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Attachment A 2023PR 19 pM 6GSTIZEN PETITION TO PHOENIX CITY COUNCIL Date: April 19, 2023 Pursuant to Chapter !V, Section 22 of the Phoenix City Charter, |, Jeremy Thacker, a citizen and resident of the City of Phoenix, hereby petition the City Council to consider and enact within (15) days a resolution, ordinance, or measure to: 1. Prevent developments within the TOD Districts from using entitlements obtained prior to Reinvent PHX that do not support the objectives of the TOD Policy Plans from being approved for permits. 2. Create a temporary zoning overlay (NON-TOD) and update “Definitions” in the Zoning Code for the TOD Districts to prevent developments containing elements opposing the goals of the TOD Policy Plans for those districts from receiving permits or rezoning approval. BACKGROUND Carnation and Pierson Place, neighborhoods in Uptown, are experiencing exponential growth. Under construction or in Planning, developments in the half-mile block between Indian School and Camelback and Central and 7" Ave will add almost 5,000 housing units, 10,000 parking spaces, and triple the population in the coming years. Once completed, this smal! area of Uptown will be the highest density residential area in the City of Phoenix—including Downtown. Unlike residents of so many neighborhoods, the residents of Carnation and Pierson Place are not opposing the density and high number of housing units being proposed. The residents of these two neighborhoods agreed to this type of density and growth contingent upon the City ensuring delivery of the remaining elements of Walkable Communities as defined in Reinvent PHX. As shown below, only one side of the agreement is being upheld. ¢ 12 of 13 developments have no affordable housing included. e 12 of 13 developments have a combined square footage containing less than 1% commercial/retail-- % luxury multi-family. Does less than 1% qualify as mixed-use? © 12 of 13 developments will not increase ridership on the light rail. Valley Metro’s demographic profile of a regular transit rider do not match the demographic that rents a $1,750 per month studio apartment. e 13 of 13 projects have requested variances of some kind or avoided the WUC altogether using PUD’s or decade old entitlements page 1 of 3 Petition to the City of Phoenix (City Council) 1.24.22 e 13 of 13 projects are moving forward without the pre-requisites of walkability in place. Sidewalks; protected bike lanes; and traffic calming are foundational elements not afterthoughts—especially with 5,000 students reliant on them daily. As shown above, the exception is now the rule. While the City and developers will certainly benefit from the density created along the light rail, the repercussions of not delivering on the remaining portions of Reinvent PHX will be the burden of residents. When done well, density has much to offer. When door poorly by clustering narrow ranges of income groups, household types, and economic activities, it constricts daily life and removes options. In other words, density without walkability is inhumane. The residents of Uptown are headed towards this destination. Every single seat on every single train sits empty. Instead, every single person parks in a single space ina single-use garage. Without a single place to go, a single thing to do, or a single place to work; every single day and every single night, every single person of a single demographic flees their single-use building heading to their single-file life. This is the dystopian horror facing Uptown, an area with the motto, “Unique unites us.” This petition is requesting that the City take immediate steps, temporary if needed, to prevent the forthcoming disaster. PETITION 1 Prevent developments within the TOD Districts from using entitlements obtained prior to Reinvent PHX that do not support the objectives of the TOD Policy Plans from being approved for permits. Using entitlements from zoning approved decades prior, developers have found a way to bypass neighborhood input, VPC and Planning Commission review, and City Council approval on projects that are, at best, inconsistent with the objectives of Reinvent PHX. Allowing a single project using a loophole to derail billions invested in the light rail and Walkable Communities is the epitome of “penny-wise and pound-foolish.” Cresleigh Homes, a 4-acre project on Central Avenue, just north of the entrance to Steele Indian School Park, is the opposite of what was envisioned by Reinvent PHX. After facing stiff opposition initially, Cresleigh abandoned their rezoning application opting instead to use existing entitlements issued prior to the existence of the light rail. The project proposes an auto-centric development with the perimeter gated; permanently restricting access to Steele Indian School Park. Cresleigh knows the development would never receive recommendations from EVPC or the Planning Commission much less approval by the Council. This is the reason for using the antiquated zoning and the reason this Council must take action. The project would have been subject to the Steele Indian School Park Master Plan had it not been repealed prior. The Council repealed the Master Plan as unnecessary based on the protections offered by the Walkable Urban Code. Ironically, Cresleigh has now circumvented both plans. page 2 of 3 Petition to the City of Phoenix (City Council) 1.24.22 This petition makes no recommendations to the mechanism the Council should use to prevent the subversive acts by developers. Attorneys and Planning are better suited for determining the details of how to accomplish the task. This petition just requests that the Council acts on the task. Additionally, this petition focuses on Cresleigh Homes but should include any additional developments like Novel Uptown as well. PETITION 2 Create a temporary zoning overlay (NON-TOD) and update “Definitions” in the Zoning Code for the TOD Districts to prevent developments containing elements opposing the goals of the TOD Policy Plans for those districts from receiving permits or rezoning approval. The Walkable Urban Code was created for the specific purpose of ensuring compliance with the goals and objectives outlined in Reinvent PHX. As often happens to even the best organizations, the first attempt at rule creation missed the mark in certain areas. Despite admittance by the City that the WUC does not guarantee the desired outcomes of Reinvent PHX, the WUC has become the standard by which developments are measured instead of the objectives of Reinvent. For some reason, the creation has been promoted over the creator. This cannot be allowed any longer. When the light rail was being constructed, the City decided to implement TOD-1(2) as temporary zoning overlays to prevent developments not supporting the purpose of the light rail from undermining the project. The City now faces a similar situation in the TOD Districts as developers are exploiting holes in the WUC for their own profits. In the interim before the WUC is updated, this petition requests a NON-TOD (Not Optional Near Transit-Oriented Developments) temporary zoning overlay as outlined below. ¢ Developments in the TOD Districts should not be allowed that contain or create any of the following!: 1. Large Block Sizes (> 300’ in Width) Gated Developments Surface Parking Lots Free Parking Multi-Family Without Either 5.1. Affordable Housing (10% or More); or 5.2. Commercial / Retail (5% of Tota! or 100% of 1° Floor) 6. Private Streets Not Guaranteed for Public Use wPwn ¢ Definitions of the Code must be updated for the following: co “Mixed-Use” Qualifications --Spaces used exclusively to serve only the development, or the private residents are not “mixed-use”. [Examples: Gyms; Leasing Offices; Package Storage] o “Public Open Space” --Spaces open only to private residents of the development are not “public” open spaces. A “public open space” must, at afl times, maintain the same availability to the general public as to the private residents. + Experts in the fields of urban planning and walkability are in consensus regarding the items outlined above. page 3 of 3