Tia Coffman grew up watching farmland fade into single-family homes.  

A ‘90s kid, she grew up in Chandler and watched acre after acre disappear as development sprawled. A farming community became a true Phoenix suburb. That’s why when she and her husband finally had the opportunity to purchase some land for their dream home some years ago, they ultimately chose this 2-acre property in Thunderbird Farms.

“We saved up our whole lives because we didn’t want to go into the cookie cutter houses. We saved up and we bought our dream property,” Coffman told InMaricopa at her home Monday.  

With clear views of Tabletop Mountain to the south, knee-high buffalo grass rolling in the wind and a golden sunset darkening as a haboob quickly approached, the property looked nothing but idyllic.  

When their home burned down one year ago, something compelled them to rebuild.  

And so, Coffman has elated when the Pinal County Board of Supervisors narrowly voted 3-2 to deny a pair of rezoning requests that would have allowed a proposed housing development to bring some 2,000 new homes to the area.  

“How do you feel?” we asked.

“Amazing.”

“We’re very, very happy that the county listened, that the county is seeing the value in rural communities,” Coffman said.

About Rio Blanco Ranch 

The site for Rio Blanco Ranch, the proposed subdivision, comprises nearly 600 acres of farmland at the southwest corner of Amarillo Valley and Val Vista Roads. Part of the property was zoned for a master-planned community in 2009, accommodating about 3½ homes per acre.  

This was still the case during a February 2024 open house that Scottsdale’s Rose Law Group held on behalf of the landowners and CVL Consultants. But that changed in April when Hidden Valley and Thunderbird Farms residents learned of a rezoning request, which sent them scrambling to study a 2,300-page document. 

The rezone request showed CVL Consultants and the landowners — who operate a dairy just south of the property — showed they wanted to rezone the area to accommodate significantly smaller lots. Most proposed were just 40 to 45 feet wide, significantly smaller than county requirements. 

Coupled with more than a dozen other yet-to-be-built, single-family-home subdivisions had locals worried the area could quickly overpopulate, spoiling its agrarian ambience.

Compounding wins

The vote marks a second small victory for rural residents in Thunderbird Farms over developers.  

In May, the Pinal County Planning and Zoning Commission voted 8-1 to deny the same rezoning request, which would have increased the housing density to 2,089 lots. The decision came after more than a dozen locals testified against the proposal, backed by 110 letters and emails of opposition.

It was clear the commissioners agreed. They and county planners raised concerns about the smaller 40-foot lots, as well as impacts on traffic, water and wildlife.

Even with the denial, the request was always going to land before the supervisors for a vote. What locals didn’t expect were last-minute changes just days ahead of the meeting.

The revised proposal called for larger lot sizes, single-story homes, and the addition of an equestrian trail. Those changes would have cut the project by 119 homes — nearly a 6% reduction.

But it still wasn’t enough for opponents. Residents piled on 76 more letters of opposition, and several showed up in person to speak against the development today.

One speaker was Robin Davis of Hidden Valley, who quite plainly declared: “Enough is enough. We have to stop this out-of-control development.” 

Coffman clarified that the community isn’t against development full stop. Rather, they say they are advocating for more careful and thoughtful planning.

“We understand [developers] want to build. We’re not trying to stop that,” she said. “What we’re asking for, and what I’m really trying to get through to the board of supervisors is that your rural communities are rare. And when you have something that’s rare, you need to protect it.” 

For now, they’ve protected it successfully. Developers will likely have to revise their plans if they want to move forward with dreams of constructing a large housing community.  

“Going forward, we’re obviously going to keep monitoring it,” Coffman said. “We’re going to keep advocating for the community. We can’t stop growth, because growth is inevitable. We’re just going to keep working with supervisors and the community to advocate for it to be smart growth, and try to preserve the rural character of the area.”