Glendale Planning Commission Splits 5-1 on 550-MW Battery Storage, as Fire Safety Concerns Overshadow Approval

Welcome to the planning commission meeting of August 20th, 2026. My name is Vern Crow and I am the chairperson of the commission. The planning commission is a citizen body appointed by the city council. The commission is empowered to make final decisions on certain matters with those being appealable to the city council. On other matters, the commission acts in an advisory role to the council with the council making the final decision.

You will have an opportunity to address the commission during the public hearing portion of the meeting and your testimony is appreciated and encouraged. The commission acts from a written agenda. You will need to fill out a yellow speaker card and give it to city staff if you wish to speak on an item. Copies of the agenda and the speaker cards are located on the table outside the main door. At this time, please silence your cell phones.

There are seven members appointed to the planning commission. And at this time, I will ask the commissioners to introduce themselves and state the district they are representing. Starting from my far right, Commissioner Crowe. John Crow, Mayoral District, Commissioner Gears, John Gears, Aato District, Vice Chair Cole, Tom Cole, Barrel District, Commissioner Ariano, Sergio Ariano, Yaka District, Commissioner Johnson Vasquez, Helena Johnson, Vasquez, Choya District, Vern Crow, Cactus.

All members of the planning commission are present with the exception of Commissioner Hooper. The commanding, excuse me, the planning commission receives staff assistance and guidance from the planning division and the city attorney's office. Now, I'd like to move on to the approval of the minutes. But before we do that, I would like to make a note that there is a typographical error on the second approval for CUP26-05.

And the typo error is that Helena Johnson Vasquez is left out of the vote and all persons voted I. Okay. Do I hear a motion to approve the minutes of June 25th, 2026 planning commission regular meeting as adjusted? Mr. Chair, I move to approve the minutes of the date in question as amended. Thank you, Commissioner Cole. Do I have a second? Second. I have a motion and a second to approve the minutes of June 25th, 2026 planning commission meeting. All those in favor say I. I. Opposed. Mr.

Gupta, are there any withdrawals or continuences this evening? Chairman, there are none. Okay. As there are none, let's move on to the public hearing items. The purpose of the public hearing is to provide interested parties an opportunity to present testimony for the commissioner's consideration. We will follow the same procedures for each item and that is I will call the application number. Staff will present their report and answer questions from the commission.

The applicant will be given the opportunity to make a presentation and answer questions from the commission. Other persons who wish to testify will be asked to do so and answer questions from the commission. The applicant will have an opportunity for closing comments. Staff will be asked for a final comment on the application and procedural guidance if needed. I will then close the public hearing and ask for a motion prior to any further discussions from the commissioners.

If you wish to speak on an item, you will need to state your name and address for the record. Please be brief and to the point and avoid repetition. I reserve the right to limit the length of the testimony to three minutes. All exhibits shown to the commission become a part of the permanent record and must be submitted for the file. Large groups should designate a person. Applause and other disruptions that delay the hearing will not be tolerated.

Now, we have seven public hearing items this evening and our first item is case number CUP24-10. Miss Terrella, please present the case. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'll be presenting CUP 2410 for the West Valley Events Complex. Please note that this case was continued from the previous planning commission meeting. This is a request for a sports and entertainment venue in the PD zoning district. The property is located west of 99th Avenue between Glendale Avenue and Ballpark Boulevard.

The site and areas to the east and west are within the vision 2 PA AD. To the north is the Westgate Healthcare Campus P A and to the south is the Main Street P A. The property is approximately 106 acres overall with agricultural currently on most of the sites. There are no permanent improvements or development throughout the Vision 2 PA AD, nor are any permanent improvements or development proposed with this request.

North is developed with a mix of residential and commercial while the south is partially developed with warehouses. All public notification requirements were met. A neighborhood meeting was held on April 21st, 2025 and one participant in support attended. This property is split into three main areas. In yellow is an area designated for overflow overflow parking to be utilized and converted as needed. In blue is parking and an unpaved area that's historically been used for special events.

The applicant proposes to utilize a portion of this area for sports fields. In green are sports fields regularly used on weekends for activities such as soccer and rugby. There are three access points circled in red. One on Ballpark Boulevard, which is the main public entrance and exit. One on Glendale Avenue to the north, which is the primary exit, and one on 99th Avenue, which is restricted to emergency access only.

Moving into staff's analysis of the findings, uh the vision 2 P A is intended for a master development, namely for a business park. Uh the proposed use, however, is a use as an interim prior to a master developer being identified for the PAD. The property is surrounded by undeveloped and agricultural land, but west across the loop 101 is the Westgate entertainment area.

The traffic plan that's included in your packet was reviewed and approved by the transportation department to manage circulation on site and while exiting the complex to mitigate any potential conflicts between Westgate events and events of the complex. The site is adequately sized with built-in overflow parking should the complex need. The access points that I previously mentioned connect the site to surrounding streets and internal drives run from these points.

Interior maneuverable areas will be covered in asphalt millings and compacted yearly to support the weight of vehicles. Stipulations on this application are detailed on my next slides. Staff recommends approval of CUP 2410 subject to the following stipulations. that development shall be in substantial conformance with the preliminary site plan, project narrative, and preliminary traffic plan stamped July 20th, 2026.

The egressonly driveway apron onto Glendel Avenue will be paved and maintained while the West Valley Events Complex is in operation. Pedestrian vehicular gates along 99th Avenue will only be accessible to emergency responders and shall not be accessed by the public. Event attendees and/or staff for the duration of the use of the subject property.

Annual soil compaction reports shall be provided to the city of Glendale fire department and special event staff for maneuverable areas throughout the site. Signage throughout the site shall be in conformance with Division 2 P A signage regulations. Special events and parking associated with these events shall be processed through the City of Glendale special event permitting.

Should operations cause significant and repeated disruption to the traffic flow on Glendale Avenue and Ballpark Boulevard, the development services, planning department, planning, and the transportation department may require the property owner to submit and secure approval of a traffic management plan demonstrating measures necessary to mitigate traffic impacts.

Conditional use permit CU 2410 shall be valid for eight years with the possibility of a one-time administrative extension of up to three years at the discretion of the deputy director or their design. And with that, that concludes staff's presentation. I'm happy to take any questions. Commissioners, anything for Mr. Chair? Commissioner Crow. So, it sounds like you're a little nervous about the traffic situation there. Uh through the chair, the traffic plan is included in your packet, right?

That's anticipating any potential traffic impacts. Uh but it has been reviewed reviewed and approved by the transportation department. Hence, that stipulation in case the traffic does increase or the flow changes. Okay. I'm sure we'll hear more from that on the app from the applicant. Thank you, Chair. Thank you, Mr. Okay. Would the applicant or applicants representative like to come forward, state your name for the record, and add anything? Mr. Chair, can you hear me? Okay. Mic. There you go.

I didn't hear. Okay, there we go. Perfect. For your record, I'm Taylor Earl with Earl and Curley. We're at 3101 North Central Avenue. So, here's what I'll do. I'll answer the question and then I'm happy to give a presentation, but I'm also happy not to. I know you have a lot on your agenda. So the answer is as we were working with staff, we threw that in there as a catch-all, as a sort of, hey, we have this all worked out.

But in the event that things are problematic, you have a hook in the cup basically in the in the stipulations that you can bring us back in and say, hey, it's not working. Let's figure this out, right? Because there is going to be some flexibility on the tournaments that we have in the games. And so that was more of a sort of belt and suspenders than any real stress that that we didn't have it figured out. Very good. Gentlemen, anything for Mr. Earl? You got all crazy tonight. All right. Okay.

I don't have any speaker cards, but are there any members of the audience that would like to speak? Okay. The public hearing for case number CUP 24-10 is now closed. Gentlemen, do I hear a motion? Mr. Chair, Commissioner Araniano, I'd like to move to approve CUP24-10 per the findings and subject to the stipulations contained in the staff report. Second. I have a motion and a second to approve CUP24-10. Are there any comments or further discussions gentlemen? Okay.

