Apache Junction planning commission recommends rezoning at 282 N. Palo Verde to allow fourplex

The Apache Junction Planning and Zoning Commission voted 6-0 on Aug. 26 to recommend that the City Council approve a rezoning and minor general plan amendment for 282 North Palo Verde Drive that would allow a fourplex to replace an older single-family unit.

Nick Leftwich, senior planner for the City of Apache Junction, described the request as “p 24 114 p z is a request for a rezoning by a plan development of approximately 0.62 acres from r s 10 m ... to r m 1 p d,” and said the change would resolve the property’s legal nonconforming status. The property is listed in staff materials as Parcel 101-02-0050.

The rezoning would change the parcel’s zoning from RS-10M (medium-density single-family detached) to RM-1PD (high-density multifamily by plan development) and requires a minor general plan amendment from medium-density residential to high-density residential. The applicant, represented at the hearing by Giselle Ortega of Hermelinda Properties, said the proposal would replace a 1934 single-family building with a fourplex, for a net increase of three dwelling units; the two duplex buildings on site would remain.

Staff materials and discussion at the hearing described several project features and conditions: the applicant proposes paving and formalizing parking and site access, adding landscaping and stormwater/retention improvements, and constructing an 8-foot masonry wall along the north, west and south property lines (the east side faces the street). Leftwich said the plan development includes a requested reduction of the west-side setback from 20 feet to 10 feet to accommodate parking and site layout. Leftwich also told commissioners the parcel is connected to sewer and would be subject to building-code and utility review during the construction-document phase.

Public input at the hearing was limited. Susie McCord, who identified herself as with the Desert Chapel United Methodist Church, asked whether the proposed 8-foot wall would run around the whole property; Leftwich and the applicant confirmed the wall is shown on the plans to run along the north, west and south property lines and not along the street-facing east side. Leftwich also said staff received one phone call from a neighbor who had parking questions and, after staff explained that on-site parking requirements were met, raised no objection.

Commission members discussed the effect of the requested deviations on existing nonconforming structures, public-safety and parking impacts, and neighborhood character. Leftwich explained that granting the plan development deviations would make the existing buildings legal conforming under the PD standards, which would allow rebuilding in place if a structure were substantially damaged; he also noted that legal nonconforming status limits repairs above a specified threshold. Commissioners pressed staff and the applicant on parking, utilities and facade-matching for the existing buildings; Ortega said the owner plans to refresh the existing buildings’ exteriors and coordinate materials with the new construction.

After findings required by the Apache Junction Zoning Ordinance and the Apache Junction General Plan (2010) were read into the record, a motion to recommend approval of case PD-24-114-PZ, including the minor general plan amendment and subject to the five conditions in the staff report, passed on a 6-0 roll call. The Commission’s recommendation will be forwarded to the City Council; Leftwich said the Council public hearing is scheduled for Oct. 7, 2025.

Votes at a glance: Planning and Zoning Commission recommendation on PD-24-114-PZ (282 N. Palo Verde Drive) — Roll-call recommendation to City Council: yes 6, no 0. Motion moved and seconded (movers not specified on the public record).