Community News

COMMUNITY NEWS, Page One ( To Page Two ) ( To Page Three ) (Page 4)

(AS WE READ IT, SEE IT, HEAR IT, OR IS SENT IN TO US)
More news to be found on Page Two including much about
The Southern San Pedro Valley Area Plan. and on Page Three about
Rezoning Efforts and new sub-divisions in Palominas.

For More about the following article and the pending rezoning request, visit this page

Proposed subdivision topic of meeting (Palominas Re-zoning)
by Cindy Skalsky (Herald/Review) Appeared in the S. V. Herald June 20, 2006

Sierra Vista - Buzz Breads, the bakery and coffee shop across from The Mall at Sierra Vista, lived up to its name Monday night, as approximately 75 residents of Palominas met with questions, concerns and some unbridled distaste at the prospect of a 285-acre development.

The development could feature potentially 400 homes - behind a wall that would border some of their backyards.

"I've got eight acres," said Chuck Ostrander, a retired educational psychologist. "My two neighbors and I would have 20 houses behind us."

Written notice of the citizen information and input meeting was received last week, and for many residents, was the first inkling that a high-density residential project was being planned for the largely vacant parcel.

The concept design shown to locals would run from Highway 92 on the south up to property lines on Calle Tejas, and from S. Cana Street on the west to Palominas Road. The as-yet unnamed development would quite literally wrap around the campus of the Palominas K-8 school.

The owner of the land, Michael Combs, and developer, Premier Homes of Tucson, are planning to seek a rezoning of the property by the county from its current RU-4 status, which permits one home on four acres, to SR-22, which allows 22,000 square foot parcels for site built homes.

Project Manager Bill Carroll, Engineering and Environmental Consultants in Tucson , handled many of the questions regarding flood plain issues, water channels and wells, Cana Street and the Palominas School itself have long histories of flooding. Carroll said the engineering would be designed in tandem with drainage plans already in place by the county.

The development is approximately 1.7 miles from the San Pedro River and presently is designed to b a gated community with limited access only from Palominas Road and Cana Street.

Citizen concerns also involved emergency services, traffic, crime, impact on schools impact on wildlife and not surprisingly, water.

The price range of the potential homes was not specified, although Combs indicated he wanted them to be affordable for middle class families.

A woman who identified herself as a Realtor suggested that might now be realistic, reminding him how much a typical teacher earns in Cochise County - under $30,000.

"So if the houses end up at $300,000 and they sell, more developers will descend on Palominas. We're 23 miles from town, so everyone will want the conveniences, and bang, there goes the rural lifestyle," said one woman.

The next step is to submit a formal proposal to the countyu's Planning and Zoning Commission, incorporating citizen input and perhaps making modifications based on Monday's feedback - a step which Carroll said could happen later this week.

Before the meeting broke up, someone informally asked for a show of hands "for-or-against." A majority of hands shot up on "against."

"I've talked to the people down there," said Combs, referring to Palominas, "And there's just as many for it as there are against it. A meeting like this usually brings out those against it. Heck, there were some good ideas here tonight."

Herald/Review

PALOMINAS — For many people, building a barbed-wire fence under the burning Arizona sun would probably be the last way they would want to spend their Memorial Day weekend.

Not Minuteman Project volunteer Christie Czajkowski, however. She signed up for the group’s weekend fence-building inauguration almost as soon as she heard about it — even though it meant driving 15 hours from her home in Chula Vista, Calif.

“What else am I going to do, go to another beach party?” laughed the 33-year-old baker as she paused from a turn at stringing wire. “No, I need to do something to protect my country.”

Czajkowski is among the several dozen volunteers spending the long weekend at Jack and John Ladd’s ranch in Palominas. They are constructing the first stretch of a barrier that the Minutemen hope will cover all of the Ladds’ 10 miles of border frontage by summer’s end.

After that, the group says it will keep on building border fences until the federal government relieves them of the task.

For her part, Czajkowski is only planning to stick around in Palominas until tonight. After that, she needs to get back to her job and her two children, aged 7 and 9, who are spending the weekend with their grandmother.

But she expects to join up again with the project when the Minutemen break ground on a border fence in El Centro, Calif, later this year. And she plans on bringing her kids — both fledgling patriots — to the event.

“I send them to school every day in American flag T-shirts,” said Czajkowski, who was decked out Sunday in her own “American Mom” T-shirt topped with a USA-logo baseball cap.

Czajkowski was far from the only volunteer to travel great distances to Palominas this weekend. At Saturday’s groundbreaking ceremony, master of ceremonies Stacey O’Connell, director of Minuteman operations in Arizona, asked the crowd to identify where they had come from.

