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PHOENIX - Residents in a North Phoenix neighborhood are outraged, as news spread that a vacant plot of land near their homes could soon be rezoned from a residential area to commercial.
"None of us signed up to live across the street from a master development like that," said resident Dan Richards.
The area in question is located near Deer Valley Drive and Black Mountain Boulevard. The rezoning, if ultimately approved, would mean instead of building homes and keeping the area a neighborhood, the area could one day be transformed into a busy shopping area. On Oct. 3, dozens of residents in the Desert Ridge neighborhood came out to a Planning Commission meeting to express their concerns.
"When we moved there, we did our research, and we knew that that was zoned for residential," said Richards. "Everybody that moved into this neighborhood, for the most part they did their research, and it's kind of a bait-and-switch, so everybody thinking that there is going to be just a residential community next door to us, now to have commercial, it’s terrible."
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Phoenix residents angry over rezoning plan
Residents in a part of North Phoenix say they are outraged that a vacant plot of land near their homes could soon be rezoned for commercial use. FOX 10's Stephanie Bennett reports.
Many argue the switch will create a safety hazard, add more traffic, and welcome unwanted behavior.
The area in question is located near Pinnacle High School and Fireside Elementary School. Hundreds of homes surround the area.
"Less traffic for houses than a shopping mall," said resident Randy Spence.
"Why does it need to be next to the high school, when right up the road at Pinnacle Peak, two miles away, it is zoned for commercial? Why not move it there? So that is one of my major concerns. The other is crime, homelessness," said resident Candy Huether.
One of the applicants vying for the rezoning approval is Vestar, who also created Desert Ridge Marketplace.
"Desert Ridge needs a grocery store outside of the core to better serve the residents west of Desert Ridge," said Ryan Ash with Vestar. "The specific plan needs to be amended. The plan has been amended before. We approved Desert Ridge, and this is another opportunity to improve the plan. The proposed plan is not just a logical one. It’s a good one."
Area residents tell us a commercial area would create more harm than good, including additional traffic problems, light pollution, noise, and impact to student safety,
"This is just the start. There’s additional meetings that we need to go to in November and December, so this is just the start," said Richards.