Buckeye’s Planning and Zoning Commission voted 7-0 on Nov. 10 to recommend commercial zoning for approximately 16.17 acres at the northeast corner of MC 85 and Rooks Road.
The request, case PLZZ-26-0009, would place the property under the city’s Community Commercial zoning district. The change is intended to support future retail and service businesses at a western gateway to historic downtown Buckeye.
The vote is a recommendation to the mayor and City Council. It does not approve a site plan, name tenants or authorize construction. A related annexation request would first bring the property from unincorporated Maricopa County into Buckeye.
Buckeye has scheduled City Council public hearings on the annexation and rezoning for Dec. 15 at 6 p.m., according to the city’s public notice.
A commercial site identified in Buckeye’s downtown plan
The property is identified in Buckeye’s Downtown Specific Area Plan as a potential multi-tenant commercial retail area. The plan says commercial use is appropriate because the site sits outside the downtown core.
The proposal also aligns with longer-range corridor planning. Maricopa County’s State Route 85 Corridor Area Plan encourages neighborhood retail centers along MC 85 between State Route 85 and Rooks Road. That policy does not approve this project, but it shows that commercial services have long been contemplated along this part of the corridor.
Community Commercial zoning can accommodate neighborhood and community-serving businesses. The zoning establishes what types of uses could be considered, but the commission’s action did not approve a specific shopping center layout or confirm any stores, restaurants or other operators.
The application was filed by attorney Zachary A. Pebler. It accompanies annexation case PLZM-26-0025, which covers the same approximately 16-acre property. The annexation and zoning would need City Council approval before the city framework takes effect.
What comes next
The city’s meeting archive lists the Nov. 10 commission agenda and packet. A transcript-based record of the official meeting video documents the commission’s unanimous recommendation on the retail case.
If the council approves both requests, later development steps would still be required. Those could include a site plan, engineering review, utility and access work, building permits and any other approvals tied to the eventual uses.
The current records do not establish a construction schedule, investment amount, tenant list or opening date. The clearest near-term milestone is the Dec. 15 council hearing.
The commission also voted 7-0 at the same meeting to recommend the separate 138-acre Merit Buckeye Cotton Gin industrial rezoning near Baseline and Turner roads.
West Valley Post will track the MC 85 and Rooks Road proposal in the Buckeye Development Tracker as the annexation, zoning and any future site plan move through review.
Featured image: AI-generated editorial illustration representing a possible neighborhood retail setting in Buckeye. It does not depict the actual site or an approved project design.
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