Mesa Planning & Zoning Board updated on drive-thru amendments

Since the approval process for drive-thru lanes and pick-up windows was amended in October 2023, the city of Mesa has received eight applications that make up about 17 drive-thrus total.

Four applications have been approved and four are under review. Prior to the ordinance going into effect, in 2023, the city had received 17 applications that made up about 20 drive-thrus total, according to a presentation Planner Cassidy Welch made on updated drive-thru lane and pick-up window amendments at the Mesa Planning and Zoning Board’s Feb. 26 study session.

“The City Council approved an ordinance that amended the approval process in some zoning districts for drive-thru and pick-up windows. A limited commercial zoning district now requires a special use permit. An employment district requires a council use permit,” Welch said during the study session. “We also created new definition and modified design and development standards for drive-thru lanes and pick-up windows.”

The ordinance also added three-year waiver ability for owners who felt their property’s market value was affected by the amended approval process. Those affected could waive the requirement to adhere to the new standards for up to three years.

Since the ordinance went into effect, according to a presentation, 39 waivers were submitted, with 32 being approved. Seven were ruled ineligible due to reasons such as zoning districts not requiring a council use permit in the first place or that the property in question being rezoned after November 2023 to adhere to the amended standards.

“We haven’t had any objections since the adoption of those text amendments,” Welch said during the study session.

The seven-member Planning and Zoning Board conducts hearings and makes recommendations to the city council on requests for changes in zoning and on required site plans. It also considers and recommends changes in the city’s long-range plans and in the municipal code concerning planning and zoning matters. Members are appointed for staggered terms of three years.