Hands shot into the air were followed by shout-out answers ranging from “Georgia” and “Ohio” to “New Hampshire” and “Boston.”

Robert Hassett, 63, drove two days from Franktown, Colo., in his Mitsubishi Montage to help build the fence, which had stretched to about 1.2 miles of 4-foot metal post and barbed wire by early Sunday afternoon. Another 150 feet of 15-foot, Israeli anti-terrorist-style barrier is also planned for the site.

Hassett, who recently retired after 33 years in the insurance business, said he had two reasons for coming to build border fencing in Arizona.

The first was a feeling that the government was not doing its part to stem the tide of illegal immigration. The second was that he was recently diagnosed with terminal cancer and wanted to make the most of his remaining time.

Sweating under the midday sun and fighting to catch his breath after pounding a fencepost into the ground, Hassett acknowledged that the strain of the job was probably not the best medicine for his condition.

“If my doctor knew what I was doing, I think he’d have a heart attack,” he said.

“But this reminds me of when I was in the Marines and I felt like I was really doing something for my country.”

In addition to volunteering with the Minutemen, Loch David Crane of Ocean Beach, Calif., also likes to play Santa Claus for needy children at Christmas. During the rest of the year, he puts on a western comedy magic show under the stage name “Bafflin’ Bill Cody,” complete with Lakota Indian props.

Crane is also a big “Star Trek” enthusiast, and when he’s back at home in California, he drives around town in a vehicle he calls the “Star Trike,” a three-wheeled motorcycle designed to replicate the Enterprise space craft from the popular TV show. Not long after he returns home from his Memorial Day fence-building weekend, Crane will help host a convention of fellow “Trekkies” in Anaheim.

He saw little connection between his Trekkie and Minuteman activities, however.

“Trekkies live in a world of fantasy and the future,” he said. “But the Minutemen are very much of the moment. If there wasn’t a threat right now, we wouldn’t be here.”

Crane, 53, is already retired from the everyday working world. But when Czajkowski was asked what her restaurant co-workers thought of her decision to drive to Arizona and build a Minuteman fence, she said that some were so excited that they packed her van with 12 coolers of drinks and snacks to share among the volunteers.

Her undocumented co-workers — of which she has many, she said — would probably not be so approving if she had told them what she was doing. After all, she noted, she recently turned a few of them in to the INS.

Minuteman fence: Israeli-style barrier planned for Palominas (5/23/2006)

By Jonathan Clark

Herald/Review

BISBEE — A plan by the Minuteman Project to build an Israeli-style border fence on the property of a local rancher over Memorial Day weekend is raising concern with county officials — as well as with the rancher himself.

The leader of the civilian border watch group, Chris Simcox, announced the barrier-building effort in April as a response to the government’s failure to secure the nation’s porous southern border. He said the Minutemen had chosen a design based on Israeli fences in Gaza and the West Bank that have proven effective in curtailing terrorist attacks.

On Monday, the group’s national executive director, Al Garza, confirmed that the Minutemen were still planning on the Israeli design as they prepared to break ground this weekend at a Palominas ranch — a prospect that troubled some local officials.

“I do agree that people should be able to build fences, and I don’t think the government should inhibit that,” said Cochise County Supervisor Paul Newman.

“But seeing the diagram (posted on the Minuteman website), it concerns me that it really is a military-like structure — in fact it’s designed after an Israeli military barrier.”

Assistant County Administrator Jim Vlahovich said that while no formal permission is needed for building fences in the county’s rural areas, the structure proposed by the Minuteman — two parallel 12-to-15-foot fences with anti-vehicle ditches and eight feet of coiled barbed wire on either side — could constitute an exception.

“I think this moves out of the category of fence,” he said.

Palominas rancher Jack Ladd, the owner of the property where the fence is to be built, also expressed unease with the barrier design.

“(The Minutemen) had a diagram of what they wanted to build, and we did not want something like that,” he said.

“What we want is a barbed-wire fence with metal railings that will keep the drive-throughs from occurring and keep Mexican cattle out.”

Garza said his group was willing to alter its design to suit the ranch owner, but not the county government.

“It’s going to be (Ladd’s) preference, obviously, so if he wants to change it, he certainly will have the option,” he said.

But Garza did not feel the group was obligated to clear its plans with local officials.

“How do illegal immigrants get into our country? Do they ask permission? They do not,” he said.

