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2026-07-01 · Regular Meeting

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Planning & Zoning Commission

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Synced: 2026-06-27 12:10 AZ

Item text
DATE: July 1, 2026

Planning & Zoning Commission

SUBJECT:

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

RECOMMENDATION:

Approve the draft minutes of the Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting on June 10, 2026.

Attachments

6.10.26 P&Z Draft Minutes

Supporting documents (1)

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Item text
DATE: July 1, 2026

CAR #:

AI-3331

CASE #:

P25-00277

Planning & Zoning Commission ACTION REPORT

SUBJECT:

USE PERMIT FOR CONVENIENCE STORE WITH GAS STATION AT COTTON LANE AND MC-85

STAFF PRESENTER(S):

Ann Dolmage, Principal Planner

OTHER PRESENTER(S):

Frank Gawdun, Esencia LLC

SUMMARY:

Request for a Use Permit for a convenience use (convenience store including retail gasoline sales), on approximately 5.22 acres zoned as Planned Area Development (PAD) with an underlying flexible zoning that permits industrial, commercial, and public facilities uses (Flex Zone), located at the southwest corner of Cotton Lane and MC-85.

RECOMMENDATION:

Conduct a public hearing to consider a Use Permit for a convenience use (convenience store including retail gasoline sales), on approximately 5.22 acres zoned as Planned Area Development (PAD) with underlying flexible zoning that permits industrial, commercial, and public facilities uses, located at the southwest corner of Cotton Lane and MC-85.

Recommend approval of a Use Permit for a convenience use (convenience store including retail gasoline sales), on approximately 5.22 acres zoned as Planned Area Development (PAD) with underlying flexible zoning that permits industrial, commercial, and public facilities uses, located at the southwest corner of Cotton Lane and MC-85 (Ann Dolmage, Principal Planner).

FISCAL IMPACT:

Although a fiscal impact analysis has not been conducted on this specific project, all new development will have an ongoing fiscal impact on the city. The development is responsible for construction of all infrastructure necessary to serve the site and will generate one-time revenue for the city through payment of permits, construction sales tax, and development impact fees. Longer term fiscal impacts include increased demands for municipal services, the costs of which may or may not be offset by increased property values/tax levies, city sales tax, state shared revenues, and the increased demand for commercial and retail development. Any areas that will be maintained by the city are constructed by the developer and then conveyed to the city two years after construction.

BACKGROUND AND PREVIOUS ACTIONS:

A rezone for CP Lakin Park (commonly referred to as “Lakin Park”) was approved by City Council on October 28, 2019. The rezone changed the zoning of approximately 696 acres from Agricultural Urban (AU) to Planned Area Development (PAD) with multiple underlying zoning districts, including 644.9 acres of General Industrial Park (I-2); 35.3 acres of Flex Zone which permits I-2, General Commercial (C-2), and Public Facilities District (PFD); and 15.4 acres of Multi-Family Residential (MF-24). The PAD also modified the permitted uses and development standards for the underlying zoning.

On September 27, 2021, a new rezone was approved to add approximately 4.8 acres to the multi-family component of Lakin Park, increasing the overall Multi-Family area to 20.2 acres and establishing a new PAD (known as CP Lakin Park Bungalows) for that area.

The proposed convenience use with gas station (“Project”) will be located at the southwest corner of MC-85 and Cotton Lane, as shown in the attached Aerial Photo (Attachment B), and is within Lakin Park’s Commercial/Industrial Flex Zone. Per the CP Lakin Park PAD Book dated October 2019, the Flex Zone may be developed under the I-2, C-2, or PFD standards. Once a particular use within the Flex Zone is vested with a Site Plan or subdivision approval, the selected zoning district is activated for that use, and the established underlying zoning district cannot be amended without a rezone. Since the current proposal is for a convenience store with gasoline sales, the proposal will utilize C-2, and the permitted uses and development standards for C-2 will apply (except as amended by the PAD).

