Fifty years ago, a vision for a former cattle ranch became Fountain Hills. The new town’s biggest asset is its natural beauty, vistas and high hills. Being land-locked, its population ultimately could max out at 35,000, so planning for the highest and best land use was critical.

Over half of the acreage was designated for residential with a commitment to open space. Based on that initial concept, it’s clear recent town projects have not been in keeping with the high-end residential community planners envisioned. Recent projects championed by Town staff, the Mayor and some members of the council both present and past have not measured up to the vision.

Unacceptable are projects such as Daybreak, a multi-story rental apartment/nursing home, a downtown rental storage facility, the too-tall, ugly downtown green apartments, CopperWynd’s multi-story boxy expansion, a hospital that is not really a hospital and 225,000 square feet of empty commercial/retail space. Add to that dusty, weed-choked empty downtown lots, a bowling alley abandoned 10 years ago and a half-empty shopping center on Shea and, clearly, today’s reality falls far short of the vision.

The mayor would like to see empty lots rezoned for affordable housing, staff brings forward projects unacceptable to citizens, developers feel they have free rein in town. The most recent poorly conceived idea could have allowed detox facilities into commercial zoning.

In the early years, Fountain Hills won awards for its beauty, art, low density and crime rate. Today’s leaders should stop trying to turn the town into a congestion of high-density apartment complexes, drug and detox facilities, nursing homes and low-income housing.