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Town gives detox facility zoning talk the axe

Posted 4/28/21

The Town of Fountain Hills has decided to withdraw a proposed Zoning Ordinance text amendment allowing detoxification facilities within certain commercial zoning districts.

A statement released …

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Town gives detox facility zoning talk the axe

Posted

The Town of Fountain Hills has decided to withdraw a proposed Zoning Ordinance text amendment allowing detoxification facilities within certain commercial zoning districts.

A statement released Wednesday, April 21, said, “there will be no council discussion or review of a draft ordinance regarding detox facilities at the Town Council meeting on May 18.”

Recently, there have been questions raised by residents expressing concern about the possibility of a code amendment scheduled for discussion at an upcoming Town Council meeting. The proposed amendment would allow for detox centers in Fountain Hills.

“Due to the concerns raised by the public on this issue and by members of the Planning and Zoning Commission, Town Manager Grady Miller has directed staff to discontinue consideration of this proposal at this time,” the statement says. The Planning and Zoning Commission heard the proposal and voted 4-2 to recommend the council deny the request.

This item was proposed for consideration by staff after they were contacted by a realtor inquiring about the zoning requirements for a possible detox facility. The realtor indicated that he represented an operator of the detox facility and could not find the appropriate zoning for such a facility in the Town Code.

Since the town did not have a zoning category for detox center use, staff initiated a zoning text amendment to site and regulate such facilities in a C-2 and C-3 zoning.

This is usually the preferable process, allowing the town to be proactive in applying proper zoning to regulate certain uses with conditions and other stipulations.

There are no immediate plans to address the zoning amendment to allow a detox facility in Fountain Hills. However, if the town receives an application for a facility, the town will need to go through a zoning amendment process. This is a public process that will involve a series of community notifications, public hearings and input from residents before this type of use is voted on by the Town Council.