County Ponders a Major Policy Shift on Land Use

Our view: Zoning commission will vote on amendments that tie land use to water availability in county’s Comprehensive Plan

Pima County is considering a major policy shift that ties decisions on land use directly to the amount of water available in a given area. The move raises the curtain on an issue that would affect the long-range future of this region.

The county’s Planning and Zoning Commission is scheduled to vote Nov. 28 on amendments to the Pima County Comprehensive Plan that have been in the making for nearly a year.

While not a reaction to the controversy over the recently defeated Proposition 200, the plan amendments at least address one of the key criticisms of the ballot initiative.

Proposition 200 was an attempt to control Tucson’s growth by turning off the tap to new construction within the city once water deliveries reach a level where future supplies are presumed to be in danger. Some critics said it was ineffective, however, because it dealt only with Tucson and had no effect on growth in the surrounding area.

The proposed amendments to the county’s Comprehensive Plan – which in draft form already have triggered concerns from Diamond Ventures, one of the area’s major land developers – are a first step toward directing growth in unincorporated parts of Pima County based on environmental impacts.

Under the new rules, a development company that wants to amend the Comprehensive Plan to change the land use in an area, a process that ultimately leads to the construction of more houses per acre, would submit its request to the Planning and Zoning Commission, as it does now.

With the proposed policy change, according to Pima County Water Policy Manager Kathleen Chavez, county planners would immediately be required to take the following steps and report their findings to Planning and Zoning commissioners and the Board of Supervisors:

* Determine the depth of the groundwater and assess whether the water level is declining in the area proposed for a change in land use.

* Using U.S. Geological Survey maps, determine whether subsidence is a problem in the area.

* Using the county’s Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan map guide, determine how close the area is to “groundwater dependent ecosystems,” such as riparian areas.

* Determine whether the area is in an isolated groundwater basin where water usage may affect areas in lower elevations nearby.

Kenneth D. Abrahams, executive vice president of Diamond Ventures, said he was still reviewing the amendments. But he added, “I think while this community is evaluating the best way to approach regional water cooperation, I am not sure that additional policies and regulations by a single governmental entity fosters the atmosphere of cooperation needed.”

It does, however, elevate the level of the discussion and reflect the public’s demand for action on the part of the area’s elected leaders.

Carla L. Blackwell, deputy director of Pima County development services, said the goal of the policy change is to come up with accurate and comprehensive information on the amount of water available once all other considerations are taken into account.

Planners in the metro region have said repeatedly this area will grow by a million or more residents in the next 20 years, but it isn’t clear that anyone has determined that there’s enough water to sustain that population increase.

“What’s that magic number that we need to plan for?” Blackwell asked. “Do we have enough water to accommodate 700,000 residents or another million? Once we know that, then we need to look at the map and figure out where we’re going to put them,” a determination that would be made based on the four conditions outlined earlier.

The county’s amendments clearly are the opening salvo in what will be a heated but absolutely necessary debate. The proposals bring the regional water monster out of the box so that it can be examined on a public operating table.

Originally published by ARIZONA DAILY STAR.

(c) 2007 Arizona Daily Star. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.