“The bottom line is we’ve already tried our local government, we’ve tried our federal government, we’ve tried everything we could think of to ensure the security of our citizens,” Garza continued. “This is a critical time and we need to do everything and anything in our power to secure our border.”

Newman said Ladd’s conception of a border fence would not be likely to cause a conflict with the county. But he said he would consult with the county attorney’s office and with planning officials to consider a course of action if the military design were to be used.

When Simcox announced the project last month, he said six private ranches in Southern Arizona were being considered as locations for a 150-foot length of fence. Last week, Garza confirmed that the barrier would be built in Cochise County, but citing security concerns, did not release the name of the selected site.

On Monday, however, Ladd told the Herald/Review that his ranch would be the site of this weekend’s fence construction.

According to the Minuteman Project website, more than 1,000 people have signed up to help build the barrier and supporters have donated more than $225,000 to the effort. The group hopes to raise another $10 million to build more fencing along the border.

The Memorial Day fence-building weekend kicks off Friday night in Tombstone with an outdoor showing of the documentary film “Cries from the Border” by local director Mercedes Maharris. On Saturday, Minuteman Project volunteers will check in at the Palominas Trading Post before being escorted to the ranch for a groundbreaking ceremony.

Guest speakers at the event will include Simcox; Garza; Republican gubernatorial candidate and Minuteman member Don Goldwater; and former presidential candidate and conservative political analyst Alan Keyes.

Colin Hanna, president of WeNeedaFence.com, will also speak at the event. He is credited with contributing the Israeli-style barrier design to the effort.

Herald/Review

PALOMINAS — Many people look to the open, rural areas of Arizona to get away from the hustle and bustle.

They buy homes that have scenic views and space to roam.

But that doesn’t mean there can’t be conflicts in those parts.

One of the consequences of residential growth into previously undeveloped parts of Cochise County is growing friction between neighbors, Sheriff’s Department Commander Rod Rothrock said during a recent interview.

Property-line, road maintenance and well-share disputes can become emotional, sometimes bringing deputies into the squabbles.

“These types of disputes are often a slippery slope,” Rothrock said. “Some of that can get pretty emotional.”

In an isolated collection of narrow, unpaved roads south of Miracle Valley Bible College, the squabbles have heightened.

Longtime Palominas resident Michael Cochran is worried that someone in his neighborhood may get seriously injured — or killed.

A neighbor down Apache Sky Road from Cochran has been troublesome ever since he moved into the area two years ago, Cochran said.

Mark Knaeble often drives too fast down the rough, dusty roads between the border with Mexico and Clinton Avenue, south of state Highway 92, and has threatened Cochran and others with physical harm, they claim.

Efforts to reach Knaeble for his comments were unsuccessful, but his father gave a different perspective on the situation.

“I think there’s a lot of guilt to go around,” he said. “There’s been a long, long history of people living around there baiting him.”

The neighbors are going out of their way to complain to the Sheriff’s Department and the county Planning Department about his son, Lee Knaeble said, while acknowledging, “Mark’s reaction has become a little unstable.”

Cochran also appears to have a short fuse, Lee Knaeble observed.

Cochran, 67, said he was the first resident of the remote area near the border when he moved there 15 years ago. He was responsible for having Apache Sky put in. He says it was a peaceful environment until Knaeble and his friend moved in about two years ago. Cochran said the couple acts as though they own the area, and Knaeble has threatened other residents on several occasions.

In interviews, Mary Frances Clinton, another longtime resident, and neighbor Ricky Veal related similar problems. Veal lives across Apache Sky from Cochran.

Veal and Cochran said they don’t feel safe in their homes and they complain that the Cochise County Sheriff’s Department hasn’t helped.

Last April, it got to be too much.

Cochran called the Sheriff’s Department after an encounter with Knaeble while Cochran was riding his horse through a nearby field.

According to the Sheriff’s Department report, around 9:45 a.m. on April 5, Knaeble attempted to scare the horse Cochran was riding by repeatedly driving an all-terrain vehicle close to the horse.

Knaeble reportedly approached Cochran and his horse, Spirit, at high speed, “yelling that the property he was riding his horse on was private property and he needed to get off of it,” Deputy K. Foster reported.

The horse became jittery, but Cochran was able to keep Spirit under control. He told Knaeble he knew the vacant land was owned by Gene Shaw and he was all right riding on it.

Knaeble then reportedly told Cochran he was planning to buy the land, which is located about a mile from the home where Knaeble lives.

Knaeble threatened to call the Sheriff’s Department and then drove off, but he turned around and allegedly charged the horse and rider again. Cochran said Knaeble spun the ATV around just a few feet from the horse, throwing up a rock that hit Spirit and drew blood.

