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Judd: District 6 Newsletter — September

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Revised development & design standards

Members of the public and community stakeholders now have the opportunity to provide comments related to the Land Development Ordinances (LDO) and the Planning and Engineering Design Standards (PEDS). You can review and make comments on the documents at surpriseaz.gov/developnext. Several meetings will also be held before the end of the year to present changes and gather comments.

The following is the timeline for those meetings (dates are subject to change):

  • Development Community Stakeholder Meetings - held virtually in August and September
  • Public Outreach Meetings - held virtually in September with advanced public notice of date and time
  • Planning & Zoning Commission and City Council Presentations – Several presentations in September, October and November
  • Public Hearings - at Planning and Zoning in November, and City Council in December (for final action).

The DevelopNEXT update is important to the City because it will allow us to align ordinances and design standards with the values described in the City’s General plan 2035, it will help us to implement new state statues and federal guidelines, and improve the city’s standards for site, open space and architectural design. In addition, the City’s design standards and guides will be able to be consolidated into one document, and it will simplify and clarify the structure and organization of the documents and the rules within them.

To learn more about DevelopNEXT, please visit surpriseaz.gov/developnext.

Road work update

The Litchfield Road Improvement project was completed on Aug. 19. This project was approved through the 2017 General Obligation Bond. The Litchfield Road improvement project, widened the stretch of road from Waddell Road to Peoria Avenue, added two additional travel lanes (for a total of four), sidewalks, a bicycle lane, street lighting and landscaping.

This project delivered the full design and construction of Litchfield Road, as this was the only remaining undeveloped section of the roadway.

Construction will begin soon on Greenway Road from Sarival to Cotton Lane. This project will eliminate areas that have multiple lanes merging into one lane in each direction. These improvements will provide matched lane configurations on Greenway Road in and around the SR Loop 303/Greenway Road interchange to accommodate the anticipated traffic volume, improve traffic flow and reduce congestion along Greenway Road. The completion of this roadway segment will also provide relief to the eastern and western city ingress and egress points; with a goal of improving commute times, mitigating congestion and improving air quality. Completion of this roadway should also relieve traffic from other east/west arterial roadways.

The specific improvements within this segment of Greenway Road will include two additional travel lanes (for a total of four), provisions for drainage, sidewalks, bicycle lane, street lighting, landscaping, and turn lanes. This project will also include the relocation of existing Maricopa Water District infrastructure.

Roadwork is scheduled to begin in late September or early October, and is expected to continue until early 2021. You may notice some utility work taking place on the roadway in advance of the project.

Community resources

The city of Surprise has housing assistance resources available to help individuals, families and social workers in finding housing help.

The Surprise CARES Housing Stability Program is one program that is available. This program provides financial assistance for up to three consecutive months of rental or mortgage assistance, and up to three consecutive months utility assistance if in conjunction with rental/mortgage assistance. The purpose of this program is to assist low-income households who have had loss of income due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Rent or mortgage payments will be made directly to the landlord or financial institution. To see if you are eligible, please visit surpriseaz.gov/3823/CARES-Housing-Stability-Program to complete an eligibility assessment.

For additional programs and information, please contact the Neighborhood Services Division at 623-222-1550 or the Surprise Resource Center at 623-222-1600.

Esports video game tournaments

Surprise Parks and Recreation and Bravous E-Sports are offering four different video game tournaments during the Fall 2020 sports season for participants ages 7-16. Tournaments will include Rocket League, Fortnight, Madden 20 and Super Smash Bros. Register online at secure.rec1.com/AZ/surprise-community-rec/catalog.

Surprise Aquatic Center mural

The mural on the Surprise Aquatic Center has been completed. Voters had a chance to vote between two concepts, and chose “Swimming with Porpoise.” The mural was painted by street artist “Bacpac.” The Surprise Aquatic Center is located at 15831 N. Bullard Avenue. Thank you to everyone that voted.

New business in District 6

Firestone Complete Auto Care opened a new store, located at 13475 N. Litchfield Road, on Aug. 21.

Council Meetings and Agenda

The next regularly scheduled City Council Meetings will take place on Tuesday Sept. 15 at 6 p.m. Agendas are always posted online at a minimum of two days prior. If you see something on the agenda that concerns you, please reach out before the meeting, so I have time to address your concern. I may even ask your questions during the City Council presentation. The best way to reach me is chris.judd@surpriseaz.gov.

Please note that City Hall is closed Monday, Sept. 7, in observance of Labor Day.

Meet and Greet

My next monthly Meet and Greet is tentatively scheduled for Sept. 23, from 6-8 p.m. at Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers, 14029 W. Waddell Road, Surprise, AZ 85379. Due to COVID-19, there may be changes to my Meet and Greet schedule. Please check my webpage at d6.surpriseaz.gov/ for updates to my meeting schedule.