Buckeye unanimously rezones 143.5-acre A85 Industrial Park for light manufacturing and warehousing
BUCKEYE, ARIZONA — October 2, 2024

Buckeye unanimously rezones 143.5-acre A85 Industrial Park for light manufacturing and warehousing

Buckeye City Council unanimously approved rezoning of 143.5-acre A85 Industrial Park from Planned Residential to Planned Area Development to support light industrial uses as part of broader SR85 corridor economic development strategy.

Buckeye Rezones 143.5 Acres at SR85 and Southern Avenue for Light Industrial Development

Buckeye City Council voted unanimously on October 2, 2024, to rezone 143.5 acres at the northeast corner of State Route 85 and Southern Avenue from Planned Residential to Planned Area Development, clearing the path for light industrial development that city staff and council members hope will become the catalyst for a major economic corridor transformation. The rezoning of Ordinance 22-24, presented by Senior Planner Ken Galica, advances the city's 2022 general plan amendment that redesignated roughly 2,500 acres along SR85 from neighborhood (residential) to employment (light industrial), fundamentally reshaping how the city accommodates its industrial base.

Key Speeches

"We have been working with the various owners within the area. Many of them have rezoned their properties in conjunction with that general plan amendment to light industrial. Some of them are going through the site planning process. I actually would expect to see some development within that corridor in the area that we changed probably starting in the next six months or so." — Ken Galica, Senior Planner

"They were very supportive of the general plan amendment change that the city initiated, and the goal here is, with the mass of 144 acres being zoned, to attract hopefully a large manufacturer type use. And that's what both owner interests—that's what they want to see here." — George Quiniff, Peak Group, representing property owners

"Back in 2022, staff initiated a major general plan amendment changing almost 2,500 acres in the vicinity of State Route 85 from what was mostly neighborhood—primarily for residential development—to employment. The real intent was that this would become one of, if not the city's, primary economic engines for light industrial type of development, rather than trying to accommodate a pocket of light industrial here, a pocket there." — Ken Galica, Senior Planner

Timeline

Opposition

Not stated in transcript. No public speakers addressed the council on this item, and no opposition was documented in the hearing.

Support

No public speakers testified in favor of the rezoning; council members did not articulate formal support statements. The Planning and Zoning Commission had recommended approval on September 10, 2024. City staff (Ken Galica, representing the planning department) recommended approval. The applicant and property owners were present and available to answer questions but did not provide direct testimony.

Project Details

Vote Breakdown

Outcome & Next Steps

Ordinance 22-24 was adopted, officially rezoning the 143.5-acre parcel to Planned Area Development. Property owners Cardinal Capital Company and Albo Partnership may now pursue development opportunities without further zoning approvals. If and when they move forward, they will submit a site plan for review and approval by city staff. The signage allowances are now embedded in the zoning ordinance, eliminating the need for a separate comprehensive sign plan approval by the Planning and Zoning Commission. City staff anticipate development activity within the SR85 corridor within six months as multiple property owners in the area have already completed their own rezoning processes.

Controversies & Context

No organized opposition or controversy was documented. The rezoning reflects a deliberate city planning strategy initiated in 2022 to consolidate light industrial development along a single corridor (SR85) rather than scatter such uses throughout the city in residential-designated areas. Ken Galica explicitly noted the city's prior experience with "Five Below and Funko warehouses in an area that's not necessarily or wasn't intended for light industrial uses," creating compatibility concerns. The SR85 strategy, modeled on the city's existing 303 Corridor and Price Road Corridor industrial concentrations, aims to create what Galica called "one of, if not the city's, primary economic engines for light industrial type of development."

The broader 2022 general plan amendment that preceded this rezoning involved extensive public process, including multiple workshops and council meetings. The amendment changed designations for approximately 2,500 acres from neighborhood (yellow on planning maps—primarily single-family residential) to employment (blue—light industrial). Since that amendment's approval in mid-2022, multiple property owners within the corridor have already rezoned their properties to light industrial zoning.

Eric Orsborn sought to clarify for the public record that the property owners, while holding farming heritage, are investors (Cardinal Capital Company and Albo Partnership, based in Iowa) and not current farmers, and that they—not the city—initiated this rezoning. He stated: "I just want to make sure that um especially the public understands that it's not the city that owns that property and it's either been owned by a farm or farming family, it's currently owned by investors and the investors are bringing it forward with the plan for development. It's not a force from the city to go from farming use to an industrial use." George Quiniff confirmed the owners "were very supportive of the general plan amendment change that the city initiated" and that both Cardinal Capital Company and Albo Partnership aim to "attract hopefully a large manufacturer type use."

Council Member Patrick HagEstad raised a question about signage consistency, asking whether approving the modified signage in this ordinance would set a precedent that "if everybody along 85 did the same thing" the city would be obligated to grant it. Ken Galica responded that the city's code "is very conservative when it comes to signage" but allows comprehensive sign plans through the Planning and Zoning Commission for larger developments. He noted that most multi-tenant commercial projects receive CSP approval anyway, so embedding this modification in the ordinance simply "would eliminate the need to go to planning and zoning commission at a later date." Galica also stated staff was "not concerned that this would result in anything that looks out of character or out of place for the corridor" and noted that a 20-foot sign adjacent to a 40- or 50-foot building would be proportionally modest.

Council Member Curtis Beard expressed interest in whether the Southern Avenue commercial carve-out would evolve into a regional commercial node similar to the shopping-center-and-industrial pattern visible on the 303 Corridor in Surprise. Galica indicated the city typically envisions the SR85 and I-10 intersection as the regional commercial hub, with this property and the southern SR85 corridor developing primarily as industrial, with only employee-serving retail (sandwich shops, dry cleaners) anticipated.

Duration

Other Notable Items

Get Ready for Buckeye Reduce the Commute Job Fair (October 14, 10 a.m.–2 p.m., West Mech Campus): City Manager announced the return of the regional job fair featuring over 40 employers and education partners offering thousands of positions. Eric Orsborn highlighted the event as "outstanding," noting prior years have attracted over 500 attendees and featuring on-the-spot interviews and hiring. Council members were encouraged to attend.

Movie in the Park Series (October 5, 6:30 p.m., Festival Foothills Park): City Manager announced the continuation of the series, with the featured film noted (presumably as "if" or similar title; transcript text unclear).