OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Eloy City Council Meeting Highlights – January 12, 2026

Meeting Portal — Monday, January 12, 2026
BodyEloy, Arizona
SessionMeeting Portal
DateMonday, January 12, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:07:29

Transcript — Verbatim
1:25

I just want to ask you nothing.

2:25

Oh, yeah, I'm just putting this thing.

2:32

I have it.

2:42

I could have the front.

5:44

Mayor Sutton?

5:45

When you're ready.

5:54

All right.

5:56

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.

5:59

And welcome to tonight's Eloy City Council meeting.

6:03

It is Monday, January twelfth, and the time is six PM.

6:08

Madam Clerk, may I have a roll call, please?

6:11

Councilmember Majaska?

6:13

Here.

6:14

Councilmember Curtis.

6:16

Here.

6:16

Vice Mayor Tuwango?

6:18

Here.

6:18

Councilmember Schneider.

6:20

Here.

6:21

Councilmember Garcia?

6:22

Present.

6:23

Councilmember Galindo.

6:25

Here.

6:25

Mayor Sutton.

6:26

Here.

6:27

Thank you.

6:28

If we would all kindly stand for a moment of silence and the pledge of allegiance led by Council Member Snyder.

7:12

Thank you, sir.

7:18

So I see we have quite a few people here tonight.

7:22

And I'm sure we all have something to say.

7:25

But I just want to let you know for the public comment period, anybody can come up and speak what they like for their three minutes to address the council.

7:34

And you can't you can ask us questions, but we can't answer them back.

7:39

So anybody can come up and speak.

9:10

During a public hearing.

9:11

What about during the three minutes?

9:13

What if somebody has something to say that if it's unrelated to a unrelated?

9:24

Mayor Council members, I you know, generally we try to err on the side of caution, but I I think what w what staff is trying to convey to the council and to the public is that we do have a call to the public, which basically is for items that are not on the agenda that are gener as a general rule that are related to community matters that are there that where they would have three minutes to speak.

10:09

We just want to make sure for clarity purposes that they understand that because it's a public hearing, we do allow someone to speak once at the public hearing.

10:18

We don't want to confuse them.

10:19

So in the general call of the public that they have their comments heard at that time rather than at the public hearing when the council is considering the matter.

10:26

So we'll just hold the hideout stuff till the public hearings portion.

10:32

All right, because everything I see on this paper here says hide out, hideout, except the one for Ralph just says Grand Valley.

10:40

Is this hideout related?

10:42

I have I have another issue going on.

10:45

If you have another issue, bring that up other than hideout by all means, sir.

10:49

Just state your name in the city where you live.

10:53

Well, if that's you, Eloy.

10:55

Uh good evening, Mr.

10:56

Mayor and Eli Council City City Council members.

11:00

Um I want to alert the council to a potential safety and health hazard coming to Eloy.

11:08

The free point free point ecosystems plant that's planned for construction in Eloy is being permitted as a manufacturing plant.

11:18

But it is, in fact, a high temperature chiralysis chemical processing plant.

11:24

Because we'd likely see toxic and carcinogenic emissions from this plant.

11:30

This project must be permitted as a chemical plant, which brings in stricter environmental and emission standards.

11:39

It's been over two months since I asked interim city manager Lutcher McKenzie to help me set up a full city council 15 minute briefing from retired EPA pollution prevention manager Kevin Green.

11:53

I've not heard back.

11:55

Therefore, I am formally making that request again.

12:00

I believe that you owe your constituents your attention to this matter.

12:04

I'm leaving a fact packet that I'd like to get copied to each city council member and ask that you review it in hopes that you set up a hearing, a meeting with Kevin Green.

