Buckeye’s Planning and Zoning Commission has recommended approval of a 2,771-acre master-planned community that could allow as many as 11,600 homes north of Thomas Road.
The commission approved recommendations on two linked cases Sept. 22: an amendment removing the land from the older Elianto Community Master Plan and a rezoning that would establish The Cascade Planned Area Development. Both requests still require action by the mayor and City Council.
The site is generally north of Thomas Road, south of the Bethany Home Road alignment, east of Sun Valley Parkway and west of the Turner Road alignment. It remains undeveloped.
The city’s posted legal-actions record marks both commission recommendations approved. That action advances the applications but does not approve construction, individual subdivisions or building permits.
What The Cascade plan would allow
The Cascade would be organized into six villages. The proposed zoning sets an overall ceiling of 11,600 homes, equal to about 4.19 homes per gross acre, and requires between 30 and 115 acres of nonresidential development.
Housing could include detached and attached houses, townhomes, horizontal apartments, conventional multifamily buildings and homes within mixed-use areas. At least 150 detached-home lots would have to measure 12,000 square feet or larger.
The 11,600 figure is an entitlement cap, not a forecast that all units will be built. Detailed land uses and unit allocations would be established later through village plans, preliminary plats and site plans.
Mattamy Homes is identified as the master developer in the application materials. The property is owned by Elianto LandValorem LP, CRG Thomas Road Partners LLC and Ben-Horin Family Trust/SVP 360 LLLP, according to the city staff report.
The plan anticipates about 155 acres of parks. Each village would have to provide open space equal to at least 18% of its net area, with trails, drainage corridors and landscaped connections linking neighborhoods and community destinations.
An undeveloped 2004 plan would be split
The Cascade land is part of Elianto, a roughly 3,931-acre plan approved by Buckeye in 2004. City staff said no portion of Elianto has developed in the 22 years since that approval.
Case PLZZ-26-0003 would remove about 2,771 acres, primarily east of Sun Valley Parkway, from Elianto. About 1,104.6 acres would remain under the existing Elianto framework, retaining capacity for as many as 5,649 homes.
The companion Cascade case, PLZZ-25-0014, would replace the older zoning on the removed land with project-specific rules for land use, housing density, parks, architecture, streets, utilities and later approvals. City staff recommended both applications.
Water, traffic and public services remain gates
The city’s Sept. 22 agenda packet contains 27 recommended conditions for The Cascade.
Those conditions require a master traffic-impact analysis before the City Council hearing. Later village-level traffic studies must be consistent with that analysis. The developer would be responsible for applicable roadway dedications and improvements along Sun Valley Parkway, Turner Parkway and Thomas Road, as well as several internal arterial streets.
The project also must comply with Arizona assured-water-supply requirements. Recommended conditions call for applicable surface-water rights to be transferred to the city before building permits are issued. Village plans would need to document the water mains, wells, pump stations, storage and wastewater facilities required for each phase.
The site is within Saddle Mountain Unified School District. The plan anticipates future school sites, but their locations would be determined during later planning. Buckeye police and fire-medical services would serve the development, and a development agreement still under negotiation could address a public-safety site, a new facility or staffing contributions.
What happens next
The City Council must hold a public hearing and decide both the Elianto amendment and Cascade rezoning. The source records reviewed by West Valley Post do not list a Council hearing date.
If Council approves the zoning, construction still would depend on the master traffic study, infrastructure planning, floodplain and drainage reviews, assured-water documentation, village plans, plats and other permits. The city staff report does not give a construction start or buildout schedule.
Follow the Buckeye Development Tracker for later Council action and infrastructure milestones.
Featured image: AI-generated editorial illustration. It does not depict The Cascade’s actual site plan, architecture or present site conditions.
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