Cave Creek approves first reading to rezone 2.5 acres for garage door shop despite neighbor traffic concerns

Cave Creek Council Approves First Reading of Garage Door Operation Rezoning Despite Resident Opposition Over Traffic and Buffer

On September 26, 2022, the Cave Creek Town Council voted unanimously 7-0 to approve the first reading of Ordinance 2022-02, which would rezone a 2.5-acre parcel from Desert Rural Residential (DR-89) to Commercial Buffer (CB) zoning on behalf of a Flagstaff-based garage door sales and service business seeking to expand into the Phoenix market. The decision moved forward despite three resident speakers expressing concerns about traffic impacts, the erosion of a residential buffer, and the proximity to a new residential subdivision built on smaller lots.

The parcel in question is located at Assessor's Parcel Number 211-47-043c, approximately two parcels north of the northeast corner of 53rd Street and Carefree Highway, behind existing general commercial properties (Starbucks, Don Edwards, Jiffy Lube). The property falls within the Carefree Highway Specific Area Plan and is designated as commercial land use in the town's 2021 General Plan, though it currently retains its older rural residential zoning.

Key Speeches

"I can find no legal ethical or responsible way to object to the rezoning given that it is consistent with the general plan at this location." — Planning Commissioner (quoted by Town Attorney Sims)

"We are unsure at this time. Our growth, our expected growth and what we have been doing lately—my hope is that yes we will own and occupy the entire space. But when that will happen I cannot answer." — Applicant Vickers, responding to Mayor Bunch's question about whether he would occupy the full building or sublease portions.

"Based off previous conversations with the applicant there is no intentions to manufacture the garage door. It was solely to store the garage doors. If anyone needed assistance with replacing a garage door or anything for that capacity they would load up a truck and then take it. No manufacturing whatsoever." — Planning Director, addressing concerns raised by resident Randall Phelps.

"This is a legislative act tonight and it'll culminate with a second read. What Mr. Voris is saying to you—you get to see what the applicant intends to do with the conceptual site plan but there will be a future site plan. That is all administrative ministerial and if the applicant meets the conditions you have to approve the site plan. But tonight you have the discretion as the legislative body to say yes or no on the zoning." — Town Attorney Sims, explaining the two-step process.

Timeline

• Applicant presentation: Vickers explained that he owns and operates a garage door company in Flagstaff started by his father in 1976. He intends to expand to Phoenix, offering sales, repairs, and installation services. He brought his employee Emilio Rodriguez to assist with the expansion. He stated his business model involves ordering pre-manufactured doors, stocking them, and dispatching trucks to installation sites—no on-site manufacturing or assembly.

• Staff recommendation: The Planning Director confirmed that the property, per the general plan and specific area plan, is appropriately designated for commercial use. The Planning Commission voted 5-0 on August 18, 2022, to recommend approval of the zone change, with no site plan submitted. Staff noted that applicants may submit a conceptual site plan in advance of rezoning to test market viability before incurring the expense of a formal site plan application.

• Public comment: Three speakers opposed the rezoning. Philip Hopper, a resident of the adjacent Venture at Black Mountain development, stated that his neighborhood would lose half its buffer when rezoned to commercial, resulting in increased noise, lights, and traffic. He expressed concern about delivery trucks and semis on private roads not designed for heavy vehicles and emphasized that his subdivision has no gate and includes a school bus stop. Randall Phelps, a retired 42-year home builder and developer now living in Cave Creek, characterized the proposed use as tantamount to partial manufacturing—assembling or inventorying garage door components constitutes manufacturing in his view—and argued the use was too heavy for a buffer zone. He noted the general plan intended medical offices or assisted living in this location. Travis Lemires, a resident of Venture at Black Mountain, submitted written comments (read into the record by the mayor) opposing the rezoning due to traffic safety concerns, noting that 53rd Street lacks a left-turn lane, the intersection is misaligned, and increased retail traffic from the proposed development combined with a planned McDonald's nearby would create dangerous conditions for residents and school bus stops. He also expressed concern about residents having to maintain private roads and the conflict between a two-story commercial building and the surrounding residential character.