“I had a gun and was willing to use it,” said Cochran, a Vietnam War veteran.

Knaeble charged him four times, Cochran said, trying to get Spirit to throw him, before giving up and driving away.

Foster’s report said he talked to two witnesses who saw the incident. Mr. and Mrs. Stan Schofield told Foster the ATV was spinning its tires and kicking up dirt near Cochran. They believed the ATV driver was trying to “spook” the horse. They couldn’t identify the ATV driver, but noticed the driver was wearing a red helmet.

The Herald/Review was unable to contact the Schofields.

Knaeble, 47, was initially charged with threatening and intimidating and endangerment — both misdemeanors. He’s now charged with disorderly conduct, a Class 1 misdemeanor. The case is being handled by Deputy County Attorney Anne Carl, who said a plea-bargain agreement has been worked out. The case is scheduled to be heard by Bisbee Magistrate David Morales on Jan. 23 in Justice Court 1.

It’s not the first time Knaeble clashed with authorities.

Knaeble was convicted on May 25, 2004, of three charges in connection with a fire — threatening-intimidation with injury/damage to property, disobeying a fire-control order and criminal nuisance endangerment.

The Palominas Fire District incident report for the May 14, 2004, fire said that five firefighters arrived at 10:31 a.m. to a blaze in an open field on Border Monument Road, near Knaeble’s residence. They had to cut a fence to get at the fire, which the report said appeared to be a “non-reported control burn, out of control.”

Shortly after the firefighters arrived, Knaeble showed up on a dirt bike and said the fire was set by drug smugglers.

An added report by Fire Chief James Leiendecker noted that Knaeble was “extremely irate and verbally abusive. He stated that people had been shot at and that we would be shot at if we attempted to extinguish the fire.”

Knaeble left the scene with a shower of dirt from his motorcycle’s rear wheel onto Leiendecker. A U.S. Border Patrol agent at the scene called the Sheriff’s Department and the firefighters withdrew from the fire until help arrived. A few minutes later, Knaeble returned, at the wheel of a 2 1/2-ton military truck, “driving over mesquite trees larger than the truck,” and made a pass at the fire truck, yelling obscenities. He made several such passes, slamming on the brakes.

“At one point, Mr. Knaeble’s truck passed within just a few feet of the fire truck, traveling at approximately 20 mph,” Leiendecker wrote.

Eventually, Knaeble parked the truck and began shoveling dirt on the fire.

Knaeble was arrested by a deputy at 11:22 a.m. and the firefighters returned to the blaze, which ultimately consumed two acres.

According to the report, the cause was “homeowner intentionally set fire.”

“He was definitely agitated at us, for no reason,” Leiendecker said during a recent interview. “Every time we go back there now we call law enforcement.”

Clinton said she saw several fires burning in that area during the summer of 2004, but none were very big. She clearly recalled the May 14 fire, and from her home was able to see Knaeble driving his large truck “at high speed in crazy figure-eights everywhere through the smoke and in and out among the fire trucks.”

She had several unpleasant encounters with Knaeble before and after the fire and learned to stay far away from him, she said.

She agreed with Cochran that the trouble started soon after Knaeble and his friend moved onto the property. First, a large Greyhound bus was brought in — the first in a collection of vehicles spread around the property.

“Then we saw roads graded all over than virgin grassland,” Clinton said.

Soon, other neighbors reported that Knaeble was racing up and down the road. Clinton discovered that firsthand when walking down to the San Pedro River with some friends.

“Mark roared up to us very aggressively in his car,” Clinton said. “He angrily told us we were on his property. I corrected him, saying we were on an easement ... He was still rude, but backed off.”

Knaeble’s April 5 encounter with Cochran this year wasn’t the end of matters.

On Aug. 11, Sheriff’s Department Cpl. F. Gregory responded to a call from Cochran that Knaeble was attempting to run over a man on a dirt bike in roughly the same area.

Cochran said he was up on his roof doing repairs when he saw two dirt bikes south of his residence, traveling east. Shortly after that, he saw Knaeble’s truck come up behind the two men on dirt bikes. Cochran said his attention was diverted when he noticed another neighbor, Glenn Spencer, taking pictures of him. When Cochran looked back at where he’d seen the dirt-bikers, only one was visible.

The dirt-bikers, Alexander Hoyt and Brian Dunaway, told Cpl. Gregory that Knaeble began following them and apparently tried to run them over. Knaeble said he got into an argument with the men and Hoyt grabbed him by the collar and accused him of being crazy. Following up on the incident, Gregory found acceleration marks caused by Knaeble, seeming to confirm the men’s account. Hoyt and Dunaway declined to press charges, however.

