Town of Carefree General Plan

Review Guide

Carefree Special Planning Areas and General Fiscal Considerations

November, 2023

In the past few months, a campaign has emerged to amend the General Plan to restrict future development in Carefree.    One of the most active participants in this campaign has been OurCarefree, which has sent six emails to residents in the past month advocating and opposing various positions related to the General Plan.  

Last Thursday they referenced a possible $3M annual deficit in Carefree government funding in the next ten years and advocated a five-point process they said was needed to make informed decisions.  Their plan included: hiring consultants to make economic projections, revitalizing the Town Center, replacing a departed business (CVS), “unlocking the potential” of the NE Special Planning Area (SPA) and undertaking a review of Town spending.  All of these recommendations are solid and should be pursued.

In the same email OurCarefree also recommended a major change for the new General Plan land use designation when it is finalized in about a month.  The recommendation is to eliminate the Special Planning Area (SPA) on the North West corner of Tom Darlington and Carefree Highway.  

The SPA designation outlines a destination-based hospitality/resort use with limited compatible commercial retail uses provided that the development:

  • Establishes an adequate buffer to the very low density residential neighborhood to the west
  • Provides for continued preservation of the natural wash in accordance with floodplain regulations and the Carefree 3B Final Plat
  • Supports the Town’s fiscal and economic development goals, and aligns with the evolving commercial nature and resort lifestyle found in the area
  • Utilizes high quality architectural character contextual materials, desert colors, and all sited uniquely into the existing landforms complementing the existing adjacent and nearby uses, and avoiding commercially branded architecture to provide a unique and cohesive design character
  • Utilizes massing, height and density to minimize site disturbance and where site intensity takes into account proximity to adjacent uses, and is thoughtful of adjacent homeowner views to prominent land forms
  • Focuses retail components east and south of the existing wash, or where not to have an impact on existing residential
  • Incorporates the natural Sonoran Desert landscape
  • Prohibits any access to Whileaway Road and commercial or delivery access via Languid Lane

The SPA also identifies uses that will not be allowed: “The land use is not intended to have the look and feel of a retail center or general office development.  While neighborhood retail uses are allowable, they should be incorporated into the character of a hospitality/resort destination.  There shall be no drive through uses, gas stations/car washes/garages, storage, box stores, and/or fast-food pads.”

The SPA designation for the corner is only a land use designation, the land is currently zoned for residential.  Before any development could occur, the property would have to be rezoned to some form of commercial – a process that has a great deal of opportunity for public input.

The arguments cited in favor by OurCarefree of eliminating the SPA designation were: the potential $3 million deficit is speculative; the designation of the SPA was made during the COVID lockdown and the majority of Carefree residents were in the dark about the process; “recent surveys” indicate Carefree residents believe the amendment should not have been approved during COVID; a single resident shared “the overwhelming sentiment of the residents within 500 feet opposed a hospitality resort on that corner”; and “feedback” indicates “residents do not support a resort on that corner.” 

We believe the elimination of this SPA is unnecessary and would adversely affect the possibility of protecting the Town’s fiscal future.

As pointed out above, we support an in-depth examination of the Town’s fiscal future.  While an informal effort by some citizens is underway, it is important that a reputable expert be retained to examine the Town’s finances.  From our perspective today, we observe the following related to our Town’s finances:

  • The Town is heavily reliant on sales taxes (58% of Town revenue is local sales tax).  This reliance exposes the Town’s finances to risks such as: recessions, changes in purchasing patterns by consumers, the closure of any major sales tax generators (e.g. CVS), and legislative action such as the recent prohibition on taxing rented residential and the potential to eliminate the ability of the Town to tax food purchases
  • The second major source of Town revenue is state shared monies (26% of Town revenue is state shared monies).  It is inevitable that this source of revenue will decline in the future.  Most (if not all) of these monies are shared based on the relative share of a city/town’s population to the total population of the State’s cities and towns.  One only has to compare Carefree’s population of just under 4,000 to the growth between 2020 and 2023 of cities like Phoenix (40,000), Surprise (nearly 15,000), Gilbert (nearly 12,000) and Mesa (nearly 11,000) to see that Carefree’s share of state shared revenues is destined to decline 
  • The major area of expenditure in the Town budget is for public safety (41% of the Town expenditures are designated for public safety).  This includes law enforcement (under contract with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office) and fire and emergency medical services (under contract with Rural Metro).  These costs will be increasing in the future – between FY2023 and FY2024 the contract for law enforcement increased by 17% and the contract with Rural Metro contains automatic increases of 2.5% until contract expiration in June of 2027
  • One other major category of expenditures is the Town’s capital outlay budget.  These expenditures include road maintenance, drainage projects, Town Center improvements, and public buildings among others.  It is imperative to maintain adequate funding for these projects

