The Fountain Hills Planning and Zoning Commission is recommending the town council adopt an ordinance change allowing staff to consider and approve design review for projects. The ordinance change was proposed to bring the town’s requirements into compliance with legislation passed by the Arizona State Legislature last session.
Town Senior Planner Farhad Tavassoli told commissioners the proposed change would align the town’s ordinance with the requirements of the updated state law. He said the amendment also replaces subjective design guidelines with objective measurable standards that are not based on personal opinion or taste.
The standards would be verifiable by reference to adopted benchmarks or criteria using terms such as “shall,” “must,” and numeric values, lists and ratios. Tavassoli provided examples such as “façade must include three materials,” or “walkways must be five feet wide.”
