Buckeye, AZ

March 28, 2023

Eric Orsborn never saw his future coming.

“I never thought I would be an elected official,” says the mayor of Buckeye. “Ever!”

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But back in the day, Orsborn was a project manager for DMB Associates — which developed the game-changing master-planned community of Verrado in Buckeye — and DMB encouraged its associates to become ingrained in the community.

“They said, ‘We want you to get involved, get on a board, or run for council,’” Orsborn recalls. “And I said, ‘There is no way I’m running for council.’”

At that time, Buckeye was in the news a lot, but for the wrong reasons. The city was fiercely trying to find its footing and struggling to find the leadership needed to right the ship.

“When it came time for the elections in late 2009, I no longer worked for DMB,” Orsborn says. “Karrin Taylor Robson approached me and said, ‘Hey, have you ever thought of running for council?’ And I said, ‘There is no way I’m running for council.’”

Turning point for Eric Orsborn

Then, Orsborn met former Buckeye Mayor Jackie Meck.

“He said, ‘We have a fireman, a policeman, a veterinarian, a bookkeeper, and a couple of small businessmen on the council, but nobody that brings your big-budget experience,’” Orsborn remembers.

Orsborn’s background was in heavy civil construction, including water, wastewater treatment plants, bridges and infrastructure. And no one on the council at that time brought the development experience Orsborn possessed.

“They said, ‘Your skill set is perfect for what we’re going to be going through over the next 50 years in the City of Buckeye,’” Orsborn says. “They really encouraged me to do it.”

And the rest, as they say, is history. Eric Orsborn served on Buckeye’s City Council from 2010-2018, was vice mayor from 2018-2020, and was elected mayor of Buckeye in 2020.

Since Orsborn was sworn in as mayor, Buckeye has witnessed the groundbreaking of Teravalis, a 37,000-acre mixed-use master-planned community that is projected to include 100,000 homes and 55 million square feet of commercial development; announcements by both Banner Health and Abrazo that they plan to build hospitals near Verrado Way and the I-10; Costco broke ground in December; plans for Verrado Marketplace feature movie theaters, a retail center, a gym and a grocery store; and there is 9 million square feet of industrial under construction and 40 million square foot of industrial in the pipeline.

Orsborn says some of the skills he built as a developer have helped make him a more effective politician.

“As a developer, you’re trying to find some common ground and it’s not always ‘yes’ and ‘no,’ but there are ways to make things happen,” he says. If it is ‘no,’ how can we get to a ‘yes’ that works for all of us? My background allows me to help the developers understand the things that we have to do as a city and why it can’t always be full after-burner. And also helping the city realize where we can help the development community to go faster. And the faster we go, the quicker we get infrastructure built, the quicker we grow a population that brings in more need for retail. And so then the retailers start coming in. It’s trying to have a good vision. The good developers that are coming in have good vision for what this place could become.”

Part of Orsborn’s vision is turning Buckeye from what has historically been a commuter city — residents travel elsewhere to earn a living — to becoming a hot spot for jobs.

“Right now, we have 9 million square feet of industrial that is under construction and 40 million square foot of industrial in the pipeline. If you figure about three employees per 1,000 square feet, that’s 120,000 jobs in the City of Buckeye over the next 10 or so years.”

That doesn’t include the added jobs that come with the healthcare and retail projects that are already in the pipeline. And there is even talk about bringing a world-class resort to Buckeye, along with the city potentially being home to a movie studio with up to 16 40,000-square-foot sound stages.

“That starts to drag a portion of Hollywood our way,” Orsborn says. “And that, in turn, significantly grows the airport, which helps us to make investment in the airport.”

But Orsborn isn’t all about growth and development. He has helped spark efforts to protect one of Buckeye’s greatest natural resources — its open spaces and the White Tank Mountains so that generations that follow can enjoy the beauty that attracted many to Buckeye in the first place.

“I hope that we’re able to grow responsibly and grow some really special neighborhoods,” Orsborn says. “I hope we’re able to grow employment in our area so 90% of us don't have to drive out of Buckeye to work. I hope to bring retail to Buckeye and make it an incredibly special place, a destination city that people want to come and live. I don’t want Buckeye to be a city where people have to live because they can’t afford to live someplace else. I want people to be able to say, ‘I live in the City of Buckeye. I’m really, really proud to be here. It’s a special place to live.’”

One of the fastest-growing cities in the country, Buckeye always seems to have plenty of projects in the works that include everything from apartment buildings to single-family homes to commercial development. But not all Buckeye residents are happy with the way the city is expanding.

A group of Buckeye homeowners spoke at the City Council meeting on Tuesday evening to voice their opposition to Avilla Marigold, a new housing development that could be coming to the area.

The City Council voted on both the annexation and rezoning of 19.4 acres of land, located about a quarter-mile west of the southwest corner of Thomas Road and Jackrabbit Trail. The land is currently in unincorporated Maricopa County, which is why it needed to be annexed. Both the annexation and the rezoning were passed by the City Council, although the project will still need to be approved by the city's Planning & Zoning Commission before any final plans are made.