Hearing none, I will now conduct a roll call vote. Commissioner Crowe, I. Commissioner Gears, I. Vice Chair Cole, I. Commissioner Ariano, yes. Commissioner Johnson Vasquez, I. Chair votes I. Case number CUP 24-10 has been recommended for approval subject to the stipulations as outlined by staff. Mr. Gruber, what are the next steps? Chair and Commissioner, your action with respect to CUP 24-10 is final subject to a written appeal received within 15 days. Thank you, Mr. Guber.

Our next agenda item is case number Z25-12. Mr. Lurma. Good evening, Mr. Chair, members of the commission, before you is a request to reszone the subject property from light industrial and business park to planned area development. The PD will allow for development to retain existing entitlements and to add selected commercial uses. The selected property, the 67 acre site is located at the southwest corner of 51st Avenue and Bell Road and as bisected by Phelps Road.

The development is within the Sawarro district. The site site contains two parcels. The north parcel is zoned light industrial and the south parcel is zoned business park. Properties to the north are identified with a planned area development zoning classification. Properties to the south are zoned single family residential.

Properties to the east on the city of Phoenix municipal limits are zoned planned shopping center and single family residential and properties to the west are zone planned area development and business park. The subject property is historically been used for commercial office warehousing and business park uses. Site development commenced in 1982 with full buildout by the year 2000. Properties to the north are being currently being used for retail, restaurant, hospital, and office uses.

Properties to the south are being used for residential purposes. Properties to the east within the city of Phoenix municipal limits are being used for a place of worship and residential purposes. And the properties to the west are being used as a self-s storage facility and the AAA campus parking lot. The existing development has multiple points of access along Bell Road, 51st Avenue, 53rd Avenue, and Phelps Road.

The zoning action will establish necessary regulatory framework for on-site land uses, and future redevelopment opportunities. The PDA will retain the existing land uses, reinstate commercial uses historically allowed on site, and establish additional land uses which will be compatible with the surrounding area.

The site plan before you depicts the existing development conditions including access points, parking areas, building locations with 13 existing commercial buildings located on the north parcel and four buildings on the south parcel. The PD provides modified supplementary use regulations to allow flexible flexibility for those uses that are already established on site and to mitigate specific land uses from the adjacent single family residential development.

All public notification requires were met. An inerson neighborhood meeting was held on December 17th, 20, 2025. There were 14 attendings that attended Sent meeting. Those who attended had questions regarding the proposed on-site uses and requested that neither marijuana nor multif family uses be allowed on site. The applicant assured uh those who attended that neither marijuana uses or multif family uses would be allowed as part of the ped.

Through the review, staff has made the following findings. Historically, the south parcel has served as a transitional area between the light industrial uses to the north parcel and the single family residential uses directly south of the development. The south parcel has historically been regulated by the business park zoning district, limiting the type of uses allowed in this area and consequently limiting any negative impact to the residential area.

Site design has also served as a key component to mitigate on-site activity. Three out of the four buildings on the south parcel are at least 165 ft away from the shared property line to the residential development. The closest commercial building approximately 56 ft away from the residential shared property line is arranged so that the loading bays are oriented away from the residential uses.

The PED framework will the PED framework will continue to provide assurance that the buffering elements are implemented through site development standards and will provide restrictions for c certain activities through the supplementary use regulations including adequate separation from uncompat from incompatible land uses with the development site being fully operational. Site design has essent has been essential to ensure that safety and welfare of both patrons and employees.

All open areas will continue to be properly lit and visible from street view. Staff has worked closely with the applicant to include mitigation components in the PED narrative, including special separation, screening requirements, and operational restrictions for several land uses in an effort to be sensitive to the surrounding area. With this staff recommends that the planning commission forward a recommendation of approval to city council for zoning case 25-12 with a following stipulation.

Development shall be in substantial conformance with the 51 bells planned area development narrative final date stamp July 27th 2026. Mr. Chair, members of the commission, that concludes my presentation. Thank you Mr. Lurma. Gentlemen, anything from Mr. Lurma. Thank you, sir. Okay. Would the applicant or applicants representative like to come forward and state your name for the record and make your presentation? Mr. Earl.

First of all, bless staff for putting our two items together, which is awesome. Uh, for your record, Taylor Earl with Earl and Curly, 3101 North Central Avenue. Um, the only thing I'll say, and again, same thing. saying I have a presentation but happy to to not give it which is that we worked for a very long time with staff on this case. Um this is an existing center.

You can kind of think of this case as there were some some entitlements on the site that there was a letter and did the letter uh allow for things we've been doing them and there was some confusion on it and so this was a way that we said look we come with the PD and then we have the UDC which took certain uses out. So, this was a way for us to clean that all up, keep the center as is, make sure the list of uses were very clear.

We took some uses out that we didn't think worked, put some uses in that we thought would be really good for everybody to have. And so, this was a a a labor of love for staff and for us to work through and conditions that were placed on certain things. And so, there was a a lot of work and we got one stipulation on this guy, but it was also related to the narrative because there's a lot of work that went into that narrative to figure out.

He said, "When we talked to the neighbors, the things that they didn't want to see, marijuana uses, multif family, we just took those right out of the pad. We sent a letter to the neighbors that came to the meeting and said, "We told you we would do it. We did it. Here's how we did it." And we made sure they were aware of how we did it.

So, I think this has been a lot of work coming with staff, but I think the center's been healthy and I think the neighbors came and gave us that sentiment that, oh, you guys have been good neighbors here. And so, we're just making it stronger and making sure the entitlements are are clean. So, with that, Mr. Chair, I'm happy to answer questions. and I'm also happy to go through but we appreciate all the work staff's done on this. Commissioners, anything for Mr. Earl? Thank you, sir. Thank you.

Okay. I do not have any speaker cards, but if there are any members of the audience that would like to speak, please make yourself aware now. No. Okay. In that case, the public hearing for case number Z25-12 is now closed. And I'd like to make a motion to approve ZON25-12 subject to the stipulation outlined by staff. Do I hear a second? I'll second. Are there any further comments or discussion from the commissioners?

Okay, I have a motion and a second to approve case number Z25-12 subject to the stipulations as outlined by staff. I will now conduct the roll call vote. Commissioner Crowe, I. Commissioner Gears, I. Vice Chair Cole, I. Commissioner Ariano, I. Commissioner Johnson Vasquez, I. Chair votes I. Case number Z25-12 has been recommended for approval subject to stipulations as outlined by staff. Mr. Gruber, what are the next steps? Chair and Commissioner, your action with respect to Z25-12 is not final.

Your recommendation will be forwarded to the city council. Thank you, Mr. Griber. Our next agenda item is case number Z25-14. Mr. Tello, you present the case for us, please. Good evening again, chair and commissioners. I'll now be presenting ZON 2514 for Larksburg Energy Storage. This is a request to amend the Parkway 303 West P A with the intention of developing a battery energy storage system or BES, which is how I'll refer to the use throughout this presentation.

The property to the north and east are also within the Parkway 303 West P A. To the west is within the cotton 303 industrial pad and south across Olive Avenue is within Maricopa County. The subject property and the property to the north are currently used for agricultural purposes. To the east is an APS substation. West across Cotton Lane is an industrial development and south across Olive is a commercial plant nursery.

The conceptual site plan includes one access point on Cotton Lane which will be gated and accessed on an as needed basis by employees. No permanent employees will be on site with the majority of the land to be occupied by the battery containers as shown in green. The applicant proposes an on-site substation shown in yellow which is colllocated with the existing APS substation directly to the east of the site. All public notification requirements were met.

A neighborhood meeting was held on April 16th, 2026, which yielded no responses or attendees. When postcards were sent prior to this meeting, two emails in opposition were received by staff, but they were in reference to the use in general as opposed to the request before you. The PAD amendment is limited to a 37 acre section of the approximately 265 acre PAD.

Placement of the best use leverages existing infrastructure and performance standards to ensure the use is adequately buffered from existing and surrounding developments. As the project progressed through the resoning process, staff and the applicant discuss the appropriateness of permitting the use throughout the entire PAD versus the portion before you today. Ultimately, the best use is permitted solely in the southwest corner of the PAD to limit the area it may occupy.

Stipulations are included to require adherence to the performance standards upon development and to limit the amendment to a portion of the PAD. Should the planning commission recommend approval of ZON 2514, it should be subject to the following stipulations.

