When a business decides to open in our city, it should feel welcomed, not frustrated into walking away.

That’s exactly what happened with Zzeek’s Pizza at the corner of Honeycutt and Whisker Roads. After zoning approval was granted, a location that would have included a restaurant and two additional commercial spaces, all designed to serve our growing community, it never got built. Instead, the owner walked away. According to reporting in InMaricopa, Zzeek’s “just wasn’t feeling the love” from our city’s process and infrastructure costs.

That statement concerned me, so I called and spoke with the owner of Zzeek’s, and his disappointment was real. He had purchased a 7,200-square-foot property with plans not only for the pizza place Maricopans were excited about, but also two other business spaces that would have brought jobs and services to that part of town. What he ran into was uncertainty — about utilities like water and sewer, about design requirements, and most frustratingly, no clear reason why the building was required to face west. That requirement changed the economics of the project and by the time he asked why, no one could say why. That was the kicker for me.

Let’s be clear: I am not here to take the company line. I will always do my homework — not just read a staff report — so that business owners and residents aren’t left holding unanswered questions when they invest in our city.

This isn’t just about pizza (although I very much like good pizza). It’s about the process we use when businesses want to invest here. A city should be a partner, especially when zoning is approved. Zoning approval should be real. When a business is being forced to change its plans because of unexpected costs or unclear requirements — after approval has been granted — that should be a red flag.

From my notes with the Zzeek’s owner, here are the key things that should have happened differently:
• Transparent infrastructure expectations from the start.
• Clear design guidelines backed by a reason, not a shrug.
• A development process that works with businesses instead of creating barriers.

Instead, we lost an opportunity for a restaurant AND two additional businesses that could have anchored that corner for years to come. That’s not winning for Maricopa.

I will fight for a city government that:

• Partners with developers and entrepreneurs.
• Communicates expectations clearly and early.
• Understands that every barrier has a real cost — in dollars, jobs, and community vibrancy.
• Holds itself accountable when a project approved by the city still doesn’t move forward.

Maricopa is growing fast. We need more restaurants, more services and more thriving commercial corridors. But growth isn’t just about more buildings — it’s about building the right way, with the people who want to invest here. This is just one business owner who spoke out, how many have quietly gone away?

I will always do my homework. I won’t just take the company line or assume that our processes are fine because “that’s the way we’ve always done it.” I will ask the tough questions — like why a building had to face a direction that didn’t work for the owner — and I’ll expect clear answers.

Because our city, our residents — and the entrepreneurs who want to build here — deserve better.

AnnaMarie Knorr