• Council discussion: The debate centered on two issues: (1) the proper scope of a rezoning hearing, and (2) the actual use classification of the proposed garage door operation. Town Attorney Sims and Mayor Bunch clarified that a rezoning is a legislative act distinct from site-plan approval, which is administrative and ministerial. At the rezoning stage, council retains maximum discretion and should evaluate whether the parcel meets the general plan designation and zoning criteria. Once zoning is granted, site-plan review is bound by code standards and the applicant has a ministerial right to approval if standards are met. Sims noted that the neighbors' valid concerns about traffic, curb cuts, and access points would be addressed during the site-plan phase. Councilman Silva and Councilman Roy pressed the applicant and staff on whether the business involved manufacturing or assembly. After clarification from the Planning Director that the applicant would store ready-made doors and dispatch trucks for installation—no on-site assembly—Silva confirmed this understanding with the applicant and concluded the use was consistent with commercial zoning. Robert Morris compared the proposed garage door operation's traffic footprint to the adjacent Meritage Homes development (31 residential units, each with at least two cars) and noted that a small commercial operation would likely generate less traffic than the residential alternative. He also pointed out that a nearby Lowe's store in Carefree would dwarf this operation in scale.

• Vote: Approved 7-0 on first reading.

Opposition

Number of speakers against: 3 (Philip Hopper, Randall Phelps, Travis Lemires—written comments)

Main concerns:

1. Loss of residential buffer between commercial zone and the adjacent Venture at Black Mountain subdivision, which was promised when the residential development was approved.
2. Increased traffic and safety hazards on 53rd Street, particularly for school bus stops and residents of a gated subdivision with private roads not designed for heavy trucks and delivery vehicles.
3. 53rd Street intersection lacks a left-turn lane and is misaligned with the southern approach across Carefree Highway, creating confusion and congestion.
4. The presence of a planned McDonald's development nearby will multiply traffic impacts (estimated four-fold increase).
5. Characterization of the business as partial manufacturing or assembly of garage door components, not merely storage and retail service, making it incompatible with a "buffer" zone designation.
6. Two-story building height inconsistent with the immediate area and would exacerbate visual and traffic impacts.
7. Concern that private road maintenance costs would fall on residents while bearing traffic impacts from commercial development.

Most compelling arguments: Randall Phelps, a retired home builder with 42 years of experience, made the case that inventory and partial assembly of garage door components constitute manufacturing, and that a manufacturing use is too heavy for a commercial buffer zone intended to be a transitional step down from full commercial. He noted the original intent of the specific area plan was medical offices and assisted living, not general commercial operations. The question of whether the operation constitutes manufacturing was not definitively resolved before the vote, though the Planning Director stated the applicant had represented that no manufacturing would occur.

Organized groups: No formal organization; speakers identified as individual residents of the Venture at Black Mountain subdivision.

Support

No speakers explicitly supported the rezoning during public comment, though Robert Morris made supportive remarks during council discussion, arguing the proposal was consistent with the general plan and would generate less traffic than a residential alternative.

Project Details

• Case number: Z-22-01
• Applicant / developer: Vickers (garage door sales and service company owner, based in Flagstaff, Arizona; company started by his father in 1976)
• Attorney: Not identified in transcript
• Location / address: Approximately two parcels north of the northeast corner of 53rd Street and Carefree Highway
• APN: 211-47-043c
• Current zoning → Proposed zoning: Desert Rural Residential (DR-89) → Commercial Buffer (CB)
• Density / units / square footage: Approximately 2.5 acres; conceptual site plan shows a two-story building with multiple retail suites and ample parking (the applicant noted the parking requirement is driven by gross floor area calculations and may exceed actual demand).
• Changes from previous version: This is a first reading; no prior version was discussed.
• Site plan status: Applicant submitted a conceptual (two-dimensional) site plan as part of the rezoning application but has not submitted a formal site plan application. The applicant indicated he chose to pursue rezoning first rather than incur the cost of a full site plan before securing zoning entitlement.

Vote Breakdown

• Final: 7-0
• Yes: Mayor Bunch, Vice Mayor Smith, Councilmember McGuire, Councilmember Monakino (sic), Robert Morris, Councilmember Roy, Councilmember Silva
• No: None
• Abstentions / absences: None

Outcome & Next Steps

The first reading of Ordinance 2022-02 passed unanimously. A second reading is required for final approval before the rezoning becomes effective. After the rezoning is finalized, the applicant is expected to submit a formal site plan application. That application will be subject to a pre-application conference with all town departments, then submitted to the Planning Commission for a public hearing and recommendation. The site plan will then be reviewed by the Town Council in a second public hearing before final approval or denial. At the site-plan stage, issues such as traffic impact, access points, curb cuts, loading dock orientation, and setbacks will be evaluated against town code standards and the criteria of the Carefree Highway Specific Area Plan.

