Last May 2012, the Main Gate Urban Overlay District (UOD) saw its first major building permit, a 35 million dollar high-rise student housing project. That set the path for the Main Gate overlay district and painted a disappointing picture of what a UOD looks like to neighborhood sustainability. Overlays aren’t new. Tucson has been using zoning overlays as planning tools for decades. An original overlay, the Historic Preservation Zone is well liked. The newest one, the Main Gate Urban Overlay District became an icon to mistrust in public process. City planners passed a UOD fast track enabling ordinance in 2010. Its reasons were mixed. Infill conditions for a 63 million dollar federal streetcar grant was one. Other reasons are downtown infill, a needed warehouse district, a desire to add density along arterial edges and the fallout of the deepest real estate recession since 1929. Click here to view the rest of the article.
Archive for the ‘Main Gate UOD’ Category
Campus Acquisitions Acquires Tucson M & C Approval
Posted in Main Gate UOD, Politics and Editorials on August 29, 2012| Leave a Comment »
CAMPUS ACQUISITIONS scores a win over public process. Tucson’s mayor and council chambers was packed with angry neighborhood residents who watched their elected officials favor a Chicago based student housing developer over their plea to downscale the development and most likely lose the project which Tucson’s development stakeholders did not want. Many core neighborhood associations supported WUNA’s alternative plan, but it didn’t look like a design issue. It doesn’t even look like public process for that matter. Forty five years and counting, a divide and conquer strategy has worked for developers and planners; one neighborhood at a time. Maybe that tide is shifting now as neighborhoods react to what they see as a planning coup. The Main Gate Urban Overlay District Zoning was adopted following a historically quick notification and meeting process with a small handful of WUNA residents. Under the pressure of a deep economic recession, came an almost a unanimous approval by Mayor and Council, save for Councilwoman Uhlich. Old neighborhoods have suffered serious attrition in the past and this certainly continues that unfortunate reality. On February 28th, 2011, historic neighborhoods were shut up again.
Overlays and Public Process
Posted in Edges and Overlays, Main Gate UOD on August 26, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Overlays are not a new term. Tucson has a dozen major overlay designations including sub-districts. Recent use of opt-in rezoning overlays are a new phenomena and the Main Gate UOD (Urban Overlay District) is the first of its kind. Unlike our protective other overlays, UOD’S have rapid and significant impact to existing zoning. The urban overlay enabling ordinance was set up in 2010 and allowed the Main Gate District to be streamlined. That flew in the face of public process. The biggest omission was a plan with community acceptance. Under pressure to justify the the modern street car, the City did retain a consultant for a specific plan for this UOD. Although, rejected by core neighborhoods, the plan was adopted under protest. Public Process was a casualty and the district’s first highrise building permit was issued while being legally challenged. See Arizona Court of Appeals.
Amidst the fallout of the August 7th amendment, frustration was evident in Councilman Kozachik’s ward 6 newsletter article, Issue of Trust.pdf Misconceptions persisted with Wards two, four and five, representing a minority of registered Tucson neighborhoods. See also the Main Gate Overlay and Public Process. The August 7th amendment was intended to repair process and restore community trust by pulling out a small corner of the UOD for reconsideration of heights and historic preservation. Any community consensus that emerged from that effort was effectively destroyed by 4 of the 7 votes in favor of adding three more stories to two privately owned lots. West University filed a complaint with the State Attorney General over the open meeting law. See KGUN News coverage The Main Gate is now a lesson in community relations of what not to do, leaving many asking what a better process will look like.
Main Gate Overlay and Public Process
Posted in Edges and Overlays, Main Gate UOD on August 8, 2012| 2 Comments »
“In a stunning setback for city council members Steve Kozachik and Karin Uhlich, Mayor Jonathan Rothschild on Tuesday broke a 3-3 tie at the City Council in favor of developers of a Main Gate Area property. Rothschild voted for a surprise deal on building height that gave the developers an extra 40 feet, up to 130 feet. The off-stage deal was only announced when a developer mentioned it in remarks to the council shortly before the vote, saying the proposed 90-foot limit set for a vote, which appeared almost a sure-thing, would not provide enough financial benefits.
