Council approves permit for Catholic Community Services
At its regular meeting on Thursday, the Sierra Vista City Council approved an amended conditional use permit for Catholic Community Services (CCS) to build domestic crisis transitional housing for victims of domestic violence.
The vote amended a conditional use permit from 2006 granting the property approval for an addition on the east side of Good Neighbor Alliance for a residential facility for women and children. However, the addition was never constructed.
Now, CCS plans to add four tiny homes on the property to house victims of domestic violence for up to 12 months while CCS helps them transition into a new life. There will be three two-bed, one-bath homes and one one-bed, one-bath home that face a shared courtyard. CCS was able to secure a large private donation to fund its domestic crisis housing initiative, which will pay for the homes and help subsidize rent. CCS is also pursuing Community Development Block Grant funding for improvements to the courtyard.
Some of the permit conditions include limiting construction to four dwellings and yard improvements, limiting each dwelling to house only one family, and setting a minimum lease term of 30 days.
In other business:
- Mayor Clea McCaa proclaimed the Month of April as Water Awareness Month; April 12, 2025, as Celebrate the San Pedro Day; April as Fair Housing Month; and the week of April 5 through 11, 2025, as Week of the Young Child.
- Council voted to amend the Vista 2030 General Plan and to rezone two properties on N. 1st Street, changing them from Commercial to High Density Residential. The request came from the Cochise College Foundation, on behalf of the college’s Residential Construction training program which plans to build two single-family homes on the properties.
- Council approved a conditional use permit for a 100-foot communications tower on E. Fry Boulevard.
- Council approved a conditional use permit for First Baptist Church of Tombstone to locate a place of worship within a General Commercial Zoning District.
- Council voted to add Public Safety Personnel Retirement System and Arizona State Retirement System 457 Deferred Compensation Plans as an option for City employees.
- Council reaffirmed the City’s commitment to fair housing in Sierra Vista in alignment with the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.
- Council reappointed Alfred “Joe” Spurgeon to the Transportation Commission.
