Vote — approved

Jack Sellers	yes
Thomas Galvin	yes
Bill Gates	yes
Clint Hickman	yes
Steve Gallardo	yes

Ayes: Jack Sellers, Thomas Galvin, Bill Gates, Clint Hickman, Steve Gallardo

Item Text

14. HYDER ENERGY CENTER Case #: Z2024059 Supervisor District: 5 Applicant & Owner: Christopher Powers, Savion Energy, LLC / CBERT Commercial Properties, LLC Request: Zone change with overlay from Rural-190 to IND-2 IUPD Site Location: Generally located one mile south of the southwest corner of Agua Caliente Rd. and Butterfield Stage Rd. in the Hyder area Commission Recommendation: On 9/26/24, the Commission voted 7-0, to adopt a motion recommending the Board of Supervisors approve Z2024059 subject to conditions ‘a’ – ‘p’: a. Development of the site shall be in substantial conformance with the zoning exhibit entitled “Hyder Solar”, consisting of six full-size sheets, dated July 11, 2024, and stamped received July 17, 2024, except as modified by the following conditions. Staff may determine slight refinements to remain in substantial conformance with the approved site plan. Minor and major amendments to the site plan will be determined in accordance with Chapter 3 of the Maricopa County Zoning Ordinance. b. Development of the site shall be in substantial conformance with the narrative report entitled “Hyder Energy Center Project”, consisting of 19 pages, dated July 2023, and stamped received July 19, 2023, except as modified by the following conditions. c. The landowner or developer shall coordinate with the Arizona Game & Fish Department in each phase of development to determine best management practices to minimize impacts on the area’s wildlife. The landowner or developer shall coordinate with the Arizona Game & Fish Department to determine the appropriate wildlife surveys, habitat surveys, and/or requests that will need to be conducted during the development of the site. d. The following Planning Engineering comments shall apply: 1. Without the submittal of a precise plan of development, no development approval is inferred by this review, including, but not limited to number of proposed building lots/units, drainage design, access, and roadway alignments. These items will be addressed as development plans progress and are submitted to the County for further review and/or entitlement. 2. A traffic impact study must be submitted with any Plan of Development for the site. 3. Engineering review of planning and/or zoning cases is for conceptual design only. All development and engineering design shall be in conformance with Section 1205 of the Maricopa County Zoning Ordinance; Drainage Policies and Standards; Floodplain Regulations for Maricopa County; MCDOT Roadway Design Manual; and current engineering policies, standards, and best practices at the time of application for construction. e. The following MCDOT Planning comments shall apply: 1. A Solar License is required from MCDOT for any private utility entity that will occupy the County right-of-way (i.e. transmission facilities). 2. All section lines and mid-section lines that fall on the perimeter of the project shall have dedicated setbacks of 55 feet for section line roadways and 40 feet for mid-section line roadways respectively per the Maricopa County Zoning Ordinance Section 1105. 3. The following future roadway reservations shall be required: a. Agua Caliente Rd. shall have a 55 foot reserved half-width from the section line. b. Hyder Rd. shall have a 30 foot reserved half-width from the street’s centerline. c. Old Agua Caliente Rd. shall have 30 foot reserved half-width from the street’s centerline. f. The following requested IND-2 IUPD zoning district development standards shall apply: 1. There shall be no required yards for solar panel arrays, but no structure shall overhang over a property line or within any right-of-way. 2. There shall be no landscaping requirements for this project. 3. There shall be no parking requirements, except for any required ADA accessible parking requirements. 4. There shall be no required loading/unloading spaces. 5. Photovoltaic solar panel arrays shall not contribute to lot coverage calculations. 6. There shall be no sight-visibility-triangles for any site ingress/egress points, section lines and/or mid-section line intersecting alignments. 7. Photovoltaic solar panel arrays and associated utility uses shall not be enclosed in a building. 8. Alternative surfacing materials or other methods approved by Maricopa County Air Quality to minimize dust pollution shall be allowed in driveways and parking areas. 9. A minimum of six-foot tall chain link fences and gates without screening materials with one foot of barbed wire attached to the top shall be allowed adjacent to any zoning district. 10. Attached barbed wire or concertina wire shall be permitted under a height of eight feet for fences and gates. 11. Structures that support high tension electric lines shall have a maximum height of 196 feet. g. The IUPD overlay instrument is applied to restrict the use of the site, and this IND-2 IUPD shall limit the use of the site to a photovoltaic solar electric generation facility including any ancillary uses of the facility (such as battery energy storage systems, operation/maintenance building, and electric substation/transmission lines). Any other uses on the site shall require a zone change major amendment. h. Prior to the submittal of any Plan of Development of this site, a copy of the completed Class I Cultural Resources Inventory Survey for private parcels and ASLD lands, mentioned in the narrative report, and a copy of the Class III Cultural Resources Inventory Survey for the ASLD lands, mentioned in the narrative report, shall be submitted. i. Prior to the submittal of any Plan of Development for this site a copy of the Military Aviation and Installation Siting Clearinghouse Letter, mentioned in the narrative report, that states if this proposal on this site meets the requirements or regulations of Luke Air Force Base. j. All outdoor lighting shall be in compliance with Section 1112 of the Maricopa County Zoning Ordinance. Any outdoor lighting shall be placed so as to reflect light away from any adjoining rural or residential zoning district. k. Administrative approval of a Plan of Development will be required prior to approval and issuance of construction permits to develop and establish use of the site. Prior to the issuance of a building permit, written confirmation shall be required from the emergency fire protection jurisdiction having authority that the facility has been designed in accordance with their regulations and requirements and that emergency fire protection service will be provided to the facility. Prior to issuance of the certificate of occupancy, local fire protection jurisdiction review and approval will be required. l. If Hyder Energy Center, in whole or in part, is constructed and ceases operating for a period of five years or more, the owner shall be responsible for decommissioning the non-operating portion of the site including the regrading and restoration of the site. Decommissioning of the site shall include all structures above and under the ground up to three feet in height that are part of the decommissioned facility. All decommissioning and restoration activities must adhere to the requirements of the appropriate governing authorities, and shall be in accordance with all applicable, federal, state, and County regulations. The Owner shall inform any future buyers/property owners of this decommissioning requirement and of their responsibility to decommission. m. The developer shall provide at least five-days’ notice to adjacent privately-owned parcels internal or external to the area of the zone change of heavy construction traffic and disruption to any easement providing those owners with direct access to their properties. An appropriate detour shall be provided to these owners. n. Amendment to the zone change shall be processed as a revised application in accordance with Maricopa County Zoning Ordinance requirements. o. Noncompliance with any Maricopa County Regulation shall be grounds for initiating a revocation of this Zone Change as set forth in the Maricopa County Zoning Ordinance. p. The granting of this change in use of the property has been at the request of the applicant, with the consent of the landowner. The granting of this approval allows the property to enjoy uses in excess of those permitted by the zoning existing on the date of application, subject to conditions. In the event of the failure to comply with any condition, the property shall revert to the zoning that existed on the date of application. It is, therefore, stipulated and agreed that either revocation due to the failure to comply with any conditions, does not reduce any rights that existed on the date of application to use, divide, sell, or possess the property and that there would be no diminution in value of the property from the value it held on the date of application due to such revocation of the Zone Change. The Zone Change enhances the value of the property above its value as of the date the Zone Change is granted and reverting to the prior zoning results in the same value of the property as if the Zone Change had never been granted. (C-44-25-020-X-00)

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