While the land was technically rezoned for multifamily housing, the homes will actually more resemble single-family homes. All of the homes will be on one lot and will be rented out like apartments. NexMetro Communities, the developer behind the project, currently has 10 housing developments that are either currently open, or will soon be open, throughout the Phoenix area.

Brennan Ray, an attorney who spoke at the meeting on behalf of the developers, said the units are marketed toward people who can afford a house but prefer to rent with the benefits of an apartment. Fifty percent of the people who will live in the homes make between $50,000 and $200,000 annually, he said.

Mandi Garcia, who spoke at the meeting, said the area is the wrong place for a project like this. The land is in a rural area, with many people owning livestock. Additionally, an area of the land floods frequently during the monsoon. Other concerns include traffic in the area, which is already backed up and will only get worse with more houses. Garcia asked the council to slow down the development while some of the issues are sorted out ahead of time.

Barbara Ver Worert expressed concerns over safety hazards because the housing development will be so close to Luke Air Force Base, as well as excessive noise.

There is an area of land under Luke Air Force Base's compatibility area, which means it's regulated by state law, said Adam Copeland, Buckeye's deputy director of planning. The area of land where the development will be is in the graduated density area, which means it is subject to guidelines set by Luke Air Force Base but is not in violation of state law. The developer has already been involved in discussions with Luke, Copeland said.

Future worry:Report confirms Buckeye doesn't have enough water. What does the growing city do next?

Several residents who spoke at the meeting said the construction of the development would not be consistent with goals outlined in Buckeye's general plan. Michelle Wuss said she is also concerned about the increased stress that would be placed on the city's schools with an influx of new residents. Julia Allen said she is concerned that the city won't have enough water to continue to supply for new developments.

Copeland also said the city has the ability to address traffic concerns. The project could break ground within 12 to 18 months, and with current road improvements, traffic engineers believe the roads would be able to accommodate new residents. The development could be ready by the second quarter of 2025, Ray said.

While a resident mentioned there was a petition with 480 signatures opposed to the project, Copeland said the petition was never received. And Buckeye District 6 Councilmember Clay Goodman said there are 19,000 people who live in District 6, making the number of people opposed to the development only 2.5%.

While growth in the Buckeye area may be difficult for some people, it's inevitable. Goodman commended the speakers for their passion and spoke about his own experience growing up in the area and attending high school in what was north Phoenix. At the time, there was only desert to the west.

"The Valley is growing. And I think things like this are coming. Whether you agree or disagree, it's coming this way," Goodman said.

Opinion: A recently released groundwater model has a lot of people thinking Buckeye is nearly out of water and can't sustain its growth. Far from it.

opinion contributor

Recent headlines may lead you to believe that Arizona is out of water, or a bad water steward and that all development is coming to a halt.

I’ve heard these concerns from my neighbors down the street to friends that live halfway across the country.

Let me start by saying that Buckeye’s water future is secure and it is not in danger.

Buckeye has been working for years to diversify our water portfolio.

We currently have enough water resources to sustain our existing customers and the projected growth that already have certificates of assured water supply.

Buckeye bought water, adopted strict codes

The Hassayampa Sub-Basin is the part of the aquifer from which Buckeye gets most of its water.

A groundwater model was released earlier this year, stating this aquifer would be about 15% short on water demand over the next 100 years, if all projected development was completely built out – without making any changes to water management strategies.

Buckeye welcomed the release of this model. It gave us a starting point to start strategizing for the future.

After groundwater report:What does a growing Buckeye do next?

Since its release, Buckeye staff have had very productive meetings with the Arizona Department of Water Resources and the Kyl Center for Water Policy. Together, we are working toward incorporating Buckeye’s groundwater management practices into the model and bringing it up to date.

One of our goals is to make this model more dynamic. Since this model was put together with data from 2016, Buckeye has:

All of this, in addition to implementing a Drought Management Plan and adopting strict conservation codes.

We're continuing to explore innovative solutions

Buckeye is in a great position with a bright future.

Just as the East Valley faced similar challenges nearly 40 years ago, Buckeye has the opportunity to be at the forefront of the next wave of innovative water solutions.

Just as growth happens incrementally, so will those solutions.

We continue to explore opportunities such as:

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There cannot be one single solution to these challenges. It will require time and collaboration with other cities and local and regional agencies.

Buckeye will be there every step of the way to ensure our water future is safe and sustainable.

Eric Orsborn is mayor of Buckeye. Reach him at eorsborn@buckeyeaz.gov.

The Buckeye City Council approved the spending of $80 million on a lot with groundwater rights for fiscal year 2023 during a special meeting on Monday.

Buckeye, one of the nation's fastest growing cities, has approved 27 master planned communities and two planning areas that would grow the city's population by 872,000 people.

Information needed:A new model could reveal major water trouble for Buckeye. Release it now

The city recently made headlines after Gov. Katie Hobbs released a report by the Arizona Department of Water Resources discussing the far West Valley's groundwater issues.

