Planning Maricopa Part 2: How the city will grow

This is the second in a series of articles explaining Maricopa Proposition 415, the city’s general plan update, which is on the November ballot. To see related articles, click here or see the general plan website at here.

 

Growth Area Element

Population growth is inevitable, and this comes as no surprise to Maricopans. As one of the fastest growing cities in the nation, officials learned the importance of planning to accommodate growth in a way that improves the quality of life for all residents.

 

The Growth Element of the General Plan outlines the fundamental purpose to comprehensively plan the various elements that make up the City, such as land uses, multi-modal transportation and infrastructure, jobs and diversification of revenues, community health and safety, cultural and recreation opportunities, conservation and efficient use of resources, education and public services. The General Plan, Planning Maricopa, composes these elements in a way that will lead to a thriving sustainable balance of all sectors of the City.

 

The Growth Element highlights the City’s focus on appropriate levels of services desired by the residents. In an effort to minimize the City’s ongoing infrastructure costs, new development and redevelopment is encouraged in close proximity to existing infrastructure and services as opposed to creating expansive gaps in complete infrastructure. There is also an emphasis on job creation, healthcare services, and enhanced retail options by creating unique walkable places with a mixture of uses. Equally important is encouraging the development of a variety of housing types, such as condominiums, townhomes, compact single-family cluster neighborhoods, and large lot residential neighborhoods.

Land Use Element

The purpose of the Land Use Element is to guide development and redevelopment in an orderly manner and balance growth with preservation of the City’s assets. Planning Maricopa designates the location and extent of private (residential, commercial, industrial) and public (education, recreation, open space) land together with the density and intensity for land use categories. The aim is to foster growth in the Maricopa economy with thriving neighborhoods that are integrated with, and highly accessible to, good jobs, shopping, amenities and recreation.

 

The Land Use Element organizes the City’s desired future land uses in the following sub-topics:

 

1. Development Pattern
2. Village Planning & Village Center Development Pattern
3. Mixture of Uses
4. Other Land Uses
5. Land Use Plan

 

2. Housing Element

 

3. Redevelopment & Revitalization
4. Heritage District Redevelopment Area
5. Seven Ranches Area
6. Saddleback Estates

 

4. Special Planning Areas
5. Estrella Gin Site
6. Copper Sky Mixed Use
7. City Center
8. Arizona State Land Development

 

5. Neighborhood Preservation & Revitalization