Additional vote grants continuance for revised plan
Independent Newsmedia/Tom Blodgett
Gilbert resident Tanner Pomeroy tells Gilbert Town Council he hopes it will reconsider the Harvest Grove development as he and his wife would like to buy a home in the town which they grew up.
Gilbert Town Council voted Tuesday to reopen consideration of the controversial Harvest Grove development and then approved a continuance, allowing the developer time to rework the project before it returns for a future public hearing.
The two-step action followed the council’s 4-3 vote Jan. 20 to deny the general plan amendment and rezoning request for the large, mixed-use project planned for vacant farmland near Val Vista Drive and Germann Road.
Under council rules, a member who voted with the prevailing side may request reconsideration at the next regular meeting, reopening the matter for further action. In this case, the request came from Councilmember Jim Torgeson, who voted with the majority at the previous meeting.
Torgeson said that the reconsideration vote was procedural and did not amount to approval of the project itself. The continuance keeps the application alive while the developer works with town staff to address concerns raised by council members and residents, particularly about density, traffic and consistency with the San Tan character area.
Representing developer Lennar Homes, Brennan Ray said it had already begun revising the proposal in response to the January vote. The changes outlined to council included reducing overall density, removing multifamily development from the San Tan character area and lowering residential density in that portion of the site.
After the reconsideration vote, the developer asked for time to continue refining the plan and return with a proposal more closely aligned with council expectations and the general plan.
Public comment on the reconsideration was lengthy and divided. Most residents urged the council to stand by its earlier denial, arguing that the proposal remained incompatible with the area’s rural character and would worsen traffic and quality-of-life issues.
Several speakers said granting another chance would set a precedent encouraging developers to push projects that do not meet the town’s standards.
"Giving them a third chance sets a dangerous precedent,” resident Carol Cherry said. “Future developers will think that they don't have to get serious about meeting our requirements the first time, or even the second time."
Others spoke in favor of keeping the project alive, pointing to Gilbert’s housing shortage and the difficulty young families face in finding attainable housing in town.
“Unfortunately, Gilbert does not currently offer enough opportunities for young couples like my wife and I to come home and raise our families here,” said Tanner Pomeroy, who said the couple is living in his parent’s basement trying to save money for a down payment. “If we want to preserve that character ... we need housing options to allow young families, especially those raised here to stay.”
Supporters argued that a revised plan could strike a better balance between preserving community character and providing a mix of housing options.
While those speaking tilted toward denial, comments by email to council gave more support to reconsideration.
During council discussion, members framed the decision as one about process and leverage rather than the merits of the current plan.
Torgeson said reconsideration keeps options open, noting that a denial is final, while reconsideration allows the council to require further reductions in density, improved buffering and other changes before taking a final vote.
"Tonight's vote is about process, leverage and foresight,” he said. “It's about whether we close the door permanently or keep it open just long enough to see if a better solution can be reached.”
However, Vice Mayor Chuck Bongiovanni expressed concern about public trust, saying repeated attempts on the same proposal could create the perception that developers are given multiple chances after an initial rejection.
"I don't want to send a message to any developer in this city that they can come to us, shoot for the moon, lose their case, and then come back to what they probably would have done anyhow,” he said. “That's not fair to the residents."
Bongiovanni said integrity and consistency were key considerations in opposing reconsideration.
Development Services Director Kyle Mieras told council that if reconsideration passed, the application would return to council for full consideration, with options to approve, approve with modifications, deny again or continue the hearing to a later date.
A continuance, he said, would allow the developer to submit a substantially revised plan for renewed technical review, including traffic and infrastructure impacts.
After debate, the council voted to reconsider its January action and then approved a continuance, sending the project back for further work rather than taking up the revised details immediately. Both votes were 5-2 with Bongiovanni and Councilmember Monte Lyons voting in dissent.
The Harvest Grove proposal includes a large master-planned community with a mix of residential densities and commercial uses on more than 300 acres.
It has been continued multiple times over the past year as staff and the applicant revised the plan, and it has drawn sustained public interest and opposition from nearby neighborhoods.
The continuance sets a new public hearing date for April 7.
Torgeson and Mayor Scott Anderson said the next version of the plan would need to show substantial changes to address density, traffic circulation and alignment with the San Tan character area before it could earn their support.
Please submit comments at yourvalley.net/letters or email them to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines. Tom Blodgett can be reached by email at tblodgett@iniusa.org or follow him on X at @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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council reconsideration vote,
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Santan Character Area,
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Val Vista Germann Road project,
Gilbert development continuance
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