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be impacted and what fiscal year will it have to be moved to,” Knight said.
City Engineer Dave Wostenberg explained that the additional monies for this project came from the cancellation of the Avenue B project this year. Money had been budgeted for some pavement replacement due to the degrading pavement in that area.
“Instead of repaving where the utility replacement was, we spend a little bit more money, and now Public Works will not have to go on and either resurface the roads or do pavement replacement projects on those three roads,” Wostenberg noted, adding that in the long run, “it’s a cost saving to the road tax.”
In other action, the council also adopted two ordinances, one updating the list of uses within the Residential District of the Cielo Verde Specific Plan to allow a religious institution on a portion of the parcel located at the southeast corner of 36th Street and Avenue 8E.
The Specific Plan, adopted in 2001, called for a planned community with a variety of land uses that supported commercial and residential development in respective zoning districts. Each zoning district was adopted with a specific list of allowed primary uses at the request of the developer.
Typically, the city’s zoning code allows religious institutions within the residential zoning districts, but the Cielo Verde Specific Plan has special zoning with a specific list of primary uses.
At the time the plan was developed and adopted, the developer intended to primarily provide residential uses within the residential district. Over time, staff noted, the opportunity for new uses have been brought forward for consideration.
The Planning and Zoning Commission voted to recommend approval. One resident expressed concerns with increased traffic during the commission meeting.
At the council meeting, Mayor Doug Nicholls asked about the “scalability” in allowing a church with a large spire. “Is there an offset so those spires aren’t like right up against houses or is that not at that level? Is there any sort of guidance on it?”
Alyssa Linville, director of planning and neighborhood services, explained that the zoning code does not regulate the height of spires for churches. “So there will not be any additional setbacks aside from typical setbacks required at the zoning district,” she said.
Nicholls noted that a large spire might not be “so welcome” to some of the neighbors. “I don’t know if the site plans have been set yet, but maybe the applicant can try to minimize visual impact for the backyards and such,” he said.
Linville noted that she would pass on his concerns to the developer.
The second ordinance adopted by the council rezones 1.17 acres located at 430 and 440 S. Magnolia Ave. from medium density residential to high density residential. The property owner, Arizona Housing Development Corp., intends to develop a multi-family housing project on the properties and is currently in the process of combining the parcels prior to the development of the site. The potential residential development could contain between 15 and 35 dwelling units based on the density allowable in the city’s general plan.
Plans call for an “affordable” apartment complex of 20 two-story units on South Magnolia Avenue. The nonprofit development corporation would build it. Once completed, the Housing Authority of the City of Yuma would manage it.
Nicholls recused himself from this agenda item, citing a conflict involving his firm.