Development shall be in substantial conformance with the larks energy storage narrative date stamped received May 27th 2026 and a minor land division for the amended area shall be approved prior to the approval of the subsequent design review application. That concludes my presentation. I'm available for any questions. Commissioners, any questions for Miss Terrella? Vice Chair Cole, Mr. Trella, thank you for your presentation.

So that uh southwest corner of the P A will be amended to allow BES within that that section of the overall P A. My question is, will the existing P A permissible uses still apply to that southwest corner in addition to the best through the chair? Yes. This only adds this one additional use to this specific area. The Parkway 303 West P A actually reverts all entitlements other than this to the current zoning ordinance for the industrial um zoning district.

So theoretically, notwithstanding your site plan on the map there, a section of that could be developed with battery energy storage systems and the balance of the site could be developed with some other use through the chair. That is correct. Thank you for your answer. The rest of my questions, sir, for the applicant. Commissioners, anything further for Mr. Ella? Thank you, ma'am. Okay.

Would the applicant or applicant's representative like to come forward, state your name for the record, and make your presentation? Welcome. Thank you. Good evening. It's an honor to be here in these beautiful chambers. I'm Tom Galvin with Rose Law Group on behalf of the applicant, which is ES Volulta. And we just want to express appreciation for staff for working diligently with us over the past few months.

I'm joined tonight by my colleague from Rose Law Group, Chris Webb, but also members of the applicant themselves, including Chris Beasley and Michael Spielberg, who are ES Volulta, the developers of the project. And we're also joined by James Cfield of Fire and Risk Alliance, who is our safety expert, and they would be available to answer any technical questions if I'm unavailable unavailable to answer for you tonight. But if you don't mind, I want to go through a presentation. Mr.

Chairman, I want to see if this Here we go. So energy storage. What is a battery energy storage system which is known as BES? BES projects are essentially power producers that interconnect with existing electrical substations including operated by utilities like APS. BES stores excess energy when supply is high and when demand is low. BES then discharges stored energy when demand is high and supply is low.

best projects are being sought by APS in order to enhance grid reliability in Glendale and the entirety of the West Valley to meet the de u demands and growth that are occurring here in many exciting ways. I'm going to show you here a typical best enclosure overview and if I direct your attention here to the graphic here before you see at the very top is what is called the battery management system. Also to the upper left is a nonwalk-in steel enclosure.

We have battery modules, an integrated cooling system, and of course, safety controls. Typical best projects are comprised of lithium ion batteries housed within a series of all-w weather outdoor enclosures that are typically 9 to 10 ft long and about 20 ft long. I'm sorry, 9 to 10 ft tall and about 20 ft long. These enclosures include various safety controls and are paired with inverters controls meters transformers, and other equipment. I also want to introduce you to ES Volulta.

I think it's vitally important for you to know that this is one of the leaders in the best industry. This is not a fly by night company. This is not a company that's taking a a flyer here so to speak. EST is one of the leaders in best. So a quick introduction to ESV as a company. ES Walter is a very experienced developer, owner and operator of utility scale best projects.

They are based in the United States and have been developing and operating best projects across the country since 2017, virtually 10 years now. Their current portfolio consists of about 30 projects, which is a substantial portfolio. Their projects are located across the United States and include three projects that were recently approved here in the valley. And the image that you see here before you is from one of their projects in Texas.

I think location is the most important thing besides fire concerns or questions when you're talking about where a best can be appropriate located. And this proposal is ideally located within a growing industrial corridor. The proposed location for this larks energy storage project which is now proposed is about 550 megawws on approximately 37 acres as you heard earlier from staff and just a southwest cor portion of that pad.

The 37 acre site is part of an improved industrial commercial pad, but we're proposing to amend it to allow one of the permitted uses to be added. As Vice Chair Cole asked earlier this evening, the project is ideally located within a growing industrial corridor. It's surrounded by both existing and planned industrial uses, as you saw outlined earlier by staff in their presentation and also their report as you can see here in this aerial graphic before you.

Most importantly, it is situated immediately adjacent to the existing APS electrical substation that the project would connect to if they obtain the RFP with APS. This project is compatible with the surrounding area and that is very important key distinction for us to emphasize with you.

As you can see here, there are railroad tracks directly to the south, the APS substations directly to the east, there's an existing industrial site across the street to the west, and there's planned industrial and commercial to the rest of the P A, which is very key. And so, if we look in here at the zoomed area, we can see why the project is highly compatible with the surrounding area. And as you can see here, the loop 303 freeway is directly to the east as well.

To further um augment and butchers the argument that the project is compatible with the surrounding area, I want to highlight these key distinctions from you. The nearest residential home is 600 ft from the site on the other side of the railroad tracks at the intersection of Olive Avenue and Cotton Lane. The other residential areas are at least 1500 ft away. Some are about 1,700 feet away.

on the other side of the big warehouse facility that was recently completed substantially far away from the project. But this project would also be well buffered and screened if it is approved. And I want you to see how we highlight right here. We have a minimum of 150 ft perimeter setback to all best enclosures has been provided. We've also included a 15t landscape buffer adjacent to the streets frontage along both olive and cotton.

And finally, we will have an eight- foot tall block wall surrounding the project to provide proper screening, which I think is a very good idea to have, especially from a neighborly aspect. And those have been, I think, wellreceived with other projects around the country. Also, why do we want to need why do we need best and why do we want best? And here are the benefits of the best projects. This is an economic development component for the West Valley and for the valley as a whole.

As APS and other utilities are fighting to meet demand, BEST is a great technology right now that can be used and deployed in areas such as this. They improve electrical grid reliability and service, helping to prevent power outages by storing energy when it's needed most. This project will provide up to 550 megawatts of energy capacity, which can power hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses. Best projects have numerous public service benefits.

They place little demand on city services and resources, but they generate tax revenue and contributions to the area's GDP. Best projects also support local businesses and service, especially during the construction phase of the project. Now, I want to address uh any fire issues or concerns or questions that folks might have. This project will meet national safety standards. It is designed with active cooling systems to prevent overheating.

And I'm happy to say that our applicant, our client today met earlier this afternoon with Glendel Fire, which expressed support for the project and really appreciate all of the information and communication we have been providing them along the entire process. So I also want to show you that this utilizes lithium, iron, and phosphate chemistry, which is proven to be safe with a very low fire risk due to thermal and chemical stability. The project is under 247 remote monitoring.

any incident will result in real- time notification to Glendale's fire department. The project has been designed with proper physical spacing between best enclosures. And I think that's an important thing. I want to stop right here. When you space the project, when you space these uh battery systems far apart from each other, you're now preventing one from letting another one catch on fire. So, these are purposely designed that way.

And through the last 10 years or more of research and experience, they have figured out the best ways to space these apart from each other. There are numerous sensors to detect heat, smoke, or gas very early on. There's an active ventilation system that prevents buildup of flammable gases as well as vents which can open up as a backup measure in case of an incident. And finally, it has remote shutdown capability and numerous notification systems in place.

And as I said earlier, we do have our fire safety expert here today, James Caulfield with the group called Fire Risk Alliance, and he can answer any specific questions you might have. As I mentioned earlier, we have been coordinating with the Glendale City Fire Department. We met with them again this afternoon, and specifically, we're working with the fire department to help with any additional funding to equip the new fire station planned at Northern Avenue.

Our initial project application design have been reviewed with the city's fire departments and all of their comments have been addressed right through this afternoon. We have coordinated on-site access for emergency responders. We will develop an emergency response plan in collaboration with the city's fire department. And finally, ES Volta's team will provide response training for all local emergency responders.

Also want to point out um in addition to the economic development benefits why lark spur energy storage would be a good neighbor. Significantly less water consumption compared to planned industrial and commercial land uses and significantly less traffic compared to other planned industrial and commercial land uses. You will basically have the batteries right there.

You would have significantly less traffic than you have otherwise with other industrial uses that are already approved for this location. Much less water demand. In addition to its compatibility, we've seen these land uses that we've already discussed. The project significantly reduces water consumption in relation to the other matters. And I believe this concludes my presentation. I appreciate your time and thank you for listening. We're happy to answer any questions you might have.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. In your other projects, how often do you have the necessity to evacuate gas, flammable gas or toxic gas from the batteries? Mr. Chairman, if you don't mind, since that's a very company specific question, I'm going to ask someone from the company to answer that question. State your name while you speak. Hey, uh, thank you for having us today. My name is Chris Beasley with ES Volulta. Uh, do y'all need my address, please?

