| Part II Chapter 1 - Introduction | Part 2 Chapter 3 The Crossroads: A Village Concept |
Old-timers and newcomers alike, we are drawn to NE Santa Cruz County by the natural beauty of the desert grasslands and foothills, the long vistas to the surrounding mountains, and views of the stars, undiluted by city lights. Opportunities for outdoor recreation and a diversity of wildlife are also part of the attraction. An opinion survey helps confirm how important an unspoiled environment and the opportunity to see wildlife are to both residents and visitors. (See Appendix C for more information on this survey conducted by a University of Arizona graduate student.) Preserving the landscape as the area grows is a major challenge for Sonoita-Elgin ranchers, business persons, and current and future residents.
For more than a century, the landscape of NE Santa Cruz County has been shaped by nature and ranching heritage. We commemorate that heritage in local events: horse races, rodeo, and county fair. But grazing is gradually being replaced by residential use, fragmenting the landscape into small parcels.
While we were developing our plan for NE Santa Cruz County, Governor Hull introduced her "Growing Smarter" plan for Arizona. In the legislation that implemented "Growing Smarter" the counties lost their power to designate open space or to change existing zoning to protect open space and natural resources (sections 11-829, F and G, ARS).
The provisions of "Growing Smarter" at present preclude full implementation of our Original Policy 1 on open space developed during the SCCF planning process. Pending adoption of new legislation (already introduced in the Legislature) to restore the right of local agencies to designate open space in their own counties,we propose Policy 1. The language of Original Policy 1, stating our community's interests and intent is retained in Appendix D-1 for your information.
Policy 1 should be used until Arizona law is changed to permit effective local planning and adoption of the Original Policy 1.
In preparing this plan, we identified the important open space resources of NE Santa Cruz County: the large blocks of federal land in the Empire-Cienega Resource Conservation Area and Coronado National Forest, and protected private lands, like the Appleton-Whittell Research Ranch and The Nature Conservancy Preserve in O'Donnell Canyon (see the color map, which will open in an adjoining browser window). What we value in this landscape can be maintained only by keeping these lands intact as habitat, viewsheds, and watersheds, and by linking them via corridors of state trust and private lands that remain in ranching use. Unfortunately, the Arizona Legislature has effectively outlawed the designation of open space areas consisting of private and state trust lands. This policy is, therefore, confined to strategies addressing public lands and voluntary open space conservation. Strategy D calls for a restoration of local power.
Maintain the natural attractions of NE Santa Cruz County by keeping public open space resources intact. Encourage voluntary conservation of private lands via the gift or purchase of development rights. Lobby for the return of effective local power to protect open space resources.
An impact fee is a one-time fee collected at the time a building permit is issued. Arizona counties may collect such fees for water, sewer, streets, parks, and public facilities (ARS §11-1102), but not for the acquisition of conservation easements. Impact fees may not exceed a fair proportional share of the cost of the improvements necessitated by the development from which they are collected.
The rural character that draws people to NE Santa Cruz County is a function of open space: the views, the opportunity to see wildlife, and the chance to see the stars undimmed by city lights. These values can best be sustained if there is some open space in all developments. There is also excellent evidence that integrating open space into residential subdivisions makes sense for the developer. In the Resources section of this plan under the heading "Economic Value of Open Space" two references are named that document the positive impacts on real estate values throughout the nation by preserving open space. Locally, lots in developments that incorporate open space, the Crown C Ranch and Casas Arroyo command premium prices.
Maintaining an open and rural character is essential to our community's continuing quality of life and to property values. Open space should be integrated into all developments.
NE Santa Cruz County has been proposed as a possible route for high voltage electric power. The Sonora-Arizona Interconnection, proposed by the Public Service Company of New Mexico (NMP) in late 1998, would link the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station west of Phoenix with a substation at Santa Ana, Mexico. One proposed route would follow the existing gas pipeline north from I-10 to Highway 83, then follow that road and Highway 82 from Sonoita through Patagonia. As a result of testimonies at several public scoping sessions and a program of individually communicated opposition to this route, NMP has backed away from this proposal. That the route was under consideration, however, shows that our area is subject to power line routing.
Citizen's Utilities is currently considering alternative routes for a high voltage power line that would correct service deficiencies in Nogales. Citizens' is considering both the route described above for the Sonora-Arizona Interconnection, and running a transmission line from Huachuca City across the Babocomari Ranch, then along Highway 82 to Nogales. This line could provide local service through an agreement with the Sulfur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative. This proposal remains under consideration.
Construction of overhead high voltage power lines that do not provide local service is not consistent with the open space and scenic values that attract residents and vistors to our community, or with sustainable local economic development, which will be based on those values. If an overhead high voltage power line receives federal and state permission, construction plans should protect our open space and scenic values.
One of NE Santa Cruz County's most valuable natural resources is a dark night sky. This resource is a vital part of our rural character and essential to the astronomical observatories in the area. It also requires protection beyond what is offered by the present county ordinance. That protection can be provided by encouraging outdoor lighting practices that provide ample illumination for homes and businesses, while conserving energy (and money). Proper outdoor lighting practices also protect property rights by reducing light trespass.