”I vote yes,” the mayor said….” Read more in WUNA NEWS The motion becomes law after 30 days unless a yes voter asks for a new vote and since it was not a super majority vote. The focus of the motion refers to a small corner of the Main Gate Overlay called “The Discussion Area”. What is a concern to public process is that mayor and council are using overlays to give away new zoning along the edges of already stressed out core neighborhoods without their backing. The urban planning of our core neighborhoods is a community process. Predicating its results on the basis of personal gain not only subverts this process, but encourages errors in judgement and placement of new zoning. Neighborhood leaders are calling for a core neighborhoods commission to give neighborhoods a proper voice in their planning future. After this M&C meeting, what we see as public process does not look credible. How do yo re-build that trust? Here are some opposite views from two councilmen. Read Ward 6 Councilman Steve Kozachik’s analysis by viewing Main Gate Development.pdf and view Paul Cunningham’s opinion in Ward 2 viewpoint A point to consider in determining who the motion represents is that wards 2, 4 and 5 voted yes and wards 1, 3, and 6 voted no. The yes vote wards do not represent core-neighborhoods and contain slightly over 1/3 of Tucson’s registered neighborhoods. See for yourself in this map: Tucson NHA’s.pdf The wards that carry 2/3’s of Tucson’s 187 registered neighborhoods are within the core area and do not want a breach of public process. An anomaly to this is that Councilman Fimbres, does represent the balance of “core neighborhoods” and south-side barrios which are ward 5. His vote does not.
Main Gate Overlay Discussion Area Hearing
Posted in Main Gate UOD on August 6, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Despite the Main Gate District laying in wait for a ruling on whether the Supreme Court will hear West University’s petition rejection, the City of Tucson is set to hear final recommendations for a small corner of Speedway and Euclid; “the discussion area”. This is the outline for Tuesday’s M&C public hearing at 260 S. Church (TCC), estimated time: 6:30 (public agenda items start @ 5:30) – LINK: MGD Public Meeting Recommendation.pdf. The rest of the overlay district is untouched as the first highrise was permitted.pdf and in construction. The discussion area recommendations given to M&C offer a small lowering in heights and an exclusion area for bungalows. The overlay is recommended to be excluded for a half dozen historic dwellings along Euclid. Sadly, the plan may place them in a state of limbo making them unattractive for preservation investment. Historic bungalows along the Speedway Portion are recommended to remain in the overlay, effectively insuring their removal for more valuable new MGD multi-story zoning rights. West University and the Historic Commission do not support the Speedway portion. One can only wonder about the fate of the Euclid dwellings. A bold option would have been to turn the corner into a public improvement, acquire the historic houses, and tax the highrise(s) for the cost to restore and re-purpose them. Your input is encouraged at the Tuesday night meeting.
AZ Court of Appeals – Main Gate UOD – update
Posted in Main Gate UOD on June 22, 2012| 1 Comment »
Arizona Court of Appeals hearing on the City of Tucson’s rejection of citizens petitions to repeal the Main Gate Overlay View also a written summary in Court of Appeals : WUNA (pdf)
June 22nd update – The Court of appeals ruled against the appeal. The Supreme Court has been asked to review this ruling. The submittal by West University’s attorney can be viewed here: Petition For Review
Neighborhood Impact Fees and UODs
Posted in Edges and Overlays, Main Gate UOD on May 27, 2012| Leave a Comment »
In August of 2010, 
the City of Tucson adopted the Urban Overlay District (UOD) enabling ordinance which allows the City to initiate re-zonings for districts where transit oriented development is desired. The intent is to enable streamlined re-zoning. New UODs will be coming fast and will cover a lot of ground along the warehouse district, the boundaries of the U of A, Grant Road, Broadway Boulevard, 22nd Street, the Modern Street Car route, Fourth Avenue and many other transit designated areas in the near future. The first tentatively adopted UOD is the Main Gate District, currently stalled with a legal challenge by West University Neighborhood Association. As an example of one single UOD, there are 17 parcels that stand to receive added value by the stroke of a pen. There is little going into surrounding neighborhoods but a promise for trickle down benefits. UODs typically border and impact established neighborhoods along selected transit routes. Although U of A neighborhoods managed to curb mis-use of R1 and R2 uses after a decade of illegally permitted student group homes by the City of Tucson, residents continue to feel divestment, stress and disrespect. Campus Acquisitions plans to spend 70 million dollars on two 14 story high rises. Most of the height is added value. If 2/3’s was added value, then 3% would be 1.4 million dollars, but don’t count on it benefiting impacted neighborhoods as the overlay has no link to any kind of neighborhood impact fee structure. That’s a lost opportunity. Neighborhoods need to be asking for the UOD enabling ordinance to be re-written to insure mutuality in benefits to protect neighborhoods.