12:19

Thanks for your time and attention.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Planning And Development█████████████████████████25%
Procedural███████████████████████23%
Public Safety███████████11%
Engineering And Infrastructure██████████10%
Economic Development███████7%
Community Engagement██████6%
Transportation Safety████4%
Public Engagement███3%
Environmental Protection██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Eloy City Council Meeting – January 12, 2026

The Eloy City Council met on Monday, January 12, 2026, at 5:00 PM (the meeting was called to order at 6:00 PM per the transcript) in the Eloy City Council Chambers. The meeting included a break for executive session, routine consent agenda approvals, public comments on a proposed chemical plant, and a series of public hearings and votes on the Hideout Ranch Entertainment Center. All votes were unanimous.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved as a block: Resolutions 26-1639, 26-1640, 26-1641, and 26-1642 authorizing Brian Wright to deposit, transfer, and withdraw monies with Enterprise Bank and Trust, the Local Government Investment Pool, and Western Alliance Bank.
  • Resolution 26-1643 adopting the amended consolidated rate and fee schedule for Community Development and Public Works, effective February 16, 2026.
  • Contract No. 2026-02-COE with Gould 1st Construction, LLC for code enforcement remediation services.
  • Preliminary Plat PP2025-001 (Sunshine Industrial Park) – 26 lots on ~148.36 acres, Light Industrial zoning.
  • Ordinance 26-997 approving RZPAD2025-003 (Skydive Arizona) – rezoning ~76 acres to Light Industrial (I-1) and General Industrial (I-2) with Planned Area Development Overlay.
  • Resolution 26-1647 and Ordinance 26-998 (Eloy 310) – major General Plan Amendment from Community Commercial and Light Industrial to Mixed-Use, and rezone from R1-12 to I-1 and R-3 on ~310 acres.
  • Memorandum of Understanding with Desert Rose Bahá’í Institute for emergency cooperation via DRBI Radio Station.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Unscheduled Public Comment: A resident (name not stated) raised concerns about the planned FreePoint Ecosystems plant, describing it as a high-temperature chemical processing plant rather than a manufacturing plant. He requested a 15-minute briefing from retired EPA manager Kevin Green, which he had previously requested from the interim city manager two months prior without response. He left informational packets for council members. The mayor acknowledged the request.

Discussion Items

  • Mayor’s Announcements: Mayor Sutton highlighted recent events including the Reach Across America wreath-laying, Christmas tree lighting, Land Advisors annual update (Eloy mentioned multiple times), Love’s grand opening (with Wendy’s and Dunkin’ Donuts), Chamber mixer, staff window decorating contest (finance first, police second, admin third), senior center gift distribution, and a meeting with Arizona Water president.
  • Council Members’ Announcements: Councilmembers reported on the Pinal County Partnership breakfast (panel of mayors discussed growth, affordable housing, infrastructure, and legislative challenges), the Jason Lopez dedication ceremony, and upcoming golf tournaments supporting St. Helen of the Cross, Eloy Lions Club, and United Way’s Dolly Parton Imagination Library. Councilmember Galindo urged caution about citizen initiatives that could delay development, citing recent annexation and data center votes in other cities.
  • Interim City Manager Announcements: Upcoming events: MLK youth march (Jan 15), vaccination clinic (Jan 17), MLK Day celebration (Jan 19, Eloy Junior High), and the annual father-daughter banquet (Feb 6, pre-registration required).
  • Police Chief Briefing: Chief Bignalis presented 2026 goals: strengthening training and leadership, community engagement (including a public-facing crime mapping tool expected mid-February), staffing and succession planning (adding community service officers, dispatchers, etc.), and leveraging technology (Peregrine, flock cameras, AI-assisted report writing). Traffic collisions were attributed to speed, inattention, and impairment; a traffic enforcement unit will be deployed.

