The Gateway to fresh folly in Phoenix
Here we go again.
According to the East Valley Tribune, DMB Associates has made public the plans for its part of the old GM Proving Grounds near Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. But wait,
Dense, urban spaces, narrow pedestrian pathways to a nearby coffee shop
or bookstore, a short drive to work. That’s the kind of urbanism
southeast Mesa can expect in the future, if things go as planned by the
developer of 3,200 acres of property.
My friend Grady Gammage, the land-use lawyer, adds: "We’re hoping to hit the sweet spot where we embrace the 21st-century dynamic nature with something significantly urban." But then comes the story’s money shot:
To embrace its moniker of "21st-century desert urbanism," DMB would
like a flexible framework to work with, one that develops as the market
dictates over the years. Under this new type of planned district, which Mesa approved last
September, a developer gets to create a zoning ordinance for a property
and is able to get some flexibility in future development.
What’s wrong with this? Almost everything.
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