By Roland Murphy for AZBEX
A 222-unit apartment development planned for the SWC of Broadway and Rosemont boulevards in Tucson had been scheduled to go before the Tucson City Council this week but has been removed from the agenda and continued to a later date.
Property owner Broadway-Rosemont LLC has requested a rezoning of 6.02 acres of a seven-acre site from Residential and Commercial to Office/Commercial/Residential. According to details in the Tucson Zoning Examiner’s report, “The proposal includes six 40-foot-high buildings, with 43 to 45-foot-high “pop-outs” in some areas, four 26-foot-high buildings, and a two-story-high clubhouse, 29 to 31 feet in height.”
The plan for Broadway/Rosemont Multifamily calls for 222 apartments with 36 studios, 144 one-bedroom, 36 two-bedroom and six carriage house units. Amenities include a pool, a community room and an outdoor garden area, and the site will include solar-ready covered parking spaces and electric vehicle parking stations.
A Tucson-area real estate news site ran a project background article and request for support on Aug. 16. The piece said, “The proposed housing community is ideal for those looking to live in an urban environment that provides the ability to take advantage of a ‘live, work and play’ lifestyle, all while not needing a car! Within walking distance of 1,500,000 SF of office space and approximately 340,000 SF of retail space, the subject site is .01 miles (52.8 ft.) from the Route 8 bus route which runs every 15 minutes from 5:00 AM to 7:00 PM and every 30 minutes to midnight.”
The article goes on to say the proposed development, from Waypoint Residential supports all the key elements of Plan Tucson, the City’s 20-year planning policy guide, including adding housing inventory, locating housing and employment sites near each other, supporting higher density development with access to major streets and locating mixed-use developments near transit nodes.
Project representatives made similar arguments during a July 20 hearing before the Zoning Examiner.
In a call to action, the article asked readers to email statements of support to the Tucson City Clerk and to copy Thomas Warne, the project representative, before the originally planned Aug. 22 Council hearing.
The call for support likely came as a result of the Zoning Examiner recommending against approving the rezoning. Even though planning staff had recommended approval, the Zoning Examiner’s review found that the proposed development was not sensitive to surrounding uses, including single-family residential, and that the planned density of 37 units/acre and height of 40-45 feet was incompatible with the surrounding area.
The proposal encountered significant resident opposition. Before the July 20 Zoning Examiner hearing, 256 statements in opposition had been received, versus nine messages urging approval.
Concerns raised by opponents were extensive, including:
- A planned project density 10 times greater than the existing neighborhood,
- Excessive building height compared to adjacent residences,
- Privacy concerns,
- Fewer parking spaces than typically required, which residents feared would lead to overflow parking on surrounding streets,
- Architectural incompatibility with surrounding homes and uses, and
- Traffic impacts on Rosemont Blvd.
The Aug. 3 report’s conclusion said, “The proposed development in this rezoning case neither preserves nor enhances the Rosemont West neighborhood. In fact, the opposite is true.”
No new hearing date for City Council consideration has been announced as of press time.