What will turn around divestment of R1 and R2 uses around the U of A and downtown is not solely fussing building heights, but channeling funds into our neighborhoods through UOD neighborhood reinvestment / impact fees that are solely an opt in mechanism. Call them NRIFS if you want. Matching up reinvestment districts with H.U.D. community / neighborhood empowerment programs, Ground Work USA, and possible fee waivers, could be an enormous boom to residential resurgence in these impact districts. R1 and R2 uses around UODs could see a increase in value and demand. U of A neighborhoods, currently under fire have to ask for this while the opportunities are here.
Here is an interesting May 27th, Sunday Star article; New developments with top-flight amenities expected to draw students nearer to UA, which neglects to discuss the impact of dense housing development along the edges of U of A neighborhoods many of which will be enabled by UODs.
Underlying the Overlays
Posted in Main Gate UOD on May 14, 2012| Leave a Comment »
As the saga of Tucson’s first adopted overlay continues, Tim Vanderpool, writer for the Tucson Weekly summarizes in Underlying the Overlays Also view council’s comments following the May 8th City Hall meeting. Council newsletter excerpts (PDF) On May 15th, the contested overlay petitions relating to the repeal of the Main Gate Overlay goes to Arizona Supreme Court to be heard a second time. It would follow that West University’s efforts to repeal the overlay are being heard by Mayor and council as they inch closer to giving West University what they want.
Judge Gordon’s Ruling
Posted in Main Gate UOD on April 27, 2012| Leave a Comment »
View a PDF copy of Judge Richard Gordon’s April 27th ruling for the City on their rejection of West University’s petitions to repeal the Main Gate UOD – RULING
An appeal was filed April 30th, 2012 in the Court of Appeals. The case is heading to the Arizona Supreme Court
Tucson Overlays Challenged by City Residents
Posted in Edges and Overlays, Main Gate UOD on April 24, 2012| 1 Comment »
As West University and the City of Tucson fight their first court battle over the validity of petition signatures, planning officials are hearing a quick redo of the northwest corner of the Main Gate Urban Overlay District (UOD) at council chambers on April 25th, 6:30PM. A verdict on West University’s court case is also due on the 25th. View the PDF file of West University’s update by Ford Burkhart: Referendum Court Case
In parallel efforts, the Broadway Coalition is battling the 71 million dollar RTA funded Broadway Corridor. Rincon Heights, Sam Hughes, El Encanto and other neighborhoods impacted by widening have been fighting its costly and destructive impact. View a PDF copy of the Broadway Coalition’s Statement. View also Steve Kozachik’s Press Conference Statement, and attend on April 30th @ 6Pm @ the First Assembly of God Church – Broadway and Campbell. Public Invited. Another RTA funded project; the Grant Road Widening between Oracle and Swan has a UOD component to deal with re-zoning. Jefferson Park is opting out of the UOD because of a lack of the right planning. Others will follow.
A theme with residents is a demand for more than a name on sign-in sheets. They want real input and major neighborhood focus. Maybe Tucson could look at Jaime Lerner, former 12 year mayor of Curitiba who turned the Brazilian City around to become emblematic of real “best practice urban design”. Lerner says 3 driving factors for success is mobility, sustainability and identity; things that Tucson struggles with. Curitiba worked because of the vision and commitment that Lerner was able to give. How does Tucson do this? How does Tucson find a balance with its neighborhoods.
Developer Lists Possible Damages From Zoning Delay
Posted in Main Gate UOD on April 16, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Developer Lists $21 Million Possible Damages From Zoning Delay in Posner’s Block Hi-Rise. Ford Burkhart Download PDF for article here CA Damages
Should the Neighborhoods back the Main Gate project?