Outdoor lighting standards established to support astronomical research and appropriate to our area's rural character should be applied in all new development. Current residents of our community should learn how the standards apply to them.
Ranching is still the most extensive use of private lands in our area, but NE Santa Cruz County is becoming a residential community at a rate of about 30 new homes per year. More land is vacant, awaiting development, than is occupied by residential and commercial uses combined.
Sonoita Area Private Land Use
 Ranch |
 Residential |
 Commercial |
 Vacant |
Policies 5 and 6 address the impacts of residential development on public and quasi-public services. Even the moderate growth rate of the late 1990's raised problems for service providers, including the local school district, the Sulfur Springs Valley Rural Electric Cooperative, and Santa Cruz County. Research conducted for this Plan makes it clear that residential development is not "paying its own way," at least for the provision of county services. See below for a discussion of the Costs of Growth.
The policies proposed here will also help protect the rural character of our community, and make local land use regulations better fit that character. The environmental impacts of rural residential development are addressed in other policies, primarily Policies 6 and 7.
Residential developments appropriate to our open spaces and rural character should install adequate on-site facilities, make a fair and proportionate contribution to improvement of off-site infrastructure, and be compatible with neighboring uses.
Land use regulations should respect practical community needs. Current zoning imposes suburban rather than rural standards on our area, including impractical restrictions on home occupations and businesses, which are an important part of the economic future of any attractive rural area. This policy also addresses housing affordability.
Information on the public costs of residential development in NE Santa Cruz County was gathered by examining tax assessment records and county budgets, and interviewing county officials and staff. The information was analyzed using the cost of community services (COCS) method popularized by the American Farmland Trust. A COCS study compares the revenues generated by a land use with the expenditures required to provide that use with services.
Like most COCS studies, this one shows that rural residential development in NE Santa Cruz County does not generate enough revenues to cover the cost of providing it with services. COCS studies usually also find that rural residential development is subsidized by agricultural and commercial uses, which generate surplus revenues. NE Santa Cruz County is a partial exception to this rule. Commercial uses yield the expected surplus of revenues, but ranch lands do not. The COCS study results are shown below.
| land use | residential | commercial | agricultural |
|---|---|---|---|
| expenditures/revenues | $1.77 | $0.54 | $1.28 |
This means that the average home in NE Santa Cruz County receives approximately $1.77 in county services for every dollar it generates in revenues to the county. These numbers are not precise - some revenues and expenditures are hard to accurately allocate to one of the three land use categories - but the situation is clear. Residences generate roughly 78% of the revenues county government receives from NE Santa Cruz County, but demand 87% of the expenditures it makes to provide services in our area.
These results may be surprising, but serving a small, dispersed population is expensive. NE Santa Cruz County had about 3.7% of the county's population in 1999, but 15.3% of its road miles. The landfill east of Sonoita "lost" almost $70,000 a year in the late1990's. It must also be understood that Arizona's tax laws affect these results: homes are assessed at 10% of their full cash value and ranch lands at 16%, while business properties are assessed at 25% of full cash value. Finally, note that the situation in NE Santa Cruz County is not unique. The County Manager summed up a countywide fiscal reality of demand for services increasing faster than revenues in the Adopted Budget for Fiscal Year 1998-99:
Revenues are not keeping pace with the increases in state-mandated programs and the increased demand for services.
Dennis L. Miller, Santa Cruz County Manager (August 4, 1998)
NE Santa Cruz County depends entirely on groundwater for domestic and commercial use. In the Southwest perennial surface streams and wetlands, like the Narrows of Cienega Creek, are rare and important resources in their natural state.
The availability of potable water will be the ultimate limiting factor on development in our community. The shallow alluvial aquifers along O'Donnell Canyon and Sonoita and Turkey Creeks are subject to depletion from overuse and contamination from surface sources. The deeper regional aquifer is less vulnerable to pollution, but subject to overdrafting as the population grows.
Groundwater depletion will affect perennial streams and cienegas, possibly resulting in irreversible loss of those resources. This is of special concern in the Cienega and Sonoita Creek basins because conservation organizations and the public have made substantial investments in the Las Cienagas National Conservation Area north of the planning area and the Patagonia-Sonoita Creek Preserve downstream from the planning area.
NE Santa Cruz County cannot grow and develop by depending on an overdraft of the regional groundwater resource. Without some restrictions we risk dewatering perennial streams and wetlands. Restrictions will also reduce the potential for localized interference between wells.
Development should leave open space buffers in which native vegetation can be retained or restored along all watercourses and alluvial aquifers, protecting them from contamination. Buffers will also protect development from flooding or stream channel changes. Density of development in alluvial valleys should be consistent with the high potential for groundwater pollution in the coarse, permeable soils of those valleys.
| Part II Chapter 1 - Introduction | Part 2 Chapter 3 The Crossroads: A Village Concept |
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