The report, called the Lower Hassayampa Sub-basin Groundwater Model, shows that several development areas in Buckeye need to find alternative sources of water aside from the Lower Hassayampa Sub-basin.

After meeting in an executive session for over two hours, the City Council voted to approve the purchase. Essentially, the council's decision authorizes the city manager to deliver the purchase agreement on behalf of Buckeye and move forward with buying the land.

Buckeye will purchase the land from Harquahala Valley Landowners, LLC.

It's one of the few basins where it is legal to transport groundwater to an active management area, said Kathleen Ferris, senior research fellow for Arizona State University's Kyl Center for Water Policy. The city also had to purchase the land itself in order to be able to pump groundwater.

Buckeye Mayor Eric Orsborn said the purchase was in the works for several years, so the money was already set aside in this year's budget. The city also was looking at several other opportunities to expand its water portfolio for the future as the city continues to grow, he said.

Environment:Arizona says developers lack groundwater for big growth dreams in the desert west of Phoenix

In the purchase agreement, Buckeye will gain 592,592 acre-feet of groundwater and is authorized to withdraw a maximum of 5,926 acre-feet per year over a minimum period of 100 years.

Orsborn said the water will be used for municipal purposes, which could include residential or commercial and retail.

In a statement to The Arizona Republic, a Buckeye representative said it will take up to six months to close the purchase and several years to determine the most cost-effective way to transport the water to the city. However, having access to the water rights strengthens the portfolio regardless of development.

In the city's 2020 Water Resources Master Plan, options discussed to transport the water include the construction of the city's own pipeline or transportation of the water through the CAP canal.

While the city is expanding its water portfolio, it's still not enough to sustain the city's expected growth, Ferris said. A 1 acre-foot of water typically serves three single-family homes for a year. So, if the water is used to support single-family homes, it could eventually service more than 17,000 homes per year.

Update: Buckeye's planning commission recommended approval on Aug. 8 to designate the site for industrial development. It's expected to be voted on by City Council in September.

Original story: Developers want to redesignate about 1,200 acres of undeveloped land in the master-planned Tartesso community for major industrial growth.

The residential project in Buckeye spans more than 10,000 acres overall and was first proposed in the early 2000s. Nearly 1,000 homes were built by various developers before the housing crash but construction slowed after the Great Recession.

As the development stalled, eventually new buyers acquired the site near the White Tank Mountains in 2016 with plans to develop more than 40,000 homes, the Business Journal previously reported.

Texas-based D.R. Horton has developed some housing in the Tartesso community, which is broken down into nine areas, but much of the land across the entire site is vacant. Tartesso currently has about 3,371 homes and is owned by Phoenix-based Buckeye Tartesso LLC.

As industrial development has boomed in Buckeye and across the Valley, the owners of Tartesso are now looking to reduce the number of planned lots on a portion of the site in exchange for future industrial and commercial development that could bring more companies and jobs to the city.

"We see value in creating jobs for Buckeye and the Sun Valley Parkway region," said Chris Barr, owner of Buckeye Tartesso. "We see it as a great corridor for industrial trade with its proximity to the I-10, proximity to labor in both the metro Phoenix area and the West Valley. This is the next step in line for the diversification of our master plan."

The site that could be dedicated for development such as warehouses and light manufacturing is located in the southern portion of the community just north of Interstate 10 and west of State Route 85.

"The city of Buckeye has seen an increase in desire for employment-related uses within close proximity to I-10 and SR 85," documents submitted to the city said.

The new commercial area will be called Buckeye Spectrum at Tartesso and sits at the southeast corner of McDowell Road and Sun Valley Parkway. Barr said Buckeye Spectrum has already generated "a lot of excitement" and received preliminary interest.

At full build out, Barr said the Tartesso master-planned community is expected to encompass 45,000 homes.

Irvine, California-based Dolphin Partners Inc. and Buckeye Tartesso LLC, the current owners, have applied to amend the Tartesso community plan with the city of Buckeye to set up the site for commercial development.

A city of Buckeye report said the request would reduce the number of permitted single-family lots in this portion of Tartesso from nearly 8,900 to 2,866 and increase the community's commercial area by 1,280 acres, which it said could benefit from the future Interstate 11 and the planned Buckeye Municipal Airport growth.

Buckeye's planning commission was scheduled to vote on the development on Tuesday. If the project moves forward, City Council is expected to hold a vote Sept. 5, according to the city report. A preliminary application meeting was first held in the summer of 2022.

Documents submitted to the city said that the industrial uses on site will be buffered or separated from existing or planned residential uses within the Tartesso East community. Plans for a proposed Tartesso Town Center just south of the potential industrial area will also remain unchanged, documents added.

Water at the Buckeye Spectrum is expected to be provided by the city of Buckeye, documents said, adding that at full build out, the project will be served by the proposed Tartesso East Regional Water Supply Facility that's in the early planning stages.

The Phoenix metro is now the No. 1 market in the country for industrial development, according to CommercialEdge, which showed that the Valley had nearly 60 million square feet of space under construction. This is to help meet demand for manufacturing, logistics and companies moving out of California.