Posted By The Peak on Jun 30, 2019

Sonoran Plants and Animals Victims of Insensitive Development

By Beverly Smith

Baby Quail.

Arizona is a place of many wonders, including the Sonoran Desert.  The purpose of this article is to call your attention to an area of the Sonoran Desert that is being threatened by development. The property is located at the southwest corner of Windmill Road and Stagecoach Pass. The other end of the parcel is approached from the corner of 81st Way and Hawknest Road. The parcel is approximately 37.5 acres. The property owner, Centennial Arizona LLC, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Centennial Norway, a private investment firm based in Oslo, Norway.

In this article, you’ll see photos of the Sonoran Desert’s beauty in all seasons and all times of the day. You will also see many of the native animals that we are losing when their natural habitat is destroyed by overzealous zoning changes approved by the City of Scottdale.

I am not against sharing the wonders of the desert with others who wish to live here, but they need to do so responsibly, in a way that allows the native plants and animals to continue to live and thrive.

The core issue is that some of this area was originally sold with zoning as one home per five acres, which preserves the desert and allows the animals to thrive. Current efforts are attempting to rezone the land to one home or more per acre. Higher density zoning will fundamentally change the nature of the community for both wildlife and homeowners.

It is obvious to anyone that high density housing destroys all the above that can never be replaced.

The photos presented in this article show a selection of the animals we live with, as well as the undisturbed desert. All of these photos were taken in some of the last open space, some of which is under review for high density housing.

Open House Held on April 23rd

Spring Flowers.

There was an open house meeting that was held on Tuesday, April 23rd.  The meeting was organized by the owners of the property to provide information about the proposed development to nearby residents and property owners. Knowledgeable representatives of the firms associated with the project, including Susan Bitter Smith and Tom Loftus, were there to answer questions. There were exhibits, including a map, that showed   the proposed changes to the current zoning.

Home owners were encouraged to sign in and say how much they liked the map. ALL of the home owners were extremely unhappy. They complained about their properties being devalued. They were all concerned about the impact on the natural environment, including the noise being there permanently due to the density of the development.

The information provided by Centennial Arizona, the property owner, states “Arizona is unique, both for its beauty and for its zoning flexibility,” referring to the City of Scottsdale. It is difficult to understand how a few people working for the City of Scottsdale, alongside developers and backed by foreign investors, fail to appreciate the harm their actions cause. The plants and animals shown in my pictures will be the real life- and-death victims of this project.  What happens to them and the  Sonoran Desert is up to us.

What can you do now?

Call the City of Scottsdale Planning & Development Department at (480) 312-2500 and let them know how important our wonderous desert is to you.  Visit  https://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/planning-development  and learn more about the planning and development process in Scottsdale.

** All photos by Beverly Smith. 

Bobcat Kitten.

Cardinal.

Mom and Baby Mule Deer.

Mother and Baby Great Horned Owls at Home.

Driveway Coyote.

He lives here.

Hawk.

Javelina Boss.

Sunset.

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