A Use Permit for a convenience store with gasoline sales was approved for this Property by City Council on September 25, 2023, under Case Number P23-300-00002 which included a conceptual site plan. The administratively approved Site Plan was subsequently approved in February 2024 and was in substantial conformance with the City Council approved Use Permit. The originally approved Site Plan included one access point from MC-85, via a private road located on the adjacent industrial property to the west of the site. After the Site Plan was approved by the city, the developer of the convenience store was unable to obtain access from the private road, which required the approved site plan to be modified to include a new access point. Following the redesign of the site to accommodate new access, the proposed Site Plan is no longer in conformance with the previously approved Use Permit; therefore, a new Use Permit is requested to establish direct access to the convenience store and gas station from MC-85, via a new driveway to the Project site. If approved, the new Use Permit will also modify the layout of the store building, fuel pumps, landscaping, and traffic circulation within the Project site. More details about the proposal can be found in Attachment C - Project Narrative and Attachment D - Details of Request.

STAFF ANALYSIS

Current Policy:

A convenience store with retail gasoline sales is a convenience use as defined in Section 2-2 of the Zoning Ordinance and requires a Use Permit in the C-2 district per Section 3-3-3-C-3. It is also subject to the convenience use standards in Section 4-2-2.

A Use Permit requires review by the Planning and Zoning Commission and approval by the City Council following required public hearings. The process for the review of a Use Permit is set forth in Section 1-3-2 of the Goodyear Zoning Ordinance and in the City of Goodyear Administrative Process Manual.

Summary of Use Permit Request:

See Attachment D – Details of Request, Attachment E – Conceptual Site Plan, and Attachment F – Conceptual Building & Wall Elevations.

Summary of Compliance with Use Permit Evaluation Criteria

See Attachment G – Evaluation Criteria.

Public Participation

Since no residential uses are located within five hundred (500) feet of the Project, an Alternative Citizen Review process was conducted in lieu of a neighborhood meeting, as allowed per Article 1-3-8 of the Zoning Ordinance. Under this process, notifications were mailed to nine (9) addresses on June 3, 2026, including parcels within a 500-foot buffer of the Property and other interested parties.

Notifications for the public hearing before Planning & Zoning Commission were mailed to the same address list on June 10, 2026. Additionally, signs were posted to the site on June 9, 2026; a legal advertisement was published in the Arizona Business Gazette- Republic Edition on June 12, 2026; and hearing details were posted to the Current Development Applications map on the city’s website on June 5, 2026.

Staff Findings

As outlined herein, staff finds that the proposed Use Permit request is not materially detrimental to persons residing or working in the vicinity adjacent to the Property, to the neighborhood, or to the public welfare, and that the proposed use is reasonably compatible with uses permitted in the surrounding area. Staff further finds the request for Use Permit will meet the additional evaluation criteria for convenience uses as established in Section 4-2-2 of the Zoning Ordinance.

Attachments

Attachment A - Conditions of Approval

Attachment B - Aerial Photo

Attachment C - Project Narrative

Attachment D - Details of Request

Attachment E - Conceptual Site Plan

Attachment F - Conceptual Building & Wall Elevations

Attachment G - Evaluation Criteria

Supporting documents (7)

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Item text
DATE: July 1, 2026

CAR #:

3175

CASE #:

N/A

Planning & Zoning Commission ACTION REPORT

SUBJECT:

ZONING ORDINANCE COMPREHENSIVE UPDATE

STAFF PRESENTER(S):

Christian M. Williams, Planning Manager; Guadalupe Ortiz Cortez, Principal Planner

OTHER PRESENTER(S):

Matthew Klyszeiko, Michael Baker International (Zoning Ordinance Update consultant)

SUMMARY:

Request to forward a recommendation of adoption to the City Council for the proposed comprehensive update to the City's Zoning Ordinance.

RECOMMENDATION:

Conduct a public hearing to receive public comments on the city’s Zoning Ordinance comprehensive update.

Recommend adoption of Ordinance No. 2026-XXXX to approve the city’s Zoning Ordinance comprehensive update. (Christian M. Williams, Planning Manager and Guadalupe Ortiz Cortez, Principal Planner)

FISCAL IMPACT:

There is no direct budget impact associated with the comprehensive update. Funding for tasks associated with the Zoning Ordinance update have been approved for this fiscal year.