Posted in Conversations, Infill, Main Gate UOD, Modern Street Car on April 4, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Click here to read: Neighborhood association ought to back Main Gate project, by Robert Lanning, Architect. Published by the Daily Star. Here are some other points to consider: An edge / transition strategy is necessary. It is missing. One way it can happen is with a sub-regional downtown / U of A master plan that outlines what is coming so neighborhoods know what kind of final input they need to be prepared to engage in. The MGD skirts this. It is a fast track style re-zoning which is developer driven. If the project is like the $35 million dollar“Vue on Apache” in Tempe, Neighborhoods might have reservations. Not only is neighborhood input necessary in driving our best urban planning but to imply neighborhoods can not be part of a plan omits a key part of the picture. Watching the frustration of developers and neighborhoods year after year speaks for itself. Many agree that the transition is or should be the stretch of property just east of Euclid, but what does it look like? Are there plazas, hard-scape, sidewalks, trees and base development of low masses, including some of the fine historic structures creating the idea of being walkable and pedestrian friendly. A good transition insures this and when you look at historical structures that might be part of this, you have to see beyond the weeds. Map courtesty of WUNA.
Josh Brodesky: Opposition by 12,000 underlies the overlay
Posted in Main Gate UOD, Politics and Editorials on April 1, 2012| Leave a Comment »
The April 1st Sunday Star features a key moment in a referendum initiative by West University Neighborhood. After celebrating in front of City Hall, the initiative ran into an anticipated brick wall at the clerks office as this citizen’s tool for process was not very well received by the City Attorney’s office. View Josh Brodesky: Opposition by 12,000 underlies the overlay. Since Josh wrote this update, roughly 6,000 of the signatures were disqualified on a very minor clerical technicality which had no bearing on the quality and intent of the signatures, as West University painstakingly followed every rule. Photo shows clerk rejecting petitions. Stay tuned for whats next. Here are some recent updates from April 2nd: Josh Brodesky, Daily Star → Fox 11 News
The Streetcar, Intelligent Infill and Livability
Posted in Infill, Main Gate UOD, Modern Street Car on March 30, 2012| 2 Comments »
The Arizona Daily Star published a piece by the Dean of the College of Architecture, Janice Cervilli. The Dean sees this as positive for not only development, but for the community. What do neighborhoods think? Check out the Dean’s point of view on a dicey subject in the Modern Streetcar, Intelligent Infill can Make Tucson a More Livable City.
Citizen Process and the Main Gate Urban Overlay District
Posted in Edges and Overlays, Main Gate UOD, On-going Action on March 29, 2012| Leave a Comment »
An Open Letter to Mayor Jonathan Rothschild Regarding the Overlay Ordinance (Tucson Weekly Article) “As I read through the new ordinance, it struck me that it could easily have been written by developers”…Click on title for rest of this telling piece by Cathleen Shirley.
Many core neighborhoods are on fire to see West University Neighborhood succeed in their petition drive to repeal what they see as a dangerous precedent for the debut of UOD re-zoning in Tucson. An understanding is setting in as to why the current public process hasn’t worked. The Main Gate UOD is Tucson’s debut for what is essentially a new tool for planners to insert large tracts of re-zoning along main roads and within targeted or “blighted” areas. This inaugural effort gives away the farm for a corporate plan. Several other UOD’s are lined up at the gate to also be adopted. Tucson needs to get this one right. Sending Tucson’s first UOD to ballot box is a citizen process. It is a difficult and challenging way to exercise a voice, but necessary if we want this to be for Tucson. Let’s hope the Mayor and Council appreciate its constituents for taking the heat off of them and asking the questions they couldn’t.
