By Roland Murphy for AZBEX
Worker Power, a politically oriented non-profit affiliated with California labor union Unite Here Local 11, has lodged three applications with the Casa Grande City Clerk’s Office to press for a referendum on City Council’s annexation and rezoning approvals for a 1,271-acre site between Interstate 8 and Selma Highway.
Lucid Motors’ planned expansion may be the centerpiece of the annexation and rezoning.
Worker Power is sponsoring the action by a Los Angeles-based political action committee called Arizonans for Responsible Development, according to a recent PinalCentral article.
Lucid Motors, Pinal County and the City of Casa Grande entered into a three-party development agreement in 2022, centered around Lucid’s planned electric vehicle production facility expansion, known as Project Saguaro. City Council unanimously approved the annexation in December, along with an infrastructure and services plan and the rezoning of 1,198 acres to I-2 General Industrial and 110 acres to B-4 Community Services. The total site is 1,308 acres and includes 37 acres that were previously annexed.
The land is owned by Pinal County under a 2022 lease-purchase option with Lucid. In the December meeting, Lucid representatives said there is no specific development plan in place with the rezonings and annexation, including for the expansion plan. Any future developments will have to go through additional approvals. Lucid, however, expressed strong support for the annexation and rezoning and provided public input throughout the planning and approval process.
The lack of hard detail is what the PAC and Worker Power claim to be taking exception to in the referendum planning. Worker Power got involved late in the approval process, and representative Jordan Greenslade expressed the group’s opposition in the City Council meetings. In the Dec. 1 meeting, Greenslade said the infrastructure and services plan gave little detail about potential future impacts and also questioned Lucid’s potential water and power use if the plant expands.
A History of Challenges
Worker Power bills itself as “a nonprofit and social welfare 501 (c)(4) organization” and says it “is leading the fight for economic justice and the preservation of democracy in the United States.”
The group has undertaken multiple opposition campaigns against projects in Arizona in recent years. Its stated reasons have included environmental impacts, process transparency/adherence and affordable housing.
It is worth noting, however, that nearly every proposal Worker Power has opposed has been mixed-use and included a hotel component. Unite Here represents service workers, primarily in the hotel industry.
Hotel uses are allowed under Casa Grande’s B-4 Community Services zoning with a conditional use permit.
Among the projects the Worker Power has previously targeted are:
- South Pier in Tempe,
- The Axon Corporate Campus in Scottsdale,
- The Arizona Coyotes/Tempe Entertainment District in Tempe, and
- VAI Resort in Glendale.
Axon officials published a set of demands Unite Here presented to the company regarding the planned corporate campus. Under the “neutrality proposal,” if Axon agreed to name the union as the employee representative for future service workers on the site, among other conditions, the union would adopt a neutral stance and not oppose the project. (AZBEX; Dec. 17, 2024)
Axon refused, and Worker Power provided financial and indirect support to local opposition groups, ultimately resulting in a referendum that was thwarted by actions in the Arizona Legislature. Those actions are currently under litigation by opponents.
AZBEX has covered Worker Power and Unite Here’s activities extensively. An overview of our coverage is available here.
Casa Grande Responses
Officials in Casa Grande and Lucid representatives have defended the annexation and approvals, according to the PinalCentral article.
Lucid said in a statement about the referendum action, “These efforts are being coordinated by an outside group focused on their own agenda, not the best interests of Casa Grande.”
Casa Grande Mayor Lisa Navarro Fitzgibbons said the process and debate had been transparent, and she said she was concerned about an outside organization involving itself in a City issue. She was quoted as saying of Worker Power, “Despite a couple of opportunities to engage with them, they showed little interest in understanding Casa Grande’s planning process and how this decision was made.
“This process takes months of analysis, public notices and open meetings where residents have the opportunity to be heard. If this moves to the ballot, we will be sure the voters receive accurate and factual information. My priority is to protect local decision-making and the best interest of the people who live and work in Casa Grande, not advancing the agenda of outside organizations that are unfamiliar with our community.”
The PAC has until Jan. 16 to gather and submit at least 957 qualified signatures on referendum petitions. If the threshold is met, the annexation and zoning approvals will be suspended and placed on the Nov. 3 election ballot for voters to decide.