776 North Ottabon Road, Indianapolis, Indiana 46219. Um, at our facilities, we haven't had uh any fire events to date. Of course, they they can happen, but you know, our mentality is always, you know, do everything you can do to to ensure that it won't happen. If it does happen, you've got an emergency response plan and uh everything's set up so you can respond appropriately and safely. Um, as far as the actual cells offging, I I can't accurately uh respond to that question.

Uh, there are times when a cell might fail. It'll off gas safely. Um, might be logged. U, I'm not sure it is logged, but it's not it's not a number that I have available for you today. So, where does the gas go when you evacuate it out? Uh, it simply evacuates into the air. So, it's not filtered. It is not filtered. Okay. Commissioners, Vice Chair Cole. Thank you, Mr. Chair, Mr. Galvin, uh, your P Amendment document does mention that, uh, fire protection will be managed by the city of Glendale.

You know what the closest Glendale Fire Station is to this site? I do not know. It's 13 miles away. Station 158. It's on Maryland and 83rd Avenue. Do you know where the what the closest fire station is to the site? I do not know. Okay. It's a rural metro station that's not part of the automatic aid consortium. Um the your your submittal showed the P A the Parkway West 303. I think this is uh I'll just pull it out.

This is a footprint of the Parkway West 303 and it shows the site footprint for the proposed amendment. It shows a couple of buildings there, but there's no intention to put battery energy storage systems under roof. Is there? No. Okay, that's comforting to hear. And I think I can speak on virtually all B systems now. They're not placed under a roof for fire concerns and basically through knowledge and in history and experience.

I do want to point out you did ask a question through I'm sorry through Mr. Chairman, Mr. Cole about fire station locations. I apologize I didn't know the exact locations but this project would be slated to begin uh in 2030 and then phase two in 2031. So if the city was planning to have other fire stations constructed closer before then, I think that would be beneficial.

And then obviously with any other industrial or commercial use, even for the ones already approved for this site, there would already be a risk of a fire. There is a very low risk of a fire here with best projects, but I do understand uh the questions and the reason why you asked. I I appreciate your recognition of that. Um it's, you know, it's it's my great fortune and my great curse that I spent a long time in the fire department in Glendale and out in the West Valley.

So, um, I do have some comments, sir. I think it's appropriate for the comment period, but I think the Mr. Gins's answered my questions. Okay, Mr. Chairman, if I may, I would like to bring up the fire consultant to kind of give an overview of the concerns that were addressed by your colleague, Mr. Cole, and anything I might not have brought up either that he thinks would be good to be brought to your attention. Thank you.

If I may, chair uh Chris Webb with Rose Law Group, I wanted to um address vice chair Cole's question about the fire station. Um so, uh with respect to proximity of fire stations, um as as Tom mentioned, we just left a meeting um second meeting with the with the fire department. Um Glendel Fire Department has plans um and it's in your CIP budget for a new fire station that'll be located at the northeast corner of Northern and Cavel, which is about a mile and a half from our site.

Um the city already owns the land. Um and so the the meeting that we had with them was to talk about um how to provide some additional funding for some additional equipment for that. So um that is planned. Um the uh the timeline for that funding aligns pretty well with when this project would come online, but the objective of our discussions with the fire department um and with uh city management who was also in that meeting is to move that timeline up.

So, um, yes, we're we're aware that currently, um, there is not a Glendale Fire Department in close proximity, um, or excuse me, a fire station in close proximity, but there will be, um, in the very near future, a mile and a half away. Additionally, because of the, um, the automatic aid system that's in place.

There are fire stations from Surprise and others that are much closer and can respond quickly, but the bottom line is Glendale will have a fire station in very close proximity in the next handful of years. Mr. Sure. If I may go ahead, Mr. Webb. Um, since you mentioned automatic aid. Yeah.

Um, unless they've happened at a very different level, I personally have spoken to the leadership of both the Goodyear and the Glendel, excuse me, the Surprise Fire departments who were blissfully unaware of this project. Um, are you aware of the discussion right now in in Surprise, Arizona on setbacks for best? Yes. I don't know if they made a decision recently, but their staff's recommendation was 1,500 foot setback. Yes, we're aware. I I will, Mr.

Chairman, if I may, I will say that 1500 foot setback is considerably larger than other setbacks in the valley. Mesa did a new ordinance last year. Um I believe their setback I believe was 100 feet from residential. Um ours here would be 150 which I think is also substantial. And also we're not near any residential uses as we pointed out about 600 ft in one direction and 1500 ft in the other direction.

And I I would be remiss if I didn't mention we did say in the presentation earlier that we would contribute funding for that new fire station at Northern that and that's noteworthy, Mr. Chair. Um, I think the 1500, just for point of information, the 1500 foot recommendation from staff comes out of the fire department emergency response guide. Um, and I know it's not an industry standard by any means.

Um would would you think it's fair to say that there's no settled in the valley or even nationwide there's no really settled safe setback distance agreed upon industrywide? Mr. Chairman, I would say that each municipality has decided what they think is the best number to arrive at. Obviously, the one in Mesa is considerably different than the one in Surprise. I will say that the one in Surprise has been an outlier. I cannot speak on what's going on across the country.

Um, I also do want to point out that there is a growing demand for electricity here in the valley, especially in the West Valley. It's the fastest growing part of the state, if not the country. Utilities like APS are looking for different opportunities to find ways to obtain power and to do it at times when the demand is high. Um, being located directly next to a substation is ideal. Um, you don't want to put best projects obviously smack dab in the middle of a residential neighborhood.

you want to have them near substations is where I'm seeing them go in other different cities in the valley. Obviously, the setback I believe is a policy called by the city. Um, and any which number that the cities arrive at, I think we would respect, but I do believe the surprise number is significantly different than other cities. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, if I may, Mr. Web, if you don't mind, thanks. Just stay here. I'll stay here. Sorry. I'll stay here.

Would you agree that in the event of thermal runaway of multiple multiple best units, the the tactics and strategy of the fire department are more or less surround and drown, stay back and let the thing burn. Uh, Vice Chair Cole, that is my understanding. However, I will caveat that statement by saying I am not our fire safety expert. So, I'd like to have James answer that question.

I I was in the meeting with the fire department, so wanted to speak to the fire station issue, but James is our fire safety expert if that's okay with the chair to have him address that. Please come forward. Yes, sir. Thank you. James Cfield, 7620 Standish Place, Rockville, Maryland. Uh, just a little bit of background. I am a senior fire protection consultant for fire and risk alliance. We are a third party engineering company. Um I like to say it though I am a firefighter not a fire engineer.

So sir thank you for your service. I have 23 years in the fire service. So my job is to travel internationally training fire departments educating communities on what response to battery energy storage looks like. So just to give a little context, I do not work for ESVA, but the company I work for and my 23 years of service and my continued education in battery energy storage response is where I'm going to be answering these questions from.

So with that being said, sir, to your point, um if there is a fire and a battery energy storage system, the response is somewhat to that effect. We are going to manage our exposures or do some exposure protection. So, we're not going to apply water to the container that's on fire. That'll actually prolong the event.

So, in the emergency response training that we conduct with our local resources, um we're going to advise them to set up an exclusion area, set up unmanned monitors, and apply intermittent water to the adjacent containers while you monitor your data points. And the event, yes, is ultimately the energy is going to burn itself out. Um just in respect to spacing right right now what they're doing is largecale battery testing. So they're actually lighting these containers on fire.

We conducted one here in Arizona and the spacing they get from the manufacturer is to ensure that there's no propagation from one container to the next and that's without any intervention. So that's without any water being applied. So there's a lot more technical information that I would be happy to share with you um if there are any specific questions. Please. Um there's a lot of codes and things we could discuss as well. Mr. Chair, thank you, Mr. Coughfield.

Yeah, exposure protection and then and let the thing the fuel basically run out. So would you agree that under those terms that you know considering the neighborhood's protected uh from fire that the risk is is environmental? The risk is is the plume and in the air. So, I' I'd be happy to discuss the plume. Um, and I'm it's always nice to have a firefighter on the board because you can kind of relate. So, when we talk about a plume, we do a plume study.

