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Buckeye P&Z passes 455-home plat

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It’s not often a West Valley planning commission has almost 700 homes on its agenda at the same time.

That’s the quantity the Buckeye Planning and Zoning Commission recommended for preliminary plat approval Tuesday at its regular meeting.

The board recommended the Buckeye City Council approve plat approvals for two large developments and a much smaller one as residential development as the Southwest Valley continues to focus on expensive single-family homes.

The largest of the three plats is Verrado Regent Hills Phase 3A and 3B. The plat is for 455 units in a Verrado’s master-plan district No. 6. Owned by Dave Nilsen of DMB White Tank LLC, the plat is on about 81 acres, which would give the plan a gross density of about 5.6 units per acre.

A board member asked Kurt Jones of Tiffany & Bosco, who was representing DMB during Tuesday’s short hearing, if there were plans for phases 3A and 3B construction to be completed ahead of the Regent Hills second phase, which was on a board agenda in March.

“I don’t have that schedule, but one would think this might jump ahead of phase two,” Jones said.

The 455 homes are in a sort of circular arrangement of neighborhoods near the western end of Lost Creek Drive, with a hill or knoll in the middle. The top of the knoll will be pedestrian-accessible and will have trails in an open space area.

There are four different lot dimension configurations in the two phases of Regent Hills. There’s only one public road involved in phases 3A and 3B, however: the loop that will run through the phases, eventually connecting the west end of Lost Creek Drive with the neighborhood where West Indian School Road currently ends.

A staff report indicates changes have been made, which uses public feedback, since the original plan was published.

“Concerns have been primarily focused on the proposal being out of character with the surrounding area in regard to lot size, design and housing product type, which is non-custom homes, and potential related impacts on the value of surrounding homes,” a staff report states. “However, no written feedback has been received and no additional feedback (was received) since the approval of Regent Hills Phase 2 on March 22.”

The motion to recommend the plat be approved by council passed by a 5-1 vote.

The second-largest item on Tuesday’s agenda is a 264-unit subdivision called Vista Bonita. The applicant and owner is David Hughes, EPS Group, Inc., on behalf of Villa Vista Bonita LLC.

A 2.15-acre property within a small county island within the approved Vista Bonita development received a rezone from the commission and Buckeye City Council this spring, as well as annexation into the city.

Located near the southeast corner of Apache and Broadway roads, the subdivision is near Marionneaux Elementary School. The density is 4.5 duplex units per acre.

The board unanimously decided to recommend plat approval.

A project listed as Verrado Parcel 6.510 Preliminary Plat was the third hearing item on Tuesday’s agenda. It was recommend unanimously for approval as well.

The plat involves only six proposed homes on an infill Verrado master-plan parcel wedged between Tiger Mountain Drive, 208th Avenue and a portion of a golf course.

Tom Ryan of Huitt-Zollars Inc. is the applicant. The owner is Verrado ARC LLC.

The density for the six single-family homes would be about 2.19 units per gross acre.

The board also held an in-depth overview discussion on Buckeye planning and zoning bylaws.