Goodyear approves $12.4M Australia Parkway interchange, $818.9M budget, business licensing overhaul
GOODYEAR, ARIZONA — May 20, 2024

Goodyear approves $12.4M Australia Parkway interchange, $818.9M budget, business licensing overhaul

City Council approved a $12.4M Australia Parkway interchange project, business license ordinance with amendments to address casual sales, truck parking facility rezoning, and $818.9M FY2025 budget, while acknowledging ongoing regulatory gaps for sober living homes.

Goodyear Council Balances $12.4M Interchange Overrun Against Fiscal Conservatism as Sober Living Home Regulation Remains Incomplete

The Goodyear City Council held a notably robust May 20, 2024 meeting marked by unanimous votes on major capital and operational initiatives, yet an undercurrent of frustration surfaced over the adequacy of enforcement tools for a persistent problem: unlicensed and fraudulent sober living homes operating in the city for nearly five years without council awareness or intervention.

The council approved a 57% budget increase for the Australia Parkway/Pebble Creek Parkway I-10 interchange project, adopted a business licensing ordinance with last-minute amendments, rezoned a 5.6-acre parcel for truck parking, and passed an $818.966 million tentative FY2025 budget. All four items passed 7–0. Yet beneath the unanimity lay sharp disagreement about whether the business licensing framework—the primary tool intended to address sober living home abuses—will prove sufficient without a dedicated ordinance.

Key Speeches

"The primary impact to the budget is due to escalation and cost of construction which we're seeing across the board on these types of projects." — Steve Certo, City Engineer

"When we have an increase of almost 50% on a project I don't think we should just be hand waving this on a consent we probably need to shed some transparency on it." — Council Member Stipp

"I don't feel that this is going to take care of our problem and I think we're going to have to take another look at it." — Wally Campbell

"I think we need to direct the staff to come up with a viable solution to the sober living home situation and bring that to us. There are seven varying opinions on how this needs to be done and there are only as far as I know two experts in this community that understand that and they both reside in the police department." — Council Member Stipp

"This is not a sober living home ordinance it's an ordinance of General applicability." — Rok Massi, City Attorney

Timeline

Australia Parkway/Pebble Creek Parkway I-10 Interchange Expansion

Business License Program Ordinance Amendment (Ordinance 2024-1608)

Wally Campbell recounted that she had met with an officer (later identified as Scott Daniels from the police department) who informed her that the city had known about sober living home issues since 2019 but that council had not been made aware until the story "blew up in the newspaper." She cited Glendale, Gilbert, and Surprise ordinances as models and expressed concern that without tougher enforcement and separate regulation, "they're just going to ship their people to us because they're not going to ship our people." She reserved the right to revisit the topic and insisted that unlicensed homes provide proof of state licensing or be denied Goodyear business licenses. She also insisted that homes cannot simply expel residents into homelessness—they must arrange alternative placement.

Council Member Stipp separated the business licensing discussion from the sober living homes discussion, calling the former "a general ordinance of General applicability" and noting that "the whole conversation [about sober living] needs to kind of stop on this topic right here." He agreed with Laura Kaino proposal to strike the $5,000 threshold and suggested changing the casual event days from 2 to 10. Council Member Laurano supported the removal of the dollar threshold, noting concern about the "gig economy" and internet-based businesses that might not reach $5,000 in sales. Council Member Stipp then raised the criminal penalty question: Massi confirmed that repeated violations constitute a Class 1 misdemeanor, with penalties up to $2,500 per violation plus 80–90% surcharges, up to 3 years probation, and 6 months jail. Council Member Laurano asked whether $250 per day was sufficient punishment for "bad actors" making hundreds of thousands of dollars monthly. Massi acknowledged that for truly unlicensed operators already committing fraud, a business license requirement is merely a tool to prosecute them for operating without one—they would not voluntarily register.

Vicki Gillis expressed frustration that the sober living homes issue, originally raised as the rationale for the business licensing ordinance, had not been adequately discussed with council. She credited Ashley Troyer (Fire Department) and Scott Daniels (Police Department) with five years of work on the issue and noted that their absence from the council discussion was problematic. She reiterated her prior statements that council needed to hear from these experts and emphasized that the bad actors pose a risk of dumping expelled residents onto Goodyear streets as homeless. Joe Pizzillo agreed that state agencies must also step up enforcement and noted that the Attorney General's office has prosecuted some sober living home operators.

After extended discussion, Council Member Stipp moved to amend the ordinance by striking the $5,000 threshold and increasing casual event days from 2 to 14 days. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously. Massi confirmed he would revise the ordinance to reflect the 14-day threshold.

