Published:
Thursday, December 13, 2007 10:06 PM MST
NOGALES
— A parade of 90 people gave the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors
a one-minute piece of their minds about high-density development
Wednesday.
A clear majority urged supervisors to turn down requests by two
developers to amend the county comprehensive plan.
In
three hours of testimony, speakers described two proposals for the
northwest section of the county as “a new suburb for Pima County” and
“an ecological disaster.” They predicted a flood of new developments
that would create “a sea of roofs” from the Tumacacoris to the Santa
Rita Mountains.
The supervisors listened, shared their thoughts,
and then voted 2-1 to give a green light to the 6,076-acre Sopori Ranch
plan and 1,244-acre Las Mesas development.
Only John Maynard, the supervisor representing the northern District 3,
voted to deny the amendments.
After
testimony on the Sopori proposal, Maynard explained why he opposed the
development. Then Supervisor Robert Damon, District 2, told the
opponents, mostly residents of Tubac and vicinity, “You guys will have
to start accepting some growth.”
District 1 Supervisor Manuel Ruiz said he woke up at 3 a.m. and reread
the county comprehensive plan.
“I didn’t hear a number coming from you. How many homes would you
support?” Ruiz asked the opponents.
This gave rise to some murmurs and a loud comment from the audience as
Ruiz finished his remarks on the Sopori proposal.
After
a break, people rose to oppose or defend the smaller Las Mesas
development. A few speakers accused Ruiz and Damon of “going against
the public” and “tearing apart the comprehensive plan.”
“I was really on the fence,” Ruiz told the opponents after the public
hearing concluded. “Thank you for pushing me over.”
He then cast the swing vote in favor of the amendments.
A few speakers defended the high-density projects.
“We
think it (development) would bring a lot of jobs,” said Marco
Bustamante, president of the Rio Rico Chamber of Commerce. “I can’t
afford to live in Tubac, but these developments are affordable.”
Former
Nogales mayor Dan Doyle described the developments as “a golden
opportunity for Santa Cruz County.” By approving communities with water
treatment plants, “we avoid water problems with hundreds of septic
tanks,” he said.
Opponent Pat Phelan of Tumacacori told the
supervisors a “yes” vote “will reduce the comprehensive plan to a
fire-starter for your stove.”
After the hearing, she called the
vote “ a travesty, but it’s an example of how two out of three public
officials feel about the supporting the comprehensive plan they adopted
three years ago.”
“It (the vote) was sad and shocking,” said
Amadon Dell Erba, an agricultural worker in the Tumacacori area.
“They’re not supporting the people.”
Marshall Magruder of Tubac,
warned that, “The promises from these developers today mean zero
because they could sell the property tomorrow.”
In a telephone
interview after the hearing, Ruiz said he hoped the developments would
offer jobs and housing that might keep young people in the county. He
admitted he was surprised and upset by some of the comments from
opponents.
“If people would have just kept their cool, I might have voted to put
this on hold,” he said.
Ruiz emphasized that the high-density developments were not a done deal.
“All
we did is change the color of the map,” he said. Developers must return
to the planning and zoning commission, which had recommended against
both proposals, for changes in zoning.
Ruiz predicted that it
would take at least 20 years before the developments would be built out
to their plan. “Hopefully there’s an opportunity to sit down and have a
dialogue,” he said.
Denise Holley is a reporter for the Nogales International.