According to town documents, some 20 years ago the parcel of land at the northeast corner of Palisades and Shea was rezoned from residential to lodging; “15 acres for a boutique hotel and the balance was open space, as required by the Hillside Protection Ordinance.” It was approved largely “because of the views, and it was a gateway development into Town.”

Flash forward 20 years and several failed development attempts and more rezoning to accommodate developers, and here we are back where we started, or worse. A beautiful piece of land that developers want to convert into 63 acres of a 400-room assisted living, senior housing and low-rent apartment complex. Not quite what the town’s founding fathers envisioned for that beautiful, lush, desert hillside some 20 years ago.

Of course, none of this can happen if our town officials reject these out-of-town developers’ request for a zoning change that would enable them to go forward with their plan that would forever change the face of Fountain Hills and become an eyesore that the citizens of Fountain Hills would have to look at every time they drive in or out of our community.

Tell the Planning and Zoning officials and the Town Council to say “No” to the rezoning request. If the people of Fountain Hills don’t rise up and make their voices heard, this thing will be approved and, in the future, we will be kicking ourselves every day we drive past that intersection and see that abomination instead of that beautiful hillside and wash.