C.O.T. Web Page for Main Gate Overlay Re-Zoning
Posted in Conversations, Ideas, Main Gate UOD on March 7, 2012| Leave a Comment »
The Official Website for the Main Gate Overlay District re-zoning The following are PDF links that can be clicked on and downloaded. This will cover information about this rezoning that is helpful for citizens to understand it:
“The City’s Plan” → WUNA’s Plan, a Visual → Rezoning Map → City Manager’s Letter (Descriptive) → Adoption Letter
For information regarding opposition to the overlay and citizen view-points, please view WUNA’s official website and facebook sites: westuniversityneighborhood.org, facebook.com/nowayoverlay. Send inquiries to WUNA’s official email address for the referendum action: nowayoverlay@gmail.com
Opinion: Ordinance # 10968, Main Gate District Optional Urban Overlay excludes substantive citizen involvement. It was adopted through quick a 90 day re-zoning. Now, with citizens initiating a referendum petition to overturn the re-zoning, it looks larger in public scope than a re-zoning process can handle. The re-zoning adopted on February 28th, is described by proponents as a good thing for business as Mayor Rothschild proclaims “Tucson is open for Business”. It addresses shortcomings in infill and growth along transit, namely the modern street car route. The City of Tucson had a comparable alternative that contained real elements of public inclusion and met criteria for density. Mayor and Council chose staff’s plan that favors the immediate probability of issuing building permits. See Campus Acquisitions. In the larger picture, this rezoning action sets a precedent for more overlays done in a manner that continues to limit substantive citizen input. A citizen based sub-regional master plan would be a clearing and could pave a smoother road for approvals of future overlays. As Tucson digs out of its recession, more overlays will be coming. Citizens need input on these. UUI
Neighbors band to block high-rises west of UA
Posted in Main Gate UOD, On-going Action, Preservation on March 5, 2012| Leave a Comment »
The Main Gate UOD; Reflections on its Adoption…
Posted in Conversations, Main Gate UOD on March 1, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Main Gate Urban Overlay District, UOD; reflections on its February 28th Adoption – See “Sacrifice Zone” for an explanation of UOD’s.
The City of Tucson could have supported another plan put together by WUNA (West University Neighborhood Association) that would have maintained the respect of core neighborhoods and still be a significant plan; apparently, without an immediate anchor like the one adopted. A dilemma; maybe? M & C chose the plan that satisfied the most immediate needs of a handful of property owners, developers and one major interest, out of town. It is in fact a legitimate and seemingly legal choice, but one that City leadership will have to live with now, because it has ignited something beyond just WUNA’s interests.
To make this clear however, the choice to adopt that particular plan was not about design, creativity or density. I wish that was said. I can’t be sure what the choice was about, but it showed how disregarded citizen input really is.
Clearly, the underlying problem is an absence of a sub-regional master plan that has core neighborhoods at its heart. Such a plan could be referenced in the 2013 general plan referendum and could guide UODs and work in the spirit of the UOD enabling ordinance; preservation through attraction. At best, city planners think this is too hard to do, but that kind of certainty is a legitimate part of any esteemed university city that chooses to embrace an integrated quality of life befitting of our University of Arizona and our City of Tucson. The U of A area plan is very inadequate and the UODs are looking like a ruse to neighborhoods. WUNA is another slain lamb here. I am not saying this can’t be fixed, but that damage is done. So now, the projects that come out of the MG UOD will get permitted just a little bit quicker.
Neighborhoods Protest Main Gate UOD
Posted in Conversations, Main Gate UOD, Politics and Editorials, Preservation on February 29, 2012| Leave a Comment »
MAIN GATE DISTRICT
Posted in Main Gate UOD on January 3, 2012| 1 Comment »
The Main Gate District is the latest proposal for a re-zoned urban overlay district (UOD) in Tucson. One that is nearing completion is DowntownLINKS, a warehouse district overlay. To make these happen, the Mayor and Council in August 2010 adopted an urban overlay district enabling ordinance that allows them to initiate a rezoning in parts of the City that they most desire to have the zoning option to develop as transit-oriented development. Specific re-zoning proposals that fall with the UOD boundaries can later obtain neighborhood input and a consensus on transitions an overlays such as the Main Gate District. Urban overlay re-zoning proposals will all inevitably border against viable established neighborhoods. You can view the City’s website for some of their other attempts at spurring urban growth. The Main Gate District will require demolitions, particularly where proposed hi-rise zones slam into single story homes that are also designated with an opt-in for hi-density and which will promote ultimately insure removal. That can be good or bad. The Main Gate District Plan by Shepley, Bulfinch, Richardson and Abbott of Boston, Massachusetts can be downloaded for you viewing here. Main Gate District (PDF) WUNA’s plan (PDF) Letter from WUNA (PDF)
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