So, what I could do is I can tell you and show you exactly what the constituents are burning in a battery energy storage fire. They do not change. So, hydrogen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide are your three prevalent elements. Are they harmful? Yes. But the fires are considerably the same off um constituents as you have in a house fire. The difference is when we go to a house fire, you don't know what's burning. You go to a garage fire, sir, I can bring you to some pretty bad constituents.

Fertilizer, gasoline, kerosene, spare siding, but I don't know what's burning. So there's no such thing as a good fire. You and I both know that. And that's the industry that we operate in. But when we talk about plume, I can identify the three gases. I can tell you how those gases behave. And on our hazard response training with the fire department, you're going to set up some air monitoring. 200 f feet from the fence line, which I think is a little more than needed.

But if you're not detecting those gases at 200 feet, you're not going to detect them further because they rise and they dissipate. So I understand that when you see the plume, we would like to know what's in it. Battery fires, I can tell you exactly what's in it. all of these other fires industrial commercial residential, vehicle, we don't know that. To me, that's more of a concern. Thank you, Mr. Coughfield.

And and just another point of information, I'm aware of local jurisdictions that are requiring a plume analysis as part of the submitt. Um, I just think that might be a great addition to your packet. Uh, thank you for indulging me, Mr. Chair, and my questions are answered. Thank you, commissioners. I have one more question. How many sites did you say you had? 32 or 30? 30. Around around 30 is what I said. Okay.

Have you ever had a situation where you had a fire or you had to uh exhaust any of the gases or anything? I don't believe on any site. Nope. I'm going to answer for the applicant. Say no. Thank you, commissioners. You asked my question, gentlemen. Thank you so much. Thank you. We appreciate your time and thank you for your questions. I do not have any speaker cards, but are there any members of the audience that would like to speak? Okay.

In that case, the public hearing for case number Z25-14 is now closed. Do I hear a motion? Mr. Chair, Commissioner Ariano, I move to recommend the approval of Z25-14 subject to the stipulations as outlined by staff. Do I hear a second? Chairman second. Commissioner Gear second. Thank you. Are there any further comments or discussion regarding case number Z25-14 from the commissioners? Mr. Chair, Mr. Vice Chair, I appreciate the presentation.

I appreciate you having staff here to answer answer our questions. um you know, having served with the Glendale Fire Department for 20 years and served at a a senior level, um and then, you know, working in a in a neighboring city for another eight years and serving on this commission for I think five or six now. Um I've seen the struggles that Glendale's been through. I've seen good times, bad times. I've seen cap bud uh capital expenditure budgets come and go. I've seen stations move.

I've seen them be this on this footprint of the 303, the station that was planned originally for it's moved three or four times. I I just personally don't have enough information and confidence that this is a plan that's going to come together to provide the proper level of fire protection. And I certainly am a little bit troubled that the the automatic aid consortium wasn't brought into some discussion, at least awareness about this project.

Uh considering the fact that Glendel hasn't hasn't protected this area and they've been building and annexing and and and reszoning whole who whole who whole scale wholesale out there. So, um, my two cents, uh, I hate to get up on my soap box, but I have a passion for this, and I I just really think that there needs to be a more solid fire plan from the city of Glendale before I could support a project of this magnitude. Thank you for indulging me, sir.

Well, I I have to say that um to a certain extent I'm in agreement with Vice Chair Cole, but I also have faith in in the uh staff that they're not going to let anything go ary here. uh and they've worked long and hard on this and I'm I'm sure with the expertise and the comments that Vice Chair Cole has made that they're going to probably follow through on that and uh make sure that this situation is not out of control. So anyway, commissioners, anything else?

Chair, I have a question for for staff. Could it Commissioner Crow? So you're outside the 600t boundary. We get that. So you didn't have to notify the neighbors. But in any cases like this where it's uh you know there's some environmental risks, there's some fire risks uh that Chairman Cole illustrated, do we do we um extend that 600 foot uh through the chair commissioner. Uh there is a minimum notification requirement which was met.

uh it can be recommended and the applicant can choose to extend it. We recommended by staff to extend it as well. Uh but it ultimately was not pursued in this case due to the large industrial properties even extending it to the next step up which would be like 900 ft would still reach solely the industrial properties for the most. So staff actually did consider it. You just felt that because of the industrial base around it that even if we go out 900 feet, we're really not talking to residences.

So, you did consider it through the chair. Yes. Uh, it's not something that I can require of applicants. I see. Thank you. Yeah, that's all right. Vice Chair Cole, it's been a long day.

Another concern I have is the the PA AD amendment and the potential if phase one goes in and then there's a change in the economy, change in the company, change in ownership, uh the the concept that uh part of the southwest corner would still fall under the pad and could be developed with something besides best is troubling to me, I would much rather see that southwest corner zoned in a heavy industrial dedicated uh to best and and not to any other types of uh use. So, thank you for that. Mr.

Copra, is that something that you could look into? Chairman, um and vice chair. Yes, definitely we will and we will also make sure through our um our fire marshall to also have applicant connect with the mutual aid with in the surrounding cities. All of I've been taking notes this whole time commissioners. Thank you. Okay. Okay. I have a motion and a second to approve case number Z25-14 subject to the stipulations as outlined by staff. I will now call a roll call vote. Commissioner Crow. I.

Commissioner Gears. I. Vice Chair Cole. Mr. Chair, under the circumstances, I'm a no. Commissioner Ariano. Yes. Commissioner Johnson Vasquez. I. I'm sorry. I Yes. Thank you. Chair votes I. Okay. Case number Z25-14 has been recommended for approval subject to stipulations as outlined by staff. Mr. Gruber, what are the next steps? Chair and commission, your approval of ZON25-14 is not final. Your recommendation will be forwarded to the city council. Thank you. Okay.

Our next agenda item is CU 26-06. Miss Shudy will present the case. Good evening, chairpersons and commissioners. I will be presenting application CUP26-06 for Chick-fil-A, a restaurant with a double lane drive-thru. Today's request is for planning commission to approve a conditional use permit for a restaurant with a double lane drive-thru in the general commercial C-2 zoning district. The property is located at the northeast corner of Bell Road and 57th Avenue.

As you can see on the zoning map, the property is zone C-2 and so are the properties to its north, east, and west. The properties to its south across from Bell Road are zone P A planned area development in the C-2 zoning district. Per the unified development code, a proposed drive-thru within 500 ft of any single family zone property shall require a conditional use permit. As shown on the aerial, this is a developed site within an existing retail shopping center at a city commercial node.

The existing parcel is in a developed retail commercial center with existing access points off of Bell Road and 57th Avenue. The applicant is proposing to demolish the existing building on site and construct a new building which is highlighted in orange on the conceptual site plan in front of you. The drive-through lanes will have shade canopies extending over both lanes and located over order point and meal fulfillment areas. These are highlighted in blue.

A traffic impact analysis with the queuing memorandum was provided and reviewed with the cup submitt. These are the submitted conceptual elevations by the applicant. The proposed restaurant building will be 22 ft high. The applicant has completed all necessary steps in the public participation process. A virtual neighborhood meeting was conducted by the applicant on January 21st, 2026. One person was in attendance and had concerns about traffic in fast food restaurants.

The planner received two emails in opposition. The details are provided in the applicant citizen participation final report which is attached. After the mailing of postcards, the planner received one call in support of this project. The proposed use is consistent with the sorry with the property's general plan designation of general commercial and the purpose and intent of C-2 zoning district.

The use is proposed on a parcel within a larger developed retail shopping center and located at an established commercial node. The proposed use adds to the existing diversity of commercial uses and services and is complimentary to those existing in the shopping center and along Bell Road. A high-quality project will be assured through required planning processes should the CUP be approved.

Based on the city staff review of the CUP submitt, the commercial property has sufficient parking and access points to accommodate the proposed use. The 1.79 acre parcel is adequate in size for the proposed use and the applicant is proposing necessary site improvements to accommodate the business activities on site. The site has adequate access on site and to public roadways. The applicant is proposing sufficient parking as required per the UDC.

