By Roland Murphy for AZBEX
A proposal from Fairfield Residential may soon bring 390 more apartment units to a 4.6-acre site at the NEC of Rockford Drive and Cameron Way in Tempe. Located in the 2100 Rio Salado Business Park, the site is west of the intersection of the Loop 101 and Loop 202 freeways off Price Road.
The location is currently zoned General Industrial and has a Mixed-Use designation under the City of Tempe 2040 General Plan. It is noted as High Density on the General Plan’s projected density map, with a maximum of up to 65 dwelling units/acre.
Fairfield has several requests coming before the Tempe Development Review Commission this week. The developer is seeking a General Plan Amendment to change to projected density map to High Density/Urban Core to allow for more than 65 du/ac, a major development plan review for a mixed-use development of 390 apartments and 3.2KSF of publicly accessible co-working spaces, rezoning from General Industrial to Mixed-Use High Density, and a Planned Area Development Overlay. The firm is also seeking a vehicle parking requirement reduction for the residential portion from 722 spaces down to 525.
The planned unit mix for Rio 2100 Residences breaks down as 45 studios, 203 one-bedroom and 142 two-bedroom apartments. Along with the co-working spaces, the development will also have a 239.9KSF two-level parking structure. The planned building will be a podium structure with five floors of residential atop the two-level garage. Maximum building height is proposed at 89 feet.
According to the site development plan, planned amenities include a fitness center, community clubhouse, resort-style pool, and open space areas with turf, seating and recreation areas. A dog park is also shown on the landscape plans.
Fairfield is the developer. The residential design firm is AO Architects. Todd + Associates is the landscape architect. Rick Engineering Company is the civil engineer, and the project is represented by Berry Riddell LLC.
The Tempe DRC will hear the proposal on April 11. Planning staff has recommended approval with conditions.
