Planning commission recommends rezoning to allow Prescott Adventist Christian School to add high school grades

The City of Prescott Planning Commission on Feb. 26 recommended approval of a general-plan map amendment and rezoning that would let Prescott Adventist Christian School expand its campus at 2980 Willow Creek Road to include high school grades.

Assistant planner Jacob Lund told commissioners the request, filed as GPA 26-001 and REZ 26-001, covers a combined parcel of about 3.6 acres that was formed by a revision of plat recorded with the Yavapai County Recorder on July 8, 2025. Lund said staff had reviewed the conceptual project across departments and “have not found any issues and it does appear to meet all city code requirements.” He added that mailed notices to property owners within 300 feet produced no public comments.

Lindsay Toyama, treasurer of Prescott Adventist Christian School and a member of the school’s construction committee, said the school currently serves kindergarten through eighth grade and wants to offer ninth through 12th grades. Toyama said projected early high-school enrollment is small: “Currently, with our eighth grade graduates, probably a maximum of 10 at this moment... I don't see more than 20 at this moment,” and that the campus uses an existing gravel area for overflow parking and plans a circulation pattern to minimize traffic on Willow Creek Road.

Commissioners questioned whether Neighborhood Oriented Business zoning would be more appropriate than Business General and why the land-development code treats grades 9–12 differently than K–8 uses. Lund said neighborhood-oriented business (NOB) had been discussed with the applicant, but selecting NOB would have triggered another conditional-use permit; BG allows the proposed high-school use without a separate conditional-use review. He also explained the primary differences between NOB and BG are setback and height limits rather than permissible uses.

Commissioner Tom Hutchison characterized the rezoning as a logical follow-on to the school’s conditional-use permit and recommended approval of both the GPA and rezoning. Commissioner Tom Riley moved to recommend approval of GPA 26-001; Susan Graham seconded. The commission voted unanimously to recommend the general-plan amendment. Riley then moved to recommend approval of REZ 26-001; Tom Davis seconded, and the commission again voted to recommend the rezoning.

Next steps: the commission’s recommendation will be forwarded to the City Council for final action. The staff presentation and applicant materials remain part of the public record; any council hearing will provide an additional opportunity for public comment.