Condos cause Windgate stir

Some residents of Windgate Ranch are trying to block development of a two-story condominium project they say would disrupt their neighborhood and block their McDowell Mountain views.

Deco Communities wants to build 104 condos on a nearly 11-acre site that wraps around the Windgate Crossing shopping center northwest of Bell Road and Thompson Peak Parkway.

Neighbors west of the site filed a legal protest last week over the requested rezoning from commercial-office uses to multifamily residential. If the protest meets city rules, the project would require approval by six of seven Scottsdale City Council members.

"We thought it would be lower-density insurance or doctors offices" that would operate weekdays during business hours, said Brian Cook, a Windgate resident since 2007.

The council was scheduled to consider the project this week, but the developer asked that a decision be postponed until Sept. 4.

Zoning attorney John Berry said the rezoning for the "$15 million shovel-ready project" has been politicized by the Aug. 28 city election. "This is a downzoning," he said of the proposed switch from commercial to residential use.

Under the existing commercial zoning, a 36-foot office building of 317,465 square feet could be built. At that size, 1,058 parking spaces are required. Workers and visitors would generate an estimated 1,690 daily vehicle trips to and from the offices.

The proposed residential zoning would allow a 36-foot building totaling 168,878 square feet. It would have 192 parking spaces, including 104 in garages.

Both the offices and condos would be as close as 50 feet from the Windgate Ranch properties.

"These buildings are going to be right on top of our homes," resident Steve DeBiase said of the condos with second-story balconies. "(We're) trying to protect our investments."

by Peter Corbett - Jul. 6, 2012 12:27 PM The Republic | azcentral.com


Condos cause Windgate stir