Knaeble did not return phone messages seeking comment for this article, but his father said his son’s attorney has advised him not to discuss the matter.

Contacted by the Herald/Review, attorney Peter Kelly said he never told Mark Knaeble not to talk to the news media about this subject. Kelly said he would try to relay a message to Mark Knaeble that the newspaper wanted an interview. Knaeble had not called prior to this story running.

Lee Knaeble’s view of his son’s problems with neighbors is somewhat different.

The conflict began when Mark Knaeble and his friend began blocking access to their property and escalated when they leased land to American Border Patrol head Glenn Spencer, who lives a short distance away in a manufactured home, Lee Knaeble said. Mark Knaeble has been involved with Spencer’s civilian border-watch group, according to an article published on The Christian Broadcasting Network Web site, in which Mark Knaeble guided reporter Paul Strand along the border.

“I think the Sheriff’s Department has been antagonistic ever since he leased the property to the American Border Patrol,” Lee Knaeble said.

Lee Knaeble denied accusations by some neighbors that he’s pulled strings to keep the law enforcement and judicial systems at bay where his son is involved.

“I never called the sheriff or used any influence,” he said.

Rothrock said the disputes in this case are not unique. He’s seen similar situations in other parts of the county, but some people mistakenly think the Sheriff’s Department can help resolve what are, essentially, civil matters.

“We’re not in a position to solve it,” Rothrock said. “We don’t have the power and authority to make judicial decisions in civil matters.”

Rothrock noted that civil litigation can be expensive, which may be why the road and property-line disputes have not come into Superior Court.

Cochise County Board of Supervisors Chairman Pat Call, who’s been aware of the disputes for several months, said he’s willing to mediate a solution, providing all parties involved are willing to get together at a neutral site.

“The situation has become critical in the level of frustrations,” he said. “I’ll do everything I can to help the Sheriff’s Department resolve this.”

Call then observed that another factor may be at play.

“They all moved out there for more space, more quiet and less (government) oversight,” he said. “They’re far from oversight. They’re at the end of the road.”

Rothrock won’t be surprised to see more such situations as the desert is turned into subdivisions.

“As we grow and get more roads cut, we’re more likely to see it,” he said.

HERALD/REVIEW

PALOMINAS - A new charter school in Miracle Valley would offer parents a choice of schools in the rapidly developing Palominas and Hereford areas, Melvin Harter said.

Nearly two weeks ago, the Cochise County Planning and Zoning Commission granted Harter a special-use permit that will allow him to open a charter school on the campus of Miracle Valley Bible College at 9224 E. Highway 92. The college lies within the boundaries of the Palominas school district.

In Arizona, a charter school is a state-supported public school that is sponsored by organizations rather than established public school districts. The state provides all funding for charter schools, whereas district schools receive part of their funding from local property taxes.

Arizona's State Board for Charter Schools must approve the application in order for the school to receive state funding, said Kristen Jordison, the board's executive director.

The board will begin reviewing applications later this year for schools to open next school year.

"The 2006-2007 applications are due in August," she said.

Harter said Friday that he is in the process of completing an application for the proposed charter school. If approved by the state board, he plans to open the school in 2006, he said.

On his application to the county, Harter stated the school would have up to 100 students. He said the school actually could accommodate 180 students. Harter plans to correct the figure with the county.

He said while the special use permit is for a kindergarten through 12th-grade school, the school probably will start as a kindergarten through eighth-grade.

"Right now we're working to bring our buildings up to code," he said.

The campus currently is occupied by an assisted living residential center, a cafeteria, a few mobile homes and several vacant buildings.

"We have enough space that we can have ball fields and we can have athletic activities," Harter said.

Courtesy of S.V./Bisbee Herald/Review

PALOMINAS - What Mark Twain said about reports of his death turned out to be true of the Palominas incorporation idea. Its demise was "greatly exaggerated."

A previously obscure organization called the Palominas Incorporation Research Committee called a meeting Sunday night to bring incorporation back into public view, after another group of area residents dropped any further studies. A spokesman for the latter group, Jerry Hatfield, told the Herald/Review early in February that there did not seem to be enough interest in pursuing the issue of incorporating the rural community into a municipality.

So the unnamed group of residents put the idea to rest until they see evidence of more interest.

But Ben Hemenway, PIRC co-chairman, says the matter is far from over.

