Carefree Development Review Board gives OK to final site plan
by Jason Stone

CAREFREE – The protests are still lingering, but Carefree continued on track this week toward its first town‑owned firehouse.

The Carefree Development Review board voted 5‑1 May 23 to accept the final site plan for the 9,000‑square‑foot facility, despite hearing more complaints about its design from neighbors across the street from the Tom Darlington Drive and Lucky Lane station site.

“I don’t think it belongs on Tom Darlington or in the (town) at all,” one resident of the Montacino condominiums told the review board.

Another concerned neighbor, Linda Covey, questioned the fire station’s physical appeal in the Town Center.

“I know we’re trying hard to make Carefree beautiful and make it upscale,” Covey said. “But does this (station) fit in with the downtown revitalization?”

Nearby residents have complained for the past month that the design of the fire station does not fit the Southwest image of Carefree. Some say  the sloping roof line reminds them of architecture found in California, not Arizona.

Review board chairman Bill Meyer reminded the abnormally large audience that town council has already voted to build the facility, which will cost between $2.5‑4 million, and that the review board only approves site plans.

Board member Jamie Buchanan was the only dissenting voice regarding the site plan. Vice Chairman Ron Clarke was absent.

“This seems to be a very subjective thing,” Meyer said about the building’s design. “We’ve had architects tell us it’s a great building, and we’ve heard from others who have another opinion.”

Mayor Ed Morgan, who was in the audience during the board meeting, called the design “eclectic” during the May council meeting, drawing some snickers from the audience at the time.

But not all residents are unhappy with the design.

“I’ve been here since 1971 when Carefree was originally an artist community,” Tyler Green told the review board. “This structure really does fit in with Carefree.”

Town planning director Gary Neiss said the small size of the lot made the design a challenge but he feels Larry Enyart of LEA Architects made good use of the space.

“We’re designing a garage here,” Neiss said, “but we don’t want it to look like a garage.”

Reach the reporter at jason@thedesertadvocate.com