Gilbert vote on light industrial project delayed again
Developer of The Ranch wants more time as neighbors praise progress
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Everybody is coming together in a spirit of good faith. We’ve been candid. We’ve been honest, but I think we’re making progress. But we're not there yet.”
Gilbert Town Council has granted the developers of a proposed light-industrial project off Power Road more time to work with neighbors on a compromise.
Council voted unanimously Dec. 13 for a second continuance on The Ranch, which takes more than 300 acres of vacant land from a former dairy farm and turns it mostly into a light industrial project. The land, which runs on the westside of Power Road between Elliot and Warner roads, had been zoned mostly for general commercial use as well as some business-park and light-industrial usages.
The continuance came with the support of many neighbors in nearby Morrison Ranch, who previously had strongly opposed the project. The proposal first was continued at a volatile council meeting Nov. 15.
The developers are IndiCap, a privately held corporation that specializes in ground-up industrial investment and development services; the Colmena Group, a real estate development and investment company; and investor Langley Properties.
Some of those same neighbors who had vigorously opposed came to council Dec. 13 to say representatives of the developers had been meeting with them and progress was being made toward a proposal that would properly address their concerns.
Those concerns included objecting to the buildings’ heights, the lack of transition to residential housing, the development being too intense for the area, the proposal not fitting in with the vision for the Morrison Ranch area, noise and truck traffic.
Jonathan Mullen, co-founder and chairman of the Colmena Group, said many meetings have been held since the Nov. 15 council meeting to reshape the project.
“Everybody is coming together in a spirit of good faith,” Mullen said. “We’ve been candid. We’ve been honest, but I think we’re making progress. But we’re not there yet.”
Mullen said the project just needed more time to be fully developed and vetted.
The neighbors agreed with the developer’s assessment that the project just needed more time to work out details and finalize a proposal that will be acceptable to the neighborhood. The continuance gives them until the council meets Feb. 21 to do so.
“We’re finally seeing real movement from the developer,” said Brian Mosley, who has been a leading figure in the neighborhood’s opposition to the project. “We appreciate the help we’ve had on that. I hope and expect to be able to support the final version if it’s moving in the direction that we’re planning. It includes all the protections and the restoration of the balance we need in our neighborhood.”
The neighbors also praised council members Kathy Tilque and Laurin Hendrix for meeting with them and helping to bring the sides together as well as Stacy Brimhall from Langley Properties, who was singled out by residents Brandon Ryff and Ryan Handelsman for playing a critical role.
“He brought us all to the table,” Ryff said of Brimhall. “He listened. He respected us, made meaningful changes. He’s got a long family history in Gilbert. I find him to be humble as a person, also proud of his family, which means he isn’t going to let anything bad happen to this community in my opinion.”
The town previously had maintained the case needed to be decided by the calendar year’s end according to state law.
However, Town Attorney Chris Payne said a closer reading of the law indicated the case merely needed to be heard by year’s end and the town had met that requirement. That made a continuance possible.
Tom Blodgett Senior News Editor | Gilbert @sp_blodgett
Meet Tom Tom Blodgett joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2022, when the company acquired Community Impact Newspaper's Phoenix-area properties. Raised in Arizona, he has spent more than 35 years in journalism in the state.
Community: He has served as an instructional professional in the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication since 2005, and is editorial adviser to The State Press, the university's independent student media outlet. He also is director of operations for an 18U girls fastpitch softball team from Gilbert.
Education: Arizona State University with a BS in Journalism.
Random Fact: He lived in Belgium during his freshman year of high school.
Hobbies: Tweeting enthusiastically about ASU softball (season-ticket holder) and grumpily about other local sports (pessimistic fan).
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