Hemenway pointed out that some area residents have been researching the matter since at least 1987 and have also considered the option of having the area designated as an Active Management Area by the Arizona Water Resources Board.

This option would at least provide a vehicle for supervising well-drilling in the area, Hemenway told the Herald/Review.

The PIRC was formed in October 2004, with a core group of 13 people. Some of them were recently involved with other incorporation study groups in the area.

Sunday night 14 people showed up to continue a dialogue regarding incorporation, and they weren't discouraged by cost and revenue estimates that show more money likely to go out than come in.

Hemenway presented cost estimates totaling more than $600,000 and revenue estimated at around $480,700.

But Co-chairman Chuck Hoselton pointed out that "We're not hard and fast in the hole yet."

Some potential sources of revenue were not included in the estimates, Hoselton said. Utility lines for Cox Cable. Arizona Public Service and Qwest that pass through the area under consideration can also bring revenue to a municipality, he observed.

That area runs westward from Palominas Road northward to the south side of Hereford Road, then southwest - bypassing Nicksville - to Three Canyons Road and across state Highway 92 a short distance before heading south a short distance and then eastward along the highway to Coronado National Monument Road.

The entire area south of the highway to the Mexican border would be included. As of the 2000 census, there were 3,093 people living within those boundaries, Hemenway said.

Another 700 people are estimated to live in the Nicksville area, north of Hereford Road, but they were not included in the count because the area is just 4 1/2 miles south of Sierra Vista. State law requires the permission of any municipality within a six-mile radius in order to incorporate.

Hoselton favored approaching the city of Sierra Vista to seek approval so the extra 700 residents could be included.

Perusing the estimated figures, the $256,000 for road maintenance jumped out as an obstacle, but some attendees questioned the accuracy of that, because many of the roads within the area are paved.

The next-largest expense, law enforcement, was pegged at $550,000 for 5.5 officers, vehicles and equipment. Planning and zoning came in at $266,000, but that department would generate revenue, Hemenway pointed out.

One issue driving the incorporation supporters was the recent approval of new building permit and plan review fees by the county Board of Supervisors. The new, higher fees go into effect April 1.

"This is just another reason why we should look into incorporation," Hemenway said. Committee member Hector Gonzalez advised the audience to "Get your permits now."

Palominas incorporation - one group that was started in 2004 was the 'Palominas Preservation Committee' - here is information on this committee - although I have not received any updates lately (as of 12/02/2004)

HERALD/REVIEW

PALOMINAS - A study on the pros and cons of incorporating portions of the Hereford and Palominas areas into a municipality has been put on hold.
Jerry Hatfield, a spokesman for a local focus group studying the incorporation concept, said the group recently decided to suspend further meetings.
"We don't see things moving," he said. "I don't see a groundswell for it."
The group held a public meeting on Nov. 23 at Miracle Valley Bible College to present an overview of the incorporation issue. The idea of incorporating has surfaced in the past in the area, but was revived last summer because of increasing land development plans.
The area under consideration for incorporation was from Coronado National Memorial up state Highway 92 to Three Canyons, eastward along the south side of Hereford Road and along the road southward to the border with Mexico.
The organizers live near Coronado National Memorial. Hatfield, who moderated the meeting, said the group has no name and "no agenda."
Other members of the group include Peter and Lori Kelly, Carol Sanger, Judy and Al Yeast, and Nick and Marilea Zavarin.
Byron Smith, with the Arizona League of Cities and Towns, told an audience of more than 100 people on Nov. 23 how and why communities incorporate and outlined the benefits and pitfalls.

The advantages of incorporation are self-determination, responsiveness, obtaining revenues not ordinarily available, land-use control, maintenance of individuality, more credence with state and federal government, and the possibility of being a utilities provider, Smith said.
Disadvantages include not enough revenue to support municipal operations, inefficiencies in operations and resistance to urbanity.
Local control over development is the "No. 1 reason communities incorporate," Smith told the gathering.
Counties have limited control over land development, while cities and towns have tighter control, Smith said. Not even the state of Arizona has total control over water issues.
On Tuesday, Hatfield said municipalities don't have much control of water either.
A large residential development is proposed at Kinjockity Ranch on the eastern border of the Hereford-Palominas area, and several others are being considered. Some local residents fear high-density housing would destroy the rural nature of the region and might draw down the local aquifer.
"If I thought that incorporation was a panacea for this, or even a means to control it, I'd be all for it," Hatfield said.