We do not argue that the potential $3 million deficit in 10 years is a certainty, but there are sufficient risks in the Town’s fiscal profile to warrant prudence.  And prudence would seem to dictate that removing a potential site for economic development from our General Plan would be ill-advised.  Consider that in order to move forward with the development of the NWC SPA the following would have to occur:

  • A developer would have to come forward with a plan, which would be reviewed to determine whether or not it is in compliance with the terms of the SPA
  • Should the plan be determined to be in compliance with the SPA, the property would have to be rezoned – a governmental act that would have to be approved by both Planning and Zoning and the Town Council.  If there were sufficient opposition to the final adoption by the Council, the approval could be subject to referendum and the matter would be referred to the voters

As to the arguments that the SPA was adopted during the COVID emergency, consider that: 

  • In December of 2020, the Council unanimously adopted an Economic Development Work Plan specifically mentioning that the NW corner would be targeted for “hospitality and neighborhood retail/restaurants”.  The Council meeting was properly noticed.
  • Two neighborhood meetings were held on the SPA designation in May of 2021.  Residents were notified by certified mail.
  • In October of 2021, notices were published in the Sonoran News and Record Reporter and signs were posted on the site announcing the proposed SPA
  • Also in October of 2021, the Town’s newsletter announced (on two different occasions) the scheduling of 6 in-person Community Open Houses on the SPA designation; the meetings were held in person in the Council chambers
  • In November of 2021, the Planning and Zoning Commission considered and approved the SPA designation; the meeting was properly noticed and was available to the public via Zoom
  • In December of 2021, the Town Council considered and approved the SPA designation (by a 6 – 0 vote with only Councilman Johnson absent); the meeting was properly noticed and was available to the public via Zoom

As to OurCarefree’s assertion regarding a “survey” and/or “feedback,” we have not seen such information.

Carefree’s other SPA is located at the corner of Carefree Highway and Cave Creek Road.  It is a very desirable commercial location but has very serious developmental challenges.  A portion of the property is a flood plain and an extensive engineering and earthworks project would be required before it could reach its commercial potential.  Considering this in addition to infrastructure costs, the Town has reported that a developer would have to invest as much as $10 million before the first foundation could be poured.  The Economic Development office is currently working with a developer to help them determine whether a project is currently feasible on that site, and despite the site’s promise, success is not guaranteed.

When additional information on the Town’s future fiscal health becomes available Carefree Unity will publish it.  We also intend to publish information about new commercial or residential developments and any changes to the General Plan or to Town zoning.

We recommend that residents continue to demand regular updates from our Economic Development Director and attend Council meetings to follow the evolution of our financial picture.  And we urge patience.  Town Planning and development is not a short-term activity.  Maintaining the Carefree environment and lifestyle is a responsibility that will continue long after our ability to witness it has passed.

Town of Carefree General Plan

60-Day Review Draft

Go to the Carefree General Plan Update Page to review the complete draft Plan

(Significant Areas for Resident Review are Highlighted)

Topics and Pages:

Table of Contents p. 4

Background Information 5-13

Planning Framework & Vision 14

Background Information / Existing Conditions 15-21

Land Use Element – Status & Concepts 22-25

Growth Element (Business Development) 26-27

Circulation Element (and Existing streets, paths & walkways) 28-31

Plans:

Arterial Streets 28

Collector and Local Streets, Bikeways 30

Scenic Community Character (Land Use Goals & Plans) 32-37

Open Space & Environmental Stewardship 38-40

Water 40-44

Planning Considerations 45-51

Goals & Policies 52-59

Prosperity & Fiscal Stability (Existing Conditions) 60-65

Planning Considerations 66-69

Cost of Development Policies 70-72

Goals & Policies 73-75

Plan Implementation & Maintenance 76-82

General Plan Administration 83-85