A special use permit has been approved for a freestanding fiber-optic communication facility to be constructed at Velda Rose United Methodist Church, north of East Main Street and west of North 56th Street in Mesa.
The Mesa Board of Adjustment on March 1 voted unanimously in a consent agenda with other items to approve the permit for property in the multiple residence 4 zoning district. Board members Adam Gunderson and Heath Reed were absent.
The new fiber-optic equipment storage facility in a 1,265-square-foot area in the southeast corner of the parking lot is to have an 8-foot-tall wall, Staff Planner Samantha Brannagan said at a study session prior to the meeting.
“The intent is to make the wall around it look just like the church that it’s behind,” she said. “There will be no employees on-site other than at most one to two times per month for maintenance.”
Eight parking spaces will need to be removed from the church lot, Brannagan said.
“(T)he applicants provided a parking study that the church has enough parking and the removal of eight parking spaces won’t affect the use,” she said.
Smartlink is the applicant. Velda Rose United Methodist Church is the owner.
The Gigapower installation is on an existing church-owned parcel, Tami Pritchard, senior project manager at J5 Infrastructure Partners, said in a written project narrative.
“The neighborhood aesthetic is going to be supported by choosing a modular hut color and peripheral fenced compound using colors and aesthetics supporting the existing color of the church building,” it states. “Fencing the compound discourages graffiti which is also one of the objectives of the neighborhood general plan.”
The seven-member Mesa Board of Adjustment conducts public meetings to hear and decide requests for variances, special-use permits and interpretations of the city of Mesa zoning ordinance and sign code. Members are appointed for staggered terms of three years, according to the city’s website.
Richard H. Dyer can be reached at rdyer@iniusa.org, or on Twitter @rhdyer. To voice your opinion on this story, connect with us at AzOpinions@iniusa.org.
Richard Dyer Managing Editor | East Valley @RHDyer
Meet Richard Richard Dyer has worked at Independent Newsmedia Inc. USA since 1987, starting his career in Apache Junction as a copy editor and being promoted over the years to work as the editor of the Mesa Independent, news services editor for the East Valley office in Apache Junction, managing editor for the East Valley office, news services editor for the East Valley office and eventually also for the newspapers at INI’s then-Chandler office, managing editor again and as a news editor covering Apache Junction/Gold Canyon and Queen Creek. He helped start the Florence Independent while the news editor covering Apache Junction and Mesa news. In January 2023, he became associate managing editor for the East Valley newspapers and in August 2023 became managing editor for the East Valley newspapers of Chandler/Tempe, Gilbert, Queen Creek, Florence, Mesa and Apache Junction/Gold Canyon, while also reporting on Mesa and Apache Junction/Gold Canyon.
Community: Since 2009, he has worked as a volunteer to design The Blue Guitar Magazine, Blue Guitar Jr. magazine and Unstrung magazine, which are projects of The Arizona Consortium for the Arts; and since 2014, has been overseeing the art submissions.
Education: University of Arizona with a master of arts in journalism and a bachelor of science in agricultural communication. Also continuing education at Mesa Community College in welding in a metal art sculpture class.
Random fact: Saw his first tornado on May 31, 2010, which was classified as an EF-2, as part of a stormchasing tour group.
Hobbies: He is an artist of welded-steel sculptures, selling his artwork at juried and non-juried art shows.
By 
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here