The incorporation idea got rolling last summer when a group calling itself the Palominas Preservation Committee organized to study the subject.
A tally of questionnaires turned in on Nov. 23 showed the majority of respondents felt they needed more information on the subject.
Hatfield said 63 questionnaires were turned in, which he felt represents households, not individuals.
Of the total, 22 were opposed to incorporation, but said they wanted more information. Nine were in favor of incorporation, and 34 simply wanted more information.
"The numbers don't seem to be there right now," Hatfield said Tuesday, referring to the number of people interested in incorporating and the revenue that incorporation might generate.
If the proposed development actually begins, there may be more interest in the idea, Hatfield thought.
"People don't sense an imminent danger. Š We don't see a public outcry for incorporation," he said.

Area residents might look at forming a lobbying group to present local concerns to Cochise County officials, Hatfield said.

REPORTER Michael Sullivan can be reached at 515-4682.

Herald/Review

PALOMINAS - A tally of questionnaires turned in at a Nov. 23 meeting held to consider the idea of incorporating a portion of the Hereford-Palominas area showed the majority of respondents felt they needed more information on the subject.

Jerry Hatfield, an organizer of the informational meeting, said Wednesday that 63 questionnaires were turned in Nov. 23, which he feels represents households, not individuals.

Of the total, 22 were opposed to incorporation, but said they wanted more information. Nine were in favor of incorporation, and 34 simply wanted more information.

To provide more information, another public forum is tentatively planned for Jan. 27. The time and location have not been determined.

Topics to be discussed by a panel at the meeting will include case studies of existing cities, such as Patagonia, that have requested unincorporation; a Power Point presentation of what it takes to incorporate and operate a town; a presentation by a representative of the Upper San Pedro Partnership; a look at the development control powers of towns and counties; a sample budget of a town; and the powers of special districts.

There also will be an open microphone for public comment, Hatfield said.

Organizers hope to limit the meeting to two hours.

A plan to develop about 840 acres along state Highway 92, near Valley View Elementary School, into a 275-lot subdivision has some opponents riled up.

"My concern is with overtaxing the water aquifer and possibly drying up the San Pedro River if too much development is allowed to take place," said Peggy Williams of Tucson.

Williams was one of a large number of people who attended an informational meeting last Thursday evening at the elementary school.

The meeting was organized and presented by The Planning Center, a Tucson land development consulting firm. It was part of the process required by the Cochise County Planning Department in bringing a subdivision proposal to the department, said Deputy County Planner Judy Anderson.

"They (the developers) haven't submitted anything yet," Anderson said Monday.

The Kinjockity Ranch Estates plan envisions 94 one-acre lots on about 151 acres, 129 2.5-acre lots on 407 acres and 52 4.5-acre lots on 267 acres. Approximately 590 acres will be left as "natural, undisturbed open space," according to a flyer announcing last week's meeting.

The developer is Darrell Dunafon of Tucson, who has retired from the world of fast-food restaurants.

He owned a large number of Taco Bell restaurants in Missouri, which he sold six years ago. He also served on the board of a purchasing co-operative for Taco Bell, Kentucky Fried Chicken and other restaurants. He has developed commercial property in Missouri and did two historic preservation projects. He has hired The Planning Center as consultants and Western Associates, of Tucson, as the development coordinator.

Jay Akers, a retired hydrologist who owns property about a mile north of Palominas, said: "I can see where they could be running into problems with the development ... They're sure overloading this valley." Acknowledging that he has not studied the water situation closely in the Palominas area, Akers said that there appears to be adequate water now.

Ted Herman of The Planning Center said Monday that he shares those concerns.

"That's a huge concern," Herman said. "If we can't prove the water, we can't do the development."

The project engineer, Blaine T. Reely of Monsoon Consultants, has applied for a permit to drill a test well for a hydrological study, Herman said. This will be necessary for the project to move forward in the county's planning process.

"I don't think this is something that can be rushed," Herman said.

Dunafon agreed. "We're senstive to the things we heard," Dunafon said Monday. "Water must be proved beyond adequate."

The bright side

Not everyone is concerned about adverse consequences.

"Overall, I think it's going to be a really nice subdivision," said Tommy Stoner, president of the Palominas Community Alliance, a nonprofit community service organization.

A lifelong resident of the Palominas area, Stoner said, "We can't tell somebody to stop coming. If I wanted no growth, I'd buy the land and leave it alone."

Other features of the gated subdivision plan include:

€ A minimum 200-foot landscape buffer from Highway 92, screening highway users and residential units.

€ "Significant arroyos throughout the property," which will not be encroached upon. Washes will remain as wildlife corridors.

€ Connecting open space corridors to provide "connectivity throughout the project area."

€ Provision of a 75-foot right-of-way for a north-south transportation connection along the eastern project border.

€ Water provision and traffic impact analyses, and an environmental survey, soil survey, geotechnical report and a boundary survey.

The plan also calls for development of 13 acres of commercial real estate along the highway. This is in conflict with the San Pedro Area Plan, approved by the Cochise County Board of Supervisors. The plan calls for the concentration of all commercial development into a strip farther down the highway, said District 1 Supervisor Pat Call. The plan also restricts zoning in the area to RU-4, which means one residential unit for four acres.

An application for rezoning will be necessary.

Call, who attended the meeting last week, said he also is concerned about the adequacy of water supplies in the area, noting that the nearby Foothills Ranch subdivision has had to curtail water to residents on and off for the past year.

But, he added, "The county can't stop it. The state issues the certificates of adequacy."

As for rezoning, Call said that the former ranch property could be developed up to 268 lots. Rezoning would allow for 275 lots - only a slight increase. "It's the same amount of people in the same amount of space. ... The land out there is going to be developed," he said.

Call said that he was favorably impressed by the plan.

"It's in basic harmony with the area," Call said. "It's going to be very upscale, with restrictive codes, covenants and restrictions. He (Dunafon) wants to put in something to blend with that community."

Stoner, a computer systems analyst on Fort Huachuca, is also the assistant fire chief for the Palominas Fire District. He said he has "no major concerns," other than a fire plan for the development.

The commercial concept doesn't bother him, either. A small food market in the area of the school would be convenient for residents there, he said. A development of that size could affect some wells to the east, so the development of recharge areas and water conservation practices are definitely called for, he said.

"He's gone about it the right way," Stoner says of Dunafon. "I think its going to be one of the best subdivisions in that area, ever."

Pointing out that he wants his first residential development to be a quality one, Dunafon said, "I want the people who live there to say 'thank you,' not call me a son of a gun."

UPDATE (VIA EMAIL) RECEIVED ON MAY 30, 2006

Dear Kinjockity Ranch Lot Purchaser,

Since we mailed out our Conditional Sales Contracts in April, we have converted about 225 lot reservations to sales contract....lots of paperwork and we have more to come over the next couple of months.

On May 23rd 2006 Cochise County Board of Supervisors approved our Final Plat which is currently being recorded together with the governing documents:
Deed restrictions, Conservation Easement, Incorporation and Bylaws of the Homeowner's Association.
With the approval of the Final Plat for Cochise County's first Conservation Easement Subdivision, we will be able to receive our Subdivision Report from Arizona Real Estate Dept. and this hopefully in June.
When we have received the State approval, we will be mailing/delivering to each of you a package consisting of:
A Subdivision Report with receipt, Deed Restrictions, Conservation Easement document, Homeowner's Association documents, an Addendum for you to sign stating, that you have in fact received these documents and a cover letter with instructions. Prior to this package going out, you will be notified by
e-mail.
Later this summer, when all the roads are passable, you will also receive an invitation to come to Kinjockity Ranch and take a drive through the subdivision and locate your lot. We understand that some of you are out of state, others are on vacation, but there will be several occasions to do this, and special arrangements will be made to everybody's satisfaction. We have received questions regarding the Conservation Easement and the following will hopefully help clarification:
Kinjockity Ranch in addition to the Common Areas will have 433.9 acres of Protected Property" which is intended to be preserved in perpetuity for the scenic enjoyment of the general public and for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future Owners of Kinjockity Ranch. The native plants, trees and wildlife are protected and usage is limited to walking and hiking. No motorized vehicles of any kind or any improvements are allowed on/in the Protected Property". The Conservation Easement document you will receive in June will go into much greater detail.
The Homeowner's Association fee has not been established yet, but we should have this information for you late this summer. We also want to repeat the amenities of Kinjockity Ranch:
All streets will be paved with colored concrete ribbon on each side, there will be two gated landscaped entrances off Highway 92, the Eastern most entrance will have a landscaped median going from South to North, we will be served by Bella Vista Water, Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative,
Qwest and Comcast (all underground).

Hope you had a peaceful Memorial Day weekend.

CELL TOWER NEWS: (July 12, 2004)
For those who are interested in what's going on in Palominas you should know that there is an application for an 80 foot steel monopole to be installed on the Valley View School property (across from Coronado Memorial road). The application is from ALLTEL.
This cell tower has been anticipated for some time. It will provide reliable, consistent cellular service across the entire width of the valley from the Mules to the canyons in the Huachucas (according to the company).
(From Pat Call, Chairman, County Board of Supervisors)