This item is preserved as part of MPA’s advocacy archive. It was originally distributed as a Be Heard alert ahead of the March 18, 2025 Tucson Mayor and Council hearing.
Casita Village at La Mariposa was proposed as a residential rezoning on approximately 20 acres west of Houghton Road near La Mariposa Resort. The proposal sought to rezone the property from SR to R-2 for 121 market-rate rental homes, developed in conjunction with an adjacent O-3 parcel for a total of 162 homes.
Housing and site planning
The Be Heard alert framed the proposal as one response to the region’s housing supply and attainability challenges. The revised site plan maintained more than 32.5% of the site as open space while moving all proposed homes outside the 100-year floodplain.
The applicant also increased detention and retention capacity by an additional 20% and proposed dedication of the Agua Caliente Wash to the Pima County Flood Control District to support broader drainage management.
A multi-year review process
The project’s review began in 2021 and included floodplain, riparian habitat, hydrology and traffic analysis. The rezoning application was reviewed by City of Tucson departments and outside agencies including Pima County Flood Control and Regional Wastewater.
After public hearings, the Zoning Examiner recommended approval with conditions in January 2022. The development team later continued the case while additional drainage analysis was completed and a Conditional Letter of Map Revision was pursued through FEMA. FEMA approved the CLOMR in May 2024.
Following additional neighborhood concerns, the site plan was revised in November 2024 to reduce the unit count, remove homes from the 100-year floodplain and increase detention and retention. Tucson Mayor and Council remanded the substantially revised proposal to the Zoning Examiner in December 2024, and a January 2025 hearing again resulted in a recommendation for approval.
Why Be Heard shared the case
The original Be Heard alert encouraged support for the rezoning based on housing supply, environmental and drainage work, infrastructure improvements, community engagement and alignment with City planning policy. It also highlighted commitments intended to address neighborhood traffic concerns, including the closure of a historic access through La Mariposa Resort and future roadway improvements associated with development.