D&D Trucking Facility Rezoning (Ordinance 2024-1610)

Council Member Stipp then expressed concern that the overlay restricts certain I-2 uses, but nothing in the ordinance explicitly limits the facility to D&D Trucking's own vehicles. He noted that in six months or six years, the owner could lease spaces to other trucking companies, generating commercial revenue. He clarified that he was not proposing a stipulation but simply wanted council to understand that the I-2 zoning does permit truck parking as a use and that the facility could evolve. Laura Kaino asked whether the overlay would prevent conversion to a "truck stop" (fueling, dining, other services). Dolmage indicated that the city does not have a definition of "truck stop" in its ordinance; the zoning silence and the city's definitions of service stations and gas stations do not encompass truck stop facilities. Massi noted that any future truck stop conversion would require a return to council for design review and potential amendments. Laura Kaino stated she would support approval only with a stipulation preventing truck stop conversion. Massi offered to add language if council desired additional security.

Laura Kaino expressed discomfort with the lack of an explicit prohibition but, after discussion, stated her concerns were addressed by the design-review process and the need to return to council for material changes. The council voted 7–0 for approval without a truck-stop stipulation.

Fiscal Year 2025 Tentative Budget (Resolution 2024-2379)

Authorization of FY2025 Expenditures in Excess of $500,000 (Routine Spending)

Opposition

No organized opposition was presented at the meeting. Public comment was limited to two speakers, neither of whom opposed the council agenda items.

Support

Australia Parkway Project: Council Member Stipp characterized the project as essential and widely supported, noting that "anybody who drives on Australia Parkway [Pebble Creek Parkway] would agree that this is probably the one project that we absolutely have to get done." Brannon Hampton confirmed the urgency and praised the night-work mitigation. No dissenting votes were recorded.

Business Licensing Ordinance: All seven council members voted in favor after amendment, though several expressed reservations about its sufficiency to address sober living homes. Support was framed as foundational to a broader regulatory framework rather than a complete solution.

Truck Parking Rezoning: Council Member Stipp's comment encapsulated support: the location is ideal, the use serves a regional need, and the project represents responsible private-sector contribution to solving a genuine problem. No dissenting votes.

FY2025 Budget: Unanimous approval, with praise from Council Members Laurano, Vicki Gillis, and Brannon Hampton for transparency, fiscal conservatism, and strategic planning.

Project Details

Australia Parkway/Pebble Creek Parkway I-10 Interchange

D&D Trucking Facility

Business License Ordinance

Fiscal Year 2025 Budget

Vote Breakdown

Consent Agenda (Items 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10): 7–0

Australia Parkway Budget Amendment (Item 8): 7–0

Business License Ordinance (Item 11, as amended): 7–0

D&D Trucking Rezoning (Ordinance 2024-1610): 7–0

Fiscal Year 2025 Tentative Budget (Resolution 2024-2379): 7–0

Authorization of FY2025 Expenditures >$500,000: 7–0

Excusals: Council Member Vicki Gillis was excused from the Community Facilities District meeting (5–0 vote, with Vicki Gillis recorded as not present at the start).

Outcome & Next Steps

Australia Parkway Interchange: Approved for construction start in June 2024, completion targeted December 2025. City Engineer Steve Certo and Senior Project Manager Logan Hop will coordinate with other CIP projects to maintain north-south traffic routing. Staff will notify council of any moratorium conflicts.

Business License Ordinance: Approved as amended (14-day casual event threshold, $5,000 threshold removed). Rok Massi will revise the ordinance language and resubmit for final adoption. Council directed staff to develop a separate, dedicated ordinance addressing sober living homes and group homes, incorporating input from Scott Daniels (Police) and Ashley Troyer (Fire), who have worked on the issue for five years.

D&D Trucking Rezoning: Approved. Parcel rezoned to I-2 with PAD overlay. No explicit truck-stop prohibition was added, but Laura Kaino noted that any future conversion would require design review and return to council. Staff may pursue stipulations in future phases if needed.

FY2025 Budget: Tentative budget adopted at $818.966 million. Public hearing scheduled for June 10, 2024, with final budget adoption to follow. Special meeting June 3, 2024 (date mentioned for next meeting). Property tax levy adoption scheduled for approximately June 24, 2024. Staff will finalize carryover timing and CIP project schedules in August.

Next City Council Meeting: June 3, 2024 (with possibility of executive session for legal advice and real property discussions regarding former city hall).

Controversies & Context

Sober Living Homes Enforcement Gap: The most significant controversy underlying the meeting was council's realization that the City of Goodyear has had a documented problem with unlicensed and fraudulent sober living homes since 2019, yet council was not systematically informed until the issue became public in news coverage. Wally Campbell stated she had been on council since 2011 and "never heard about any of this until it all blew up in the newspaper."

Two experts—Scott Daniels (Police Department) and Ashley Troyer (Fire Department)—have been working on sober living home regulation for five years but were not present at the May 20 meeting, despite the business licensing ordinance being explicitly tied to the sober living issue. Wally Campbell, Stipp, and Vicki Gillis expressed frustration that these experts were not invited to testify or advise. Vicki Gillis stated: "I think we need to have Ashley and Scott here so they can add to the conversations…we should have them at these meetings."

