The Bullhead City Planning and Zoning Commission on Jan. 2, 2025 approved a zoning map change (Z24-011) for the City Center planned area development, a roughly 246-acre parcel located at 2541 Highway 95, with new stipulations limiting the location and extent of five-story commercial buildings.

City staff and the applicant said the original PAD allowed a five-story (approximately 60-foot) building height in C2 (general commercial) areas. Commissioners and members of the public raised concerns that allowing that height across all commercial parcels could place taller buildings adjacent to existing businesses. To address those concerns, the applicant proposed, and the commission adopted, two specific amendments: the 60-foot height allowance (including up to 12 feet of architectural embellishments) will apply only to C2 parcels located within 390 feet of the PAD's newly defined Main Street, and no more than 30% of the gross C2 acreage may be built to that height.

The applicant's representative (identified in the hearing as Mr. Sainks) said the reduced height and the 30% cap would protect existing businesses such as Highway 95 Furniture from "worst-case" scenarios while preserving the developer's ability to pursue a Main Street-style corridