoided through the SUP process but wishes to prevent going forward. The design guidelines currently encourage reverse orientation (canopy and pumps to the rear, retail building facing the street) but have rarely been chosen by developers in Goodyear, who opt instead for traditional corner locations.

Commissioner Hegedus asked whether the ordinance could strengthen encouragement for reverse orientation beyond the current guideline language. She noted that the alternative—requiring a plaza if the gas station is not reverse-oriented—is a visual benefit but does not incentivize the preferred design.

"There's great times when [reverse orientation] works, especially in a very comprehensive, cohesive center where the traffic's driving into the center. It makes a lot of sense. There are times where you may not want to do that—especially when it is a little closer to residential. We're setting that minimum, but if there's not residential to block it, now you're putting all the active traffic, the active noise on the resident side. So those are times when we may not want to encourage that." — Christian Williams explained that reverse orientation can actually have drawbacks near residential uses because it places the gas pumps (the noisier, more active part of the operation) facing the homes rather than away from them. The team does not necessarily want to mandate reverse orientation in all cases. Commissioner Booth suggested that the opportunity lies in asking for stronger design enhancements if the corner is not reverse-oriented, a theme that will be brought forward to the City Council work sessions.

Williams also clarified that electric vehicle charging is permitted at any gas station, and the code would define "convenience store" to address any ambiguity about ancillary retail.

Car Washes: Noise and Hours of Operation

Car washes prompted discussion about noise impacts on adjacent sensitive uses, particularly hotels and residential properties. The proposal would permit car washes in C2 zones only under these conditions:

Commissioner Wang referenced the proposed car wash on McDow Road and Bullard Avenue (which did not move forward) and the recent Seda commercial car wash. She expressed concern about the 300-foot setback from residential, noting that the noise from the tunnel itself—not just external operations—can disturb nearby homes.

"I think if it's the noise, my understanding was the noise of the one there on Australia was coming out of the tunnel. I don't see why you wouldn't want the same [distance requirement] from residential, at the very least. I would think the hotels might have a concern with that, but if there's no like if there's no restaurant that has a musical venue or an outdoor seating, that may not be an issue there. But I don't see why you wouldn't want the same requirement because it was the idea of what was going through the tunnel that was making the noise." — Commissioner Wang

Williams acknowledged the point and committed to reviewing noise controls more carefully, noting that if a car wash is accessory to a gas station, the gas station's 250-foot setback from residential would automatically apply, creating a more stringent separation. Commissioner Wang also raised the importance of hours-of-operation controls, particularly given that one example car wash near a hotel was not subject to such limits and residents would benefit from restricting evening and early-morning operations. Williams noted that hours of operation would be incorporated into use-permit conditions where they currently exist and would be codified in the ordinance text amendment.

The commission praised the Pebble Creek car wash as an example of excellent design, with reverse-oriented buildings and residential buffering.

Drive-Throughs: Clustering and Multi-Use Coordination

Drive-throughs sparked discussion about traffic coordination when multiple drive-through uses (food and automotive) occupy the same commercial property. Currently, drive-throughs are allowed in C1 and C2 with a use permit if closer than 500 feet to residential, or by right if further away. The proposal would make drive-throughs a permitted use (no permit required) in C1 and C2 when at least 250 feet from residential, with two density tiers:

The rationale is to incentivize retail integration rather than isolated drive-through buildings while accommodating the market demand for endcap formats (like the successful Dunkin' Donuts on Australia Parkway and Vans Street).

The Australia Commons rezoning case, which permitted four standalone drive-throughs and a gas station on approximately 10 acres, became a touchstone for concern. Under the proposed code, that site would be limited to two standalone drive-throughs, with the ability to add two additional endcap drive-throughs if accompanied by expanded retail space. Commissioner Booth raised a critical coordination issue: the restriction counts drive-through uses by function, but what about mixed-use coordination? His example: a tire shop with a drive-up service and a Chick-fil-A drive-thru on the same property created gridlock because site queuing was not planned holistically.

"I can ask that so since it sounds like some of the thought in including [auto] repair [is] the auto shops [are] basically functioning like a drive-thru, so in the drive-through section you were talking about clustering and like limiting [the] number. Is there a way to still limit [the] number of drive-thru operations even if one is a food and one is auto? Because if you're going to limit the number of drive-through restaurants per acre per pad because of the traffic and the backup, like this tire shop is over by my house and then there's also Chick-fil-A on the same property. And like that intersection and that parking lot are impossible to drive because all the entrances and exits are blocked by those, and those are not two restaurants, but the queue—the way it was not planned out and mapped out—it, it's, I hate it. I avoid that intersection because of that specifically." — Commissioner Booth

Williams responded that the ordinance does not yet contemplate cross-use density limits but that the new queuing and site-planning requirements give staff authority to evaluate whether a mixed-use drive-thru configuration can function adequately:

"However, what this does give staff teeth to do is evaluate the very thing you're talking about. When we're talking about, you actually have a queuing requirement now that you need to follow. How are you laying out your site? What does the site planning process look like for that, and determining if the site proposal that you're choosing to do works with our standards? So it gives us the teeth to actually do some enforcement and making sure that cohesive centers like this actually line out well." — Christian Williams

The commission also discussed the McDonald's rezone case on Indian School Road north of Pebble Creek. That site, approved some years ago, has a drive-thru pad located approximately 250 feet from residential, with intervening commercial pads (a storage unit and a restaurant pad) providing buffer. Under the proposed ordinance, that second drive-thru pad would not qualify for a drive-thru use (too close to residential) but could accommodate a sit-down restaurant, nail salon, or other retail without the drive-thru function.