Their submitted TIA including a queueing memorandum was has gone through a preliminary review with the city transportation staff and planning staff. Staff are not recommending any additional stipulations for the approval of the cup other than the one listed on the next slide. Should the CUP be approved, the project will follow required planning processes for staff to further review and approve necessary documents. Staff recommends approval of CUP 26-06 subject to the following stipulation.

Development shall be in substantial conformance with the project narrative date stamped received March 13, 2026. This concludes my presentation and I'm happy to answer any questions. Commissioners, commissioners, any questions? Chair, I just have a question about congestion. Will it be contained within the property site and not onto the the streets? Thank you, chair, commissioner. That would be the applicant team. Um, but to answer your question, yes.

um they were required by the city transportation staff to submit a traffic impact statement along with a queuing memorandum. There was a preliminary review through the CUP process and there were no glaring issues. Um but should the CUP be approved as I stated in my staff report uh the applicant will be going through the required uh zoning process.

In this scenario it will be the design review major where this document will be further reviewed critically by the staff and finalized in coordination with the applicant. Thank you chair commissioner Crow. Aren't the sites usually about 1.5 acres? Aren't there typical sites about 1.5 acres? This is 175. It's a little little larger than the usual through the chair. Uh commissioner, are you asking? Uh Chick-fil-A sites are normally about 1.5 acres, I think. Is that correct?

Through the chair or commissioner, I am not aware of this fact, but I will defer to the applicant on this. No problem. Thank you. Okay. Would the applicant or applicants representative like to come forward, state your name for the record, and answer any questions? Thank you, Mr. Chair. Um, I'm David Openshaw with 4G Development Consulting, uh, representing Chick-fil-A at, uh, 105 Progress, Irvine, California 92618. Um, so we don't have a presentation to give.

Um, we feel that Gor did a fantastic job and we really appreciate her help thus far. So, we're just here to answer any questions. We came today with Chick-fil-A um to answer any Chick-fil-A specific questions for you. Our civil engineer to answer civil questions or traffic questions and uh um actually an operator came from the Thunderbird uh store to show support today. Well, we got one pending question probably for the engineer, I would guess. Maybe sight size. Average site size.

Oh, average site size. Um, go. You want to come up? Eric Baker. I'm on staff with Chick-fil-A. Also from Irvine, California. I'm sorry. Get the name, please. Eric Baker. There you go. Also from Irvine, California. Same address. Um, to answer your question, sir, that we've kind of gone from one acre sites historically to two acres was kind of the ideal coming out of COVID with the drive-through volumes that we experienced. And now, you're absolutely right.

one and a half to 1.75 is our kind of sweet spot. And if you look at the queueing queuing analysis that was conducted, um it shows that we have 660 ft of queuing within our drive-thru proper, which at the 22 foot average vehicle length for this area. Um that gives us 30 cars. Our peak at the analyzed restaurants was 27, 29, and 21 respectively. So, we anticipate being able to queue everything not only on parcel but within those two drive-through lanes.

And chair and one of your analyzed restaurants was only two miles away. So, that'll reduce traffic that you would normally have. That's absolutely correct. Yep. And not that. So, that is a smaller site. It has its challenges. It's been through a reinvestment uh recently to try to solve some of that. And this restaurant is intended to deliberately impact that store so that we can make the experience better for guests here and guests there. Sir, thank you, gentlemen. Thank you.

Okay, I do not have any speaker cards, but are there any members of the audience that would like to speak? Okay, hearing none, the public hear for case number CUP26-06 is now closed. Do I hear a motion? Chair, I recommend approval of CUB26-06. Thank you, Commissioner Crow. Second. Thank you, Vice Chair Cole. I have a second and a motion. Any further discussions, gentlemen? Chair, we simply can't have enough Chick-fil-A. We need more. Where's the closest fire station? Joke. Joking. Just kidding.

Thank you, gentlemen. Okay. I have a motion and a second to approve case number CUP 262 26-06 subject to the stipulations as outlined by staff. I will now conduct the roll call vote. Commissioner Crow, I. Commissioner Gears, hi. Vice Chair Cole, I. Commissioner Araniano, yes. Commissioner Johnson Vasquez, I. Chair votes I. Case number CUP26-06 has been recommended for approval subject to the stipulations as outlined by staff. Mr. Kruber, what are the next steps?

Chair and Commission, your action with respect to case number CUP26-06 is final subject to a written appeal received within 15 days. Thank you, Mr. Guber. Our next agenda item is case number CUP26-07. Mr. Martinez. Good evening, Chairman Crow and Commissioners. The applicant is the applicant seeks to develop a minor automotive repair and service facility in the C2 general commercial district where a conditional use permit is required for such use.

On the slide before you, one will find the subject property highlighted in yellow. In addition, there are commercial designations in the vicinity, particularly at the intersection of 83rd Avenue and Camelback Road. Staff finds this proposed use to be suitable for the existing commercial node and to the surrounding area. One will find the subject property in a red highlight on the current slide.

The use is proposed to be located within the existing building which was previously an advanced auto parts store. The applicant's concept plan depicts a 6,914t minor auto repair and service facility. Garage doors are located on the north on the north and south facads of the building and the site is screened from the residential properties to the north by an existing 10-ft masonry wall. In addition, the code prohibits services from being conducted outdoors.

The applicant conducted citizen participation and public notification procedures in accordance with the city's unified development code. The applicant's final citizen participation report is attached to the staff report. The proposed CUP is consistent with the existing general plan designation plan commercial. Furthermore, the proposed use is compatible with the subject property and the surrounding area. The use is proposed in a commercial node accessed from arterial streets.

In addition, staff recommends stipulations to ensure the appropriateness of this use at this location. Staff recommends approval of CUP26-07 subject to the conditions described in the staff report and depicted on the current slide. This concludes my presentation and the applicant and I will be happy to address any questions that you may have. In addition, the applicant is or the applicant has a presentation if they would like to present. Thank you. Any questions? Thank you, Mr. Martinez.

Would the applicant or applicant select representative like to come forward and state your name for the record and make any presentation? Uh, good evening, chair, members of the commission. Brennan Ray, 2325 East Camelback here on behalf of the applicant. I'm happy to go through a full presentation if you would like. Um, we appreciate working with staff. uh excited to be able to talk about an adaptive reuse uh of a building um and uh would request your approval.

Again, happy to answer any questions or go through a full presentation should you want me to. Commissioners, anything for Mr. Ray? Yes, sir. Commissioner Gears. So, this is an automotive repair and service. So, how many bays are you going to have? How many cars can you repair? on to do a presentation if it it's a small site or is it going to be a large uh through the chair commissioner. Um it's an existing building.

It's an advanced auto parts store uh that they are effectively gutting and having the service bays uh inside the building itself. Um and if I remember from the site plan and I can certainly pull it up, I believe there are between six and eight bays that will be within uh that will be inside of the building uh where all the operations will occur. Thank you, commissioners. Anything else for Mr. Ray? Thank you, sir. Thank you. Appreciate it. Okay.

I do not have any speaker cards, but are there any members of the audience that would like to speak? Okay, having none, the public hearing for case number CUP26-07 is now closed. Gentlemen, do I hear a motion? Chair, I move to approve CUP26-07 per the findings and subject to the stipulation in the staff report. Second. Are there any further comments or discussions on CUP26-07 by the commission? Okay.

I have a motion and a second to approve case number CUP 2026-07 subject to the stipulations outlined by staff. I will now conduct the roll call vote. Commissioner Crow, I. Commissioner Gears, I. Vice Chair Cole, I. Commissioner Ariano, yes. Commissioner Johnson Vasquez, I. Chair votes I. CU 26-07 has been recommended for approval subject to the stipulations as outlined by staff. Mr. Guber, once again, what are the next steps?

Chair and Commission, your recommendation of CUP26-07 is final subject to a written appeal received within 15 days. Thank you, Mr. Gruber. Mr. Derella Chairman, before we go to the next agenda, we just wanted to for the record catch who made the second vote, the seconded the vote. Thank you. Thank you, ma'am. Mr. Ella. Thank you very much. Uh I will be presenting Zen 2602 for the Opus and Talavi P Amendment.

