Lennar Homes seeks to develop 640-acre site

Lennar Homes is seeking permission to build a large housing development on 640 acres in southeast Maricopa.

In a pre-application narrative filed on behalf of Lennar by Phoenix law firm Tiffany & Bosco, the homebuilder is proposing to develop the Anderson Farms property, which is bordered by Bowlin Road on the north, Farrell Road on the south, Murphy Road on the east and Hartman Road on the west. The Sorrento community lies directly west of the proposed development with the Volkswagen test facility to the east.

The Maricopa Unified School District’s second high school is under construction across Farrell Road. Some acreage of the Anderson farm had originally been offered as a possible site for the as-yet-unnamed school but was withdrawn.

Areas to the north and west of the property are in the process of developing planned area developments (PADs).

The preliminary site plan submitted by Lennar shows 25 parcels to be developed, ranging in size from 9.87 to 50.02 acres. Lot sizes would range from 40 by 115 feet (4,500 square feet) to 65 to 120 feet (7,800 square feet).

The proposal includes two master planned community areas but intends to designate as mixed-use two parts of the property – the southeast corner of Bowlin and Hartman roads and the northeast corner of Hartman and Farrell roads. Mixed-use zoning would allow for commercial, service or office development.

A central park of nearly 11 acres is planned for the community.

Two existing subdivisions are already laid out within the 640-acre parcel, at the northwest corner near Bowlin and Hartman Roads, and south of Lennar’s planned mixed-use area.

If Lennar builds the community with medium-density, which is typically defined as about 3.5 homes per acre, the site could hold about 2,240 homes. At the U.S. Census Bureau’s average of 2.6 people per home, that would equate to about 5,824 residents in the community.

The pre-application notes existing “drainage issues” on the property that will need to be addressed.

The existing Anderson Farms residence and agricultural buildings that sit on the north side of the Farrell Road will remain in place as part of the initial land plan for the proposed development.

Lennar is Arizona’s ninth-largest homebuilder and ranks second nationally, with more than 51,000 closings in 2019.