BACKGROUND AND PREVIOUS ACTIONS:

Arizona state law provides municipalities with the ability to enact zoning regulations for the development of the municipalities and to conserve and promote public health, safety, and general welfare (ARS 9-462.01). The City’s General Plan,

General Plan 2035: Growing Goodyear, Planning Our Future

, was ratified by voters in May 2024. In response to residents’ requests for continued high-quality development in the city, staff hired Michael Baker International to update the Design Guidelines. The updated Design Guidelines were adopted by City Council in November 2024.

Shortly thereafter, staff began working with Michael Baker International on the Zoning Ordinance update to further improve standards and support high-quality development throughout the city. Because the last comprehensive Zoning Ordinance update occurred in 1999, staff identified several items to address, including bringing the ordinance up to current standards, improving user experience, refining outdated development standards, expanding housing options, clarifying definitions, adding uses not previously included in the ordinance, and revising language to ensure compliance with state and federal law.

Together, these updates help streamline the development process while maintaining high-quality standards. Additionally, the Zoning Ordinance update is a Strategic Plan item for Fiscal Year 2026 and supports the City’s intent to conserve and promote public health, safety, and general welfare by supporting the General Plan’s goal of creating a community that distinguishes itself through high-quality character and design.

STAFF ANALYSIS

The comprehensive update process began in January 2025. The first community workshop was held on April 23, 2025, at the Goodyear Recreation Center. Ten residents attended and actively engaged with the consultant and city staff throughout the event. A survey on the Zoning Ordinance was available to the public from mid-April through early July, providing the update team with insight into community interests and priorities. Highlights and informational articles about the Zoning Ordinance update were published in the May and June 2025 editions of the

InFocus

magazine.

The first work sessions with the Planning and Zoning Commission and the City Council were held in October and November 2025, respectively. Topics discussed included expanding allowances for temporary signage in multi-family zoning districts, increasing noticing requirements, reviewing permitted and use-permit uses, and creating middle-housing opportunities within single-family zoning districts. A second work session was held in March 2026, during which staff presented proposed regulations for Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) and data centers. Additional topics included in the staff report were an arts district overlay and updated regulations for drive-through facilities and parking standards. Based on the feedback received during these work sessions, staff and the consultant revised the proposed regulation language. At the third work session in June, the Planning and Zoning Commission and City Council received an update summarizing the modifications made in response to comments from both earlier work sessions.

A final community workshop was conducted on May 5, 2026, in the Canyon Trails meeting room at City Hall. Five developer representatives attended to learn more about the proposed regulations, particularly those related to BESS and data centers.

The initial draft sections of the Zoning Ordinance update—specifically the proposed regulations for BESS and data centers—were released in early March at the time of second work session. Remaining draft sections were released through April 22. Staff received, reviewed, and incorporated feedback until the public hearing draft was finalized on June 12. During the seven to fourteen weeks the draft was available for public comment, staff met with existing customers and various regional organizations to discuss the update and receive input. Most comments focused on BESS and data center standards, as the City currently has no adopted regulations for these uses; the update will codify how they are permitted and the standards they must meet. All comments received were evaluated and incorporated into the final document.

Since publication of the public hearing draft on June 12, staff and the consultant have further revised the document to address additional feedback from the development community, correct scrivener’s errors, and provide necessary clarity and flexibility. The document showing tracked changes is included as Attachment A. The final Zoning Ordinance, incorporating all revisions, is included as Exhibit A to Attachment B.

The proposed Zoning Ordinance update fulfills the primary goals of the project. It expands opportunities for housing diversity, clarifies definitions, updates existing uses and development standards, and introduces new uses. In addition, the ordinance has been reorganized and modernized with tables and graphics to improve usability and overall reader experience.

CONCLUSION

The comprehensive Zoning Ordinance update aims to protect our residents’ health, safety, and welfare by establishing land use classifications, dividing the city into districts, and imposing regulations on land use, building dimensions, and open space among other regulations. Accordingly, staff recommend the Planning and Zoning Commission forward to the City Council a recommendation to adopt Ordinance No. 2026-XXXX, Attachment B. Staff will present the final Zoning Ordinance to the City Council at a public hearing on July 6, 2026. If adopted, the Zoning Ordinance will become effective 30 days thereafter.

Attachments

Attachment A - Zoning Ordinance Public Hearing Draft with Track Changes

Attachment B - Draft Ordinance No. 2026-XXXX

Supporting documents (2)

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3 item(s)