Commissioner Smith noted surprise at discovering the Dunkin' Donuts on Australia Parkway and Vans was an endcap drive-thru—she had driven past countless times without recognizing it as such, a testament to the integration and subtlety of the design.

Auto Repair: Open Garage Doors and Drive-Up Services

Auto repair is currently permitted in C2, i1, and I2 with no special use permit or design restrictions. The ordinance proposal would permit auto repair in C2 with new controls:

Williams explained that newer auto-repair models include drive-up service lanes where vehicles enter one side, receive service, and exit the other side, with open garage doors on both sides. The proposed ordinance would give staff authority to control that orientation and require screening to prevent noise and visual intrusion on adjacent residential uses.

Commissioner Smith supported the controls, noting that dealerships and tire shops often operate with open garage doors and generate lengthy queues that block access roads. Commissioner Wang echoed concern about the noise of pneumatic tools and bolts being removed, asking how the ordinance would prevent such noise from being invasive to neighbors.

Williams responded that the new garage-door orientation and 6-foot-wall screening requirements would provide staff with enforcement mechanisms currently absent. The standards do not eliminate the use but ensure that operational impacts are controlled and mitigated.

Project Details

Vote Breakdown

No formal vote occurred at this work session. The meeting was held in a deliberative, consultative format to gather commission feedback on the draft proposal before staff proceeds to draft ordinance language and Council work sessions.

Outcome & Next Steps

The commission provided extensive and detailed feedback that staff will incorporate into the draft zoning ordinance text amendment. The timeline is:

The commission confirmed that the ordinance will provide no deviation or variance process for these uses once enacted—they will simply be permitted or not permitted based on objective criteria—except in cases of unique master-planned, mixed-use developments, which would still require a use permit.

Controversies & Context

Staff concerns about use clustering: Staff noted that without clear zoning standards, uses like mini storage can consume disproportionate shares of limited commercial real estate. The Puebrity Storage and Palm Valley storage cases, as well as the Australia Commons mixed-use rezoning, have prompted Council and commission discussions about balancing market demand with community character and commercial diversity.

Reverse-oriented gas stations remain rare: Design guidelines have long encouraged reverse orientation (retail facing the street, gas pumps to the rear) as a preferred design, but Goodyear developers have almost universally chosen traditional corner locations. The ordinance will not mandate reverse orientation (recognizing that it can place active, noisy operations facing residential in some configurations) but will require corner plazas if reverse orientation is not used, creating a mild incentive without hard mandate.

Car wash noise: The Australia location (McDow and Bullard) and Seda commercial car wash have generated residential complaints about tunnel noise and hours of operation. The new ordinance will codify hours-of-operation restrictions and decibel standards to address these concerns prospectively.

Drive-through clustering: The Australia Commons case—which included four standalone drive-throughs and a gas station—became the poster child for oversaturation. The ordinance will limit standalone drive-throughs to one per 5 acres while creating an endcap category with no density cap to incentivize retail integration.

Multi-use drive-thru coordination: Commissioner Booth's example of a tire shop with drive-up service and Chick-fil-A on the same property illustrates a gap in current code—uses are regulated individually, but traffic and queuing are generated collectively. The ordinance's new site-planning and queuing standards will give staff authority to enforce holistic site design, though cross-use density caps were not yet contemplated.

Strategic alignment: The initiative directly implements the FY 2025–2027 Strategic Action Plan adopted by Council, which emphasizes modernizing zoning codes, fostering business investment through streamlined processes, and providing certainty to customers and developers while protecting residential areas.

Duration

Other Notable Items

Planning Manager appointment: Christian Williams was formally recognized as the permanent Planning Manager for Goodyear. He presented his first major initiative in the role, demonstrating deep familiarity with recent rezoning cases and commission feedback. The commission congratulated him.

Recent approvals: Staff reported that the Palm Valley Crossing industrial rezone was approved by City Council as recommended by the commission, as was the zoning ordinance text amendment making church use permits a permitted use (rather than special use). Both represented prior work-session discussions and full-hearing cycles.

Buies land deal: Staff announced that Buies (a commercial developer/operator) has completed a land acquisition and is coming to Goodyear. The announcement was made without detailed location or project specifications, signaling anticipated future development activity.

Planning Commission vacancy: The city is recruiting to fill a vacant commission seat, but no update on the timeline was available at the meeting.