Hideout Ranch Entertainment Center (Items VIII.A through VIII.E)

  • Minor General Plan Amendment (GPA2025-003): Public hearing to change ~19.75 acres from Parks/Open Space to Community Commercial. Applicant Kevin Peterson (Petersen Eloy 501, LLC) described plans to repurpose the old San Miguel Golf Course clubhouse into a restaurant and event center with outdoor space. Several residents from Grand Valley Ranch spoke in favor, citing community engagement and potential benefits. One speaker asked for delay over safety/security concerns. The council voted unanimously to adopt Resolution 26-1644.
  • Rezone (RZPAD2005-63.A1): Public hearing to rezone the same property from Open Space Recreational, Multi-Family Residential, and Single-Family Residential to General Commercial with PAD. Modifications allowed indoor commercial entertainment for up to 150 persons and outdoor events up to 300 persons by right, with a management plan for larger events. Staff noted noise limits at property boundary (70 decibels). Residents expressed concerns about noise, traffic, drainage, and accountability; others supported the project. The council voted unanimously to adopt Ordinance 26-996.
  • Adoption of Public Record (Resolution 26-1648): Declared the PAD Development Plan a public record. Passed unanimously.
  • Conditional Use Permit (CUP2025-008): Public hearing for outdoor commercial entertainment for events between 300 and 600 persons. Staff explained that events above 600 require a special event permit and a second permanent access road. The applicant agreed to conduct a traffic impact analysis and to limit outdoor music to 10 PM (though city code allows 11 PM). Councilmember Garcia expressed support for a phased approach. Passed unanimously via Resolution 26-1645.
  • Development Agreement (Resolution 26-1646): Authorized the mayor to execute a development agreement for a comprehensive Traffic Impact Analysis covering the entire 300-acre property. Passed unanimously.

Key Outcomes

  • The consent agenda was approved by a 7-0 roll call vote.
  • The FreePoint Ecosystems briefing request was acknowledged; no action taken.
  • All five Hideout Ranch Entertainment Center items (GPA, rezone, public record, CUP, development agreement) were approved unanimously with no dissenting votes. Councilmember Sutton emphasized that the city will take complaints seriously and hold the developer accountable.
  • The meeting adjourned after the final vote.

Meeting Transcript

I just want to ask you nothing. Oh, yeah, I'm just putting this thing. I have it. I could have the front. Mayor Sutton? When you're ready. All right. Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. And welcome to tonight's Eloy City Council meeting. It is Monday, January twelfth, and the time is six PM. Madam Clerk, may I have a roll call, please? Councilmember Majaska? Here. Councilmember Curtis. Here. Vice Mayor Tuwango? Here. Councilmember Schneider. Here. Councilmember Garcia? Present. Councilmember Galindo. Here. Mayor Sutton. Here. Thank you. If we would all kindly stand for a moment of silence and the pledge of allegiance led by Council Member Snyder. Thank you, sir. So I see we have quite a few people here tonight. And I'm sure we all have something to say. But I just want to let you know for the public comment period, anybody can come up and speak what they like for their three minutes to address the council. And you can't you can ask us questions, but we can't answer them back. So anybody can come up and speak. During a public hearing. What about during the three minutes? What if somebody has something to say that if it's unrelated to a unrelated? Mayor Council members, I you know, generally we try to err on the side of caution, but I I think what w what staff is trying to convey to the council and to the public is that we do have a call to the public, which basically is for items that are not on the agenda that are gener as a general rule that are related to community matters that are there that where they would have three minutes to speak. We just want to make sure for clarity purposes that they understand that because it's a public hearing, we do allow someone to speak once at the public hearing. We don't want to confuse them. So in the general call of the public that they have their comments heard at that time rather than at the public hearing when the council is considering the matter. So we'll just hold the hideout stuff till the public hearings portion. All right, because everything I see on this paper here says hide out, hideout, except the one for Ralph just says Grand Valley. Is this hideout related? I have I have another issue going on. If you have another issue, bring that up other than hideout by all means, sir. Just state your name in the city where you live. Well, if that's you, Eloy. Uh good evening, Mr. Mayor and Eli Council City City Council members. Um I want to alert the council to a potential safety and health hazard coming to Eloy.

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