By J. Graber | Daily Independent
Security technology company Axon may get a new lease on life for its plans to build a world headquarters campus near the intersection of North Hayden Road and the Loop 101 in Scottsdale.
A bill in the Arizona Senate could block the referendum on the Scottsdale City Council’s vote to rezone 34 acres of land to allow for the creation of 1,895 apartments as part of Axon’s world headquarters.
Senate Bill 1352 would make it so rezoning actions taken by municipalities or counties would not be subject to referendum by changing the designation on them from legislative actions to administrative.
The bill, introduced by Sen. David Gowan, R-Sierra Vista, passed out of the senate’s Regulatory Affairs and Government Efficiency Committee Feb. 6 by a 5-2 vote and is headed for a vote in the full senate.
While Gowan did not say if his bill was a direct result of the Axon situation, Axon had an attorney present at the committee meeting and the president of the Greater Phoenix Economic Council said the bill was crucial to keeping Axon in Scottsdale and Arizona.
The Scottsdale City Council voted 5-2 during its Nov. 19, 2024, meeting to rezone the 34-acre parcel to make way for the apartments as part of the campus which was also set to include a 401,085-square-foot world headquarters, condominiums, five five-story retail buildings, one three-story retail building, and a 435-key hotel. It is also supposed to have seven restaurants on site.
Axon founder and CEO Rick Smith has said he needs every aspect of the plan in order to draw top level talent.
Axon currently employs approximately 800 people in Scottsdale, and the new campus, if it is built near the intersection of North Hayden Road and the Loop 101, is expected to create another 5,500 jobs and have a $3.5 billion annual economic impact.
But former Scottsdale City Council Member Bob Littlefield formed the Taxpayers Against Awful Zoning Amendments PAC the day after the council’s vote and began collecting signatures to push the council’s decision to a referendum.
While Scottsdale City Clerk Ben Lane certified the group gathered the 15,353 signatures necessary to force the referendum, it’s not clear though when the referendum would take place. The next general election isn’t until November 2026. The Scottsdale City Council could push the vote up to this year, but that would cost the city money. Mayor Lisa Borowsky has said she does not want to spend taxpayer money to expedite the process, but the other city council members would have to weigh in on that as well.
Smith has said he will not wait until November 2026 for a resolution to the question. If the council does not move up the referendum to 2025, Smith has said he will pull up stakes in Scottsdale and relocate to either Florida or Texas.
However, SB1352, which has a retroactive clause in it back to July 1, 2024, would render the referendum effort a moot point.
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