Mesa P&Z: Sunbelt seeks LI/LC rezone on 21.6 acres at Ellsworth & Starfire for industrial/retail — on consent
Sunbelt Investment Holdings, Inc. is seeking to rezone 21.6± acres at the southwest corner of South Ellsworth Road and East Starfire Avenue in Mesa from residential/commercial to Light Industrial and Limited Commercial designations, plus a Council Use Permit for a large-format retailer, to enable future industrial and commercial development.
Mesa P&Z: Sunbelt Seeks LI/LC Rezone on 21.6 Acres at Ellsworth & Starfire for Industrial and Large-Format Retail — On Consent
The Project
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Case numbers | ZON26-00126; GPA26-00248 |
| Location | Southwest corner of South Ellsworth Road and East Starfire Avenue, Mesa, AZ |
| District | Mesa District 6 |
| Total site | 21.62 acres (two parcels: APN 304-31-045A and 304-31-045B) |
| Parcel 1 rezone | 17.08 acres from RM-4-PAD / LC-PAD → Light Industrial with PAD Overlay (LI-PAD) |
| Parcel 2 rezone | 4.54 acres from RM-4-PAD / LC-PAD → Limited Commercial with PAD Overlay (LC-PAD) |
| Council Use Permit | Large-format retailer (>25,000 sq ft) in the LI-PAD zone |
| General Plan Amendment | Minor GPA to change placetype from Urban Residential to Local Employment Center |
| Proposed uses | Future industrial and commercial development; large-format retail |
| Site plan | None proposed at this time |
| Specific end user | None identified at this time |
| Staff recommendation | Approval with conditions |
| Staff planner | Chloe Durfee Daniel |
Who's Behind It
The applicant is Pew & Lake, PLC, a Mesa-based land-use law and planning firm, represented by attorney Sean B. Lake and senior land planner Vanessa MacDonald (1744 S. Val Vista Drive, Suite 217, Mesa, AZ 85204). They are acting on behalf of the property owner and applicant, Sunbelt Investment Holdings, Inc., whose affiliated entities — Sunbelt Land Holdings LP, Sunbelt Mesa Ellsworth LP, and Sunbelt Mesa Ray LP — all list a San Diego, California address (8095 Othello Ave, San Diego, CA 92111).
The application was pre-submitted January 13, 2026, with a formal rezoning application filed February 11, 2026.
Staff's Analysis
Staff planner Chloe Durfee Daniel recommended approval with conditions. The companion General Plan Amendment (GPA26-00248) seeks to reclassify the site's placetype from Urban Residential to Local Employment Center — a shift that aligns with the requested industrial and commercial zoning. The PAD overlay on both rezoned parcels will provide a mechanism for site-specific development standards to be established when a future site plan is submitted.
The Council Use Permit component is required because large-format retail (defined as more than 25,000 square feet of gross floor area) is not permitted by right in the Light Industrial zone under Mesa's zoning ordinance. The CUP would position the site to accommodate a major retail anchor alongside industrial uses without a named tenant or specific layout at this stage.
Citizen Participation
Pew & Lake, PLC conducted a virtual neighborhood meeting via Microsoft Teams on May 12, 2026. Notices were mailed April 27, 2026 — 15 days prior — to all property owners within 1,000 feet of the site, as well as registered neighborhood contacts and HOAs within one mile. Notable nearby stakeholders included DMB Mesa Proving Grounds LLC, Eastmark Community Alliance, Inc., Eastmark Residential Association, and Scannell Properties No. 507 LLC.
Only one outside attendee appeared: Tyler Johnson of Super Radiator Coils, an adjacent industrial neighbor. Johnson asked whether the site had electrical power, noting he had heard of power-availability issues in the area. Lake acknowledged uncertainty but referenced BESS (battery energy storage system) facilities developing nearby as a potential solution. Johnson expressed no opposition and indicated support for the requests. The meeting concluded at 6:15 p.m.
No comment letters, petitions, or opposition materials are reflected in the submitted Citizen Participation Report.
What Happened at the Meeting
ZON26-00126 was placed on the consent agenda of the Mesa Planning and Zoning Board's public hearing on October 28, 2026. The outcome of that hearing is not confirmed in the available sources. The item was scheduled to receive a recommendation from the board, with City Council introduction and final adoption to follow on a timeline to be determined.
Key Conditions
Staff recommended approval with conditions, though the specific conditions of approval are not detailed in the available source documents.
What's Next
Per the application schedule, following P&Z Board action, the rezoning and GPA proceed to City Council Introduction and then City Council Final Adoption. No site plan has been submitted, and the Council Use Permit authorizing large-format retail will not be exercised until a future development proposal comes forward. The LI-PAD and LC-PAD designations will govern that future entitlement process.
Why notable: This is a significant zoning conversion — erasing residential and commercial entitlements across 21.6 acres in favor of Light Industrial and Limited Commercial uses in Mesa's fast-growing southeast corridor near the Eastmark master-planned community and Mesa Gateway Airport. The no-user, no-site-plan posture suggests land banking or pre-entitlement for industrial marketing, and the large-format retail CUP adds flexibility for a big-box anchor. The item passed on consent — meaning no known opposition reached the dais — but the scale of the land-use shift and its adjacency to a major residential master plan makes it consequential for how this stretch of Ellsworth Road develops.
Source: Mesa Planning and Zoning Board – Public Hearing Agenda, October 28, 2026 (Item 4-B); ZON26-00126 / GPA26-00248 Citizen Participation Report and Neighborhood Meeting Summary, Pew & Lake, PLC, May 2026.