Wally Campbell raised specific concerns:

  1. Insufficient penalties: $250 per day is characterized as a "cost of doing business" for operators generating "hundreds of thousands of dollars a month."
  2. Resident expulsion: Bad actors are expelling residents into homelessness without providing alternative placement, creating a spillover crisis.
  3. Licensing vs. enforcement: Unlicensed operators, by definition, will not come forward to obtain a business license, so the new ordinance is reactive rather than proactive.
  4. Inadequate state oversight: State agencies do not sufficiently regulate or prosecute fraudulent sober living home operators.
  5. Comparative analysis: Glendale, Gilbert, and Surprise have stronger ordinances and enforcement mechanisms.

Council Member Stipp agreed that "this is not a sober living home ordinance" and that "the whole conversation needs to kind of stop on this topic right here," but he also supported Wally Campbell call for a separate ordinance. Joe Pizzillo noted that the Attorney General's office has prosecuted some sober living home operators, suggesting a state-level enforcement component is needed alongside local regulation.

Construction Cost Escalation: Council Member Stipp highlighted the Australia Parkway project as symptomatic of a broader fiscal challenge. ADOT has documented 55% construction cost increases since 2021. Scottsdale and Phoenix have experienced 50–60% increases. The city's prior cost estimates were materially off, leading to a 57% budget increase on a $7.9M project. Stipp charged that "when we got into this pinch a number of years ago um that we were under bidding the scope was right we were our cost estimates were way off." He noted that this experience must inform future CIP estimates and that cost-estimation discipline is essential to avoid repeated surprises.

Legislative Revenue Erosion: The state legislature has continued to cut municipal revenues. Goodyear faced a $5M loss from rental tax reduction (among the lowest percentage hits of any Arizona city). Joe Pizzillo noted that 74 Arizona cities experienced $234M in combined cuts. The loss of rental tax revenue forces the city to convert one-time program funding to ongoing general fund commitments, a structural squeeze that will compound in future fiscal years.

MAG Arterial Funding Trade-Off: Brannon Hampton reminded the public of a decades-old decision: in the early 2000s, Goodyear relinquished access to MAG (Maricopa Association of Governments) arterial funding to enable ADOT's I-10 widening through the city. Proposition 479, to be voted on in November 2024, would restore Goodyear's access to arterial funding if approved by voters. Brannon Hampton stated: "we gave up our money our access to arterial money through the…remaining life of proposition 400" to fund I-10 widening, and that Goodyear is now "back in the game" if Prop 479 passes. This context underscores why Australia Parkway improvements are fully funded by the city without external grant assistance.

Campaign Sign Enforcement: Council Members Stipp and Vicki Gillis raised concerns about political campaign signs being placed improperly in city rights-of-way and ADOT property. Massi clarified that the city can only remove signs in city rights-of-way if they are unsafe or blocking views, and only after providing 24 hours' notice (typically more). ADOT-controlled rights-of-way are ADOT's responsibility, though the city clerk's office will pass complaints to ADOT. Vicki Gillis noted that some candidates "seem to think they can just go above and beyond" and requested a single standard applied to all candidates. Massi agreed that the city has adopted a sign-free zone in its GSQ district, which the city can enforce.

Public Safety Recognition: Joe Pizzillo and the City Manager acknowledged several awards: Human Resources received the Industrial Commission of Arizona Chairman's Award for safety and well-being; Water Services Director Barbara Chapel received the Water Environment Federation 2024 Hatfield Award for leadership and integrity; the Wastewater Collection Division received a water safety award; and the Fleet Division was recognized for the fourth consecutive year as one of the top 50 government fleets in the nation.

Desert Gunfire and Public Safety: Council Member Laurano raised an ongoing concern about weekend gunfire in the desert areas of Australia (the neighborhood), including what sounded like "automatic gunfire" approximately one week prior. She expressed worry that hikers and dog walkers might be endangered. The Police Chief acknowledged that discharging firearms in unincorporated desert areas is illegal and committed to increasing officer visibility in the area, though proactive patrols are difficult in the river bottoms.

Duration

Other Notable Items

Public Comment (Non-Agenda): Jeff Redmond, an Australia resident, commented on the general plan approval, requesting: (1) consideration of airport expansion flight patterns and noise, (2) nighttime road work to minimize daytime traffic disruption, and (3) expansion of notified notification radius beyond 500 feet for proposed land uses. He cited his near-miss of a storage unit development proposal because he lived outside the 500-foot notification zone despite having clear visual sightlines. Joe Pizzillo noted the comments would be forwarded to the City Manager and that planning and zoning matters could be addressed at future Planning and Zoning Commission meetings. William Miller, a second public commenter, thanked council for installing a traffic light on Australia Parkway, noting that his grandmother now feels safer crossing the street.

Industrial Commission of Arizona Award: The city's Human Resources department was honored with the Chairman's Award for excellence in workplace safety, supported by Parks and Recreation, Public Works, and Water Services personnel.