This is a proposal to amend the a portion of the Talavi Business Park P A to allow a mix of light industrial and commercial uses. The property is zoned P A and the properties to the north and west are also zoned P A within the TAVI business park. The property to the east is zoned for single family residential with a planned residential development overlay. To the south is zone for suburban residential, also with a planned residential development overlay.

North and west of the property are professional office uses. To the east is is an existing elementary school and to the south is a single family residential subdivision. All public notification requirements were met. An informal notification letter was sent which received five responses which included general questions and questions about proposed uses. The formal notification letter resulted in three responses.

One regarding the proposed scope of the amendment and two in opposition to the development of the property as opposed to the amendment itself. The neighborhood meeting on April 7th, 2026 was attended by one property owner who had questions about the proposed uses and prompted several revisions after discussion with staff and applicant. After the notices of public hearing were sent, one response was received in support of the application.

This amendment provides a mix of uses appropriate to the surrounding developments and uses which are complimentary in intensity to the other uses within the pad. Provides a mix of light industrial and commercial and provides opportunities to develop a an infill property. The proposal provides a thoughtful mix of uses with some supplemental use regulations which place conditions on those individual operations.

Minor and major amendments to this portion of the P AD are well defined to ensure that city staff work with applicants to mitigate any potential impacts. Should the commission move to approve and recommend to approve Z2602, it should be subject to the following stipulation that development shall be in substantial conformance with the Tilavi Pad amendment date stamped received July 20th 2026. That concludes my presentation and I'm available for any questions. Commissioners, any questions for Mr.

Terrell? Thank you so much. Okay. Would the applicant or applicant's representative like to come forward, state your name for the record, and make any presentation? Good evening, chairman and members of the commission. My name is Shane Almond with Tiffany Embosco, address 1850 North Central in Phoenix, Arizona. I'm grateful that I'm up here within an hour and 15 minutes. I was at a public hearing yesterday, started at 9:30 and I was last on the agenda. Didn't get out till 4 p.m.

So, appreciate your efficiency uh tonight. Um I'm here uh representing Opus Development for this property that they have currently uh they've they've recently acquired. Um and I I first want to give a shout out to um Sydney. She's been wonderful to work with. And I'm not just kissing up to the planning staff. I work in a lot of planning departments across the valley and I'm I think I'm working with almost every planner right now.

uh in your staff and they are just they're absolutely wonderful and um grateful to work with them. Uh Sydney's been particularly um great to work with on this as um we started out with this project um looking at the the P A that was approved back in 1985. And as you could imagine several decades later um things have changed with definitions, things have changed with markets um that have come.

And one of the things that you see um when you look at this site is that we are one of the last vacant parcels um here. This this property has been a challenge to to have a user on it since the 1980s. Most of the rest of the Talabi Pad has developed um with the with the proposed uses or with the approved uses within there of commercial flex light industrial um and business park type uses.

Um so we started out with um looking at this property and looking at the P AD and one of the users that we really wanted to um target was um those technical the technical users uh really with the semiconductor business and you know currently is the way that it's read. We wanted to make sure it's clarified with this parcel only. So the request before you tonight is only to amend the PAD for this parcel here, not for the rest of the the Tilavi Pad. And it's only regarding the use the uses.

One of the things that was approved as part of this um Tilavi Pad back in the 1980s was 110 foot Burm that's currently owned not by my client but the association that will be maintained 110T burm that's that's there between uh Paradise Lane and uh my client's property. Um there were additional development standards that were also approved which we are not proposing to change at all. Um one of those was regarding height.

Uh so when you have a building that's uh 20 to 25 ft height on this parcel, you have an additional 116 ft setback from that 110 burm. And we will be actually we will have a setback that's a little bit more um than that 116T setback. So we're and and as far as the setback standards, landscaping uh standards, parking standards, we are not asking to amit any of those.

It was just to refine some of those uses and grateful to work with um with staff on that as we're working through um on the property. At the end of the day, we did have some individuals that that posted some emails when we f first sent out an email before we um submitted the P A. uh they were really just I think about the use in general or just the uses in general, no development, it's going to bring traffic and all of those things.

Um and staff as after talking with staff, they felt that the um the things that they were saying were really levied at just things that are already allowed uh within the when the within the property development. Um, and so we had another gentleman who I believe is here tonight who attended our neighborhood meeting. Um, and I worked with him afterwards and was sent him the the use list and the different things that we were doing answering his questions.

I believe I've answered all of the questions that he has um, regarding that. But we're we're grateful to have been working with staff um, and with um, with the neighbors on this. What I will tell you is that just in the last month or so, we were able to attract a user that will be um allowed under this this PA AD.

Um my client went through a development um review which is not part of this application, but it's already been approved for the designer review because we are following all all of the development standards. Um and so you can see here just the the layout that we have approved with two access points onto Beverly Lane. um having the proposed building, having some truck access to the back that's shielded away from the neighbors.

We'll have con screening, landscaping, all of those things to screen from the neighbors, which follows um the intent and the development standards that are currently within the Tilavi P8, which we ask for no modifications for uh whatsoever. Um so with that, we're we're excited to to move forward with the users that are um coming to the site uh that will support the semiconductor industry. Um, and I'm happy to answer any questions.

We believe that we've addressed all of the concerns and questions that have come up from staff. Uh, we support this the stipulations and um, happy to answer any questions that you might have. Commissioners, anything from Mr. Alman? Thank you, sir. Thank you. I do not have any speaker cards, but are there any members of the audience that would like to speak? Okay. Hearing none, the public hearing for case number Z. Oh, I'm sorry. So sorry. Please come forward. Didn't mean to miss you there, sir.

That's all right. I'm I'm pretty short. Uh my name is Peter Brady. I live on Paradise Lane, just to the south of this development. And I had a question for staff. are the restrictions that were adopted when the P A was originally allowed or created being maintained because at the time our concern was uh retaining the residential character of the neighborhood. There were restrictions on noise level and and bright lights.

And since the landscape buffer uh hasn't been maintained or even established as was originally agreed to and it's been very difficult over the years to get the city to do anything about it. It makes me concerned that the noise levels or lights whether those are uh the same restrictions that were incorporated when we agreed to the P A still uh Okay. Could we could we have your name and address, please? Oh, yeah. Peter Brady, 5519 West Paradise Lane, 85306-2417. Thank you, Mr. Brady. Okay.

Now, what was your question? I'm sorry. There's back in the 80s when we agreed with the city and the developer to the P A, there were restrictions that the neighborhood wanted. They were supposed to be incorporated into the restrictions on the property. My question is, have any of those been changed with these new uses? Mr. Ella, thank you, Mr. Brady. Uh, through the chair, no, none of those uh elements have changed.

The noise ordinances and the dark skies ordinances are still in place in the city. So, it's only a new set of uses that are being proposed. The supplemental use regulations that are in the PAD as well, um I believe they're they're published and they're on the packet too. Uh they'll actually require extra protections, extra setbacks, extra screening, too. So, that's adding an additional layer of buffering. Also, the development that Mr.

Alman had mentioned earlier is going to provide not only lighting that is in line with the dark skies ordinance and uh they're also going to be providing landscaping on site as well. So furthering that buffer in between that actual setback from the building and the property line. Well, the the the landscape the landscaping that was originally promised never materialized on the top of the buffer.

And in the last 40 years, the landscape buffer, which was originally 13 feet high, has has shrunken as one would expect over time. So, Mr. Chair, members of the commission, so just to answer on that, Mr. Alman again, right? What's that, Mr. Alman? That's right. Um so um so in regards to the the buffer that's there, it's 110 foot buffer as you know and we don't own that. It's part of the association.

We've actually reached out to the association because some of the questions that we got including from Mr. Brady were regarding the landscaping that I guess was discussed back then. I believe that there was a notice of violation or maybe even a citation case that was that has been done in the past. But as far as um the landscaping of it, I will say that it is a significant burm still.

One of the things that's happening also that that we that we're very aware of is that there's trespassers and dumping happening um on our property. Um they're walking through that and using the burm. So, one of the great things that will happen as part of this development is that that will stop because we're the last development. We're the last vacant development that's open for that trespassing to occur or any of the dumping to occur.

But um we're happy to discuss this with the HUA again regarding the the vegetation but it's outside of our control um as far we are um adhering to the 110 foot and then the additional I think we have 126 foot buffer which is 10 ft beyond what is required um there. So we are are meeting our obligations and requirements for the development standards.

So that to to piggyback on what Sydney said as well, yes, we're not with those protections that were all um discussed with the neighbors and approved as part of the original PD. They're all staying in place. This is not we're not asking for any changes to development standards with the protective standards that were um approved as part of that original case. Okay. Thank you, Mr. Alman. Thank you, Mr. Brady. All right. Thank you. Okay. Now the public hearing for case number Z26-02 is now closed.

Do I hear a motion? Mr. Chair, Vice Chair Cole, I move to recommend approval of Z26-02 subject to the stipulation in the staff presentation. Second. Commissioners, are there any further comments or discussions regarding case number Z26-02? Okay, I have a motion and a second to approve case number Z26-02 subject to the stipulations outlined by staff. I will now conduct a roll call vote. Commissioner Crow, I. Commissioner Gears, I. Vice Chair Cole, I. Commissioner Ariano, I.

Commissioner Johnson Vasquez, I. Chair votes I. Case number Z26-02 has been recommended for approval subject to stipulations as outlined by staff. Mr. Guber, what are the next steps? Chair and Commission, your action with respect to case number Z26-02 is not final. Your recommendation will be forwarded to the city council for further consideration. Thank you, Mr. Guber. Our final agenda item is case number Z26-03. And Mr. Lurma will present. Mr. Mr.

Chair, members of the commission, the item before you is a request to amend the existing to amend the existing Capistrano planner development to establish flexible regulations for on-site development and modify entitlements. The 7.5 acre site is located west of the northwest corner of 91st Avenue and Zenhero Boulevard in the Yucka District.

The subject property along with the adjacent properties to the south, east, and west are zone planned area development, and the property to the north is zoned agriculture. The property is currently vacant. Site improvements were initiated in 2008. The existing three-story building has been unused since its construction. Other site improvements include surface parking, underground parking, and landscaping areas.

The property to the north is currently being used as parking area for the Desert Diamond Casino. Property to the east is vacant land in the Marrow Westgate Apartments. Property to the south is the Palo Verde Cancer Treatment Center. And the property to the west is the zone apartments. Set axis is shared with the Palo Verde Cancer Treatment Center located south of the subject property along Zen Hero Boulevard.

The intent of the PED amendment is to accommodate for mixeduse development that combines residential and non-residential land uses facilitated by flexible development regulations. The mixeduse development will include either a highdensity multif family residential development or a senior living facility which may include independent living, assisted living, and memory care. Both residential land uses may include commercial or professional uses at a limited scale as an accessory use.

The PD narrative The PED narrative includes two conceptual site plans for the residential options with a multif family development to the left of your screen and the senior care facility uh to the right. Both residential options will repurpose the existing three-story building. The multif family residential community will include approximately 314 units. Additional phasing will include the construction of a four story of four-story buildings along the north and west property boundaries.

In the case of the senior care community, this option will accommodate 400 units across a range of senior residential and care options with addition of a five-story building along the west property boundary. The project will provide a minimum of 20% open space and amenities will be varied depending on the development type. All public notification requirements were met on April 13, 2026. The applicant mail notification letters to adjacent property owners and interested parties.

No responses were received by either the applicant or staff to this date. Staff finds that the PAD regulation framework encourages mixeduse development by providing opportunities for highdensity residential options either as a multif family development or a senior care facility with limited commercial and professional uses as support services offered to those residents living on site and with and within the surrounding area.

Effective use of land will be implemented with site design by integrating both residential and non-residential land uses within the same building area. Both commercial and professional land uses will be limited to the bottom floor of the existing three-story building. A PED provides the PED provides extensive guidance to site design framework to ensure compatibility with adjacent uses. Internal pedestrian paths and driveway aisles are adequately planned to permit safe and efficient circulation.

The applicants the applicable city departments have reviewed the application and recommended approval of this application. Stipulations have been added to ensure quality development. Supplementary use regulations have also been included for some of the allowed land uses. With this staff recommends that the planning commission forward a recommendation of approval for Z126-03 uh subject to the stipulations included within the staff report. Mr.

Chair, members of the commission, this concludes my presentation. Thank you, Mr. Lurma. Commissioners, anything for Mr. Lurma? Thank you, Mr. Lurma. Okay. Would the applicant or applicants representative like to come forward? State your name for the record and make any presentation. Mr. Alman. All right, I'm back. Uh, for the record, Shane Alman with Tiffany and Bosco, 1850 North Central in Phoenix, Arizona.

Um, I I believe a few of you were on the board when we went through this zoning back in 2021. And, uh, it was lovingly um, deemed the name the Capistrano from a former c former council member um, that we worked, Joyce Clark. Um, and you know, at the time it was originally approved or developed for senior living housing. Um, believe it or not, and when we came in with the zoning, we had some individuals that were interested in multif family and that were going to develop that.

And of course, multif family uh market has been a little bit up and down. And um, so what we're coming with you to you tonight is to add that use onto there back on well add it with the multif family. We're not going to take away that. We we learned from the last time that there's a there's a number of uses that could work on this site with the existing building that's on including the multif family use um and also the um the senior living.

And so this the proposed senior living um we do have a a senior living um developer that is with us and anxious to to move forward with the development. He's here with us tonight. um and they would like to propose to do um a series of senior living including assisted living, independent living, also memory care uses.

And this is squarely within um your general plan um the growth and development housing element which states that the city shall promote safe, efficient, affordable housing and neighborhoods that support aging in place. city should develop full spectrum of senior housing options giving priority to locations served by public transportation or within walking distance to health services, shopping, and community facilities.

And so, as we've discussed this with uh different members of of the city staff, um they're excited to have those uses here because of all of the uses that are occurring around it too to further support the senior living that we um hope will come to this. And uh so we're asking for your support to allow us to add that. We've added a conceptual plan to the PAD also for the senior living.

Um we will have to go through the de design review after city council um and the further specific um development standards and um development layout um as we go through that process. So happy to answer any questions. We're we're excited to get moving on this one. Commissioners. Oh, you knocked it out of the park, Mr. Almond. All right. Appreciate it. Thank you so much. and you got me out here early tonight, so appreciate that. All right. Thank you. Okay. I don't have any speaker cards.

Are there any members of the audience that would like to speak? Okay. Hearing none, the public hearing for case number Z26-03 is now closed. Do I hear a motion, Mr. Chair? Commissioner Ariano, I move to recommend approval of Z26-03 subject to the stipulations as outlined by staff. Second. Are there any comments or discussions from the commission regarding Z26-03? Mr. Chair, Vice Chair Cole, Mr. Alman, we just have our fingers crossed that you can make this site work.

It's been sittingow for such a long time. So I'm I'm encouraged that something might actually come come of this. So Mr. Chair, Commissioner Ariana, I thought so kind of to that point, uh maybe try I'd like to see some something for veterans out there. You know, there really isn't much and they have a lot of need. So it might be a good scope to look into. That's all, Mr. Chair. Thank you, Commissioner. Okay. Okay.

I have a motion and a second to approve case number Z26-03 subject to stipulations as outlined by staff. I will now conduct a roll call vote. Commissioner Crow I. Commissioner Gears I. Vice Chair Cole I. Commissioner Ariano. Yes. Commissioner Johnson Vasquez. Hi. Chair votes I. Case number Z26-03 has been recommended for approval subject to stipulations as outlined by staff. Mr. Groover, what are the next steps?

Chair and Commission, your recommendation with respect to case number Z26-03 is not final. It will be forwarded to the city council for further consideration. Thank you, Mr. Groover. Miss Daz Gupta, is there any other business this evening? Chairman and commissioners, um, there are none tonight. Is there a planning staff report?

com chairman there is there is no um staff report to for tonight any comments from commissioners okay is there any I was going to say is there anyone in the audience that wishes to speak on item not on not on tonight's agenda but we've lost our audience okay the next regular meeting of the planning commission will be held on Thursday September 24th at 6 pm if there's no further business. I will now entertain a motion to adjurnn. Motion to adjurnn. Second. I have a motion and a second to adjurnn.

All those in favor say I. I. We stand adjourned.