Town Attorney Sims emphasized that at the rezoning stage, council retained maximum discretion to approve or deny based on consistency with the general plan. Once rezoning is granted, site-plan review becomes ministerial—if the applicant meets code criteria, the town must approve the site plan. However, if the site plan fails to meet code requirements or the specific area plan criteria, council can deny it at that later stage.

Controversies & Context

The rezoning represents a tension between the town's adopted planning documents (general plan and specific area plan, which designate this location for commercial use) and community expectations about residential character and traffic impacts. The Venture at Black Mountain subdivision, developed by Meritage Homes, was approved with the assumption that a residential buffer would separate it from commercial uses on the north side of Carefree Highway. When the town amended the Carefree Highway Specific Area Plan approximately one year prior to this meeting, it rewrote the commercial buffer zoning criteria in response to a previous rezoning the council "didn't particularly care for" (noted by Mayor Bunch). That tighter definition of commercial buffer should constrain what uses are permitted when the site plan comes forward.

The "manufacturing" question—whether a garage door operation that stores pre-made components and dispatches installation crews constitutes assembly or manufacturing—was not conclusively resolved in the record. The Planning Director stated the applicant had represented no manufacturing would occur, only storage and service calls. However, Randall Phelps, with decades of home-building experience, asserted that partial assembly or inventory of components meets the definition of manufacturing in common industry usage. This question may resurface during site-plan review if the Planning Commission or Council determines that the detailed site plan reveals assembly activities inconsistent with the commercial buffer designation.

The general plan and specific area plan for the Carefree Highway corridor were adopted with an intent, according to council members, to attract medical offices and possibly assisted-living facilities—uses appropriate for an aging, affluent community adjacent to Abrazo Hospital. The shift from those uses to a garage door retail operation represents a lower-value commercial use, though one still within the range permitted by commercial buffer zoning.

Fiscal and state preemption issues: Arizona's school choice policies (charter schools, empowerment scholarships/vouchers) were raised during a separate presentation by Cave Creek Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Monroe, but are not directly relevant to this rezoning. The utilities rate increase and equipment purchases on the same agenda reflect capital needs outpacing revenue growth, typical of suburban towns managing aging infrastructure.

Duration

• This item: Approximately 90 minutes (from staff presentation through vote)
• Total meeting: Approximately 4 hours (including executive session, school district override presentation, utility rate notice, equipment purchases, and this rezoning)

Other Notable Items

Cave Creek Unified School District November 2022 Override Election: Superintendent Dr. Monroe and CFO Marcy Rodriguez presented a comprehensive case for a 15% property-tax override to fund teacher and staff salary increases. The district ranks in the bottom 15 of Arizona school districts for average teacher pay. A 15% override would generate approximately $5.1 million over seven years (with a phase-down in years 6-7) and would support teacher and staff salary increases (estimated 13% in the example provided), student support services, career technical education, reduced student fees, and technology upgrades. The district currently captures 52% of eligible students; neighboring districts (Scottsdale, Deer Valley, Paradise Valley) all have active overrides and higher average teacher pay. The override election is scheduled for November 8, 2022. Council voted 7-0 to accept the information presentation; no council vote on the override itself was required.

Water and Wastewater Rate Increase Notice: Town Utilities Director Sean Crew reported that the council approved a notice of intention to increase Cave Creek water rates, capacity fees, Desert Hills water rates and capacity fees, and Cave Creek wastewater rates. This notice sets a 60-day public comment period. A final public hearing and rate adoption are scheduled for November 21, 2022 (rates and fees) and December 5, 2022 (second capacity-fee hearing). All increases will be effective January 2023. Vote: 7-0.

Equipment Purchases: Council approved two equipment purchases: a PM10-certified street sweeper from Norwood Equipment for $313,745.40 (90-95% reimbursed by a Maricopa County Association of Governments grant), replacing a 12-year-old unit costing $10,000-$12,000 annually in maintenance; and a Herco trailer-mounted vacuum unit with valve exerciser from AZ Wastewater Industries for $80,000, replacing expensive rentals and projected to pay for itself in 1.5 years (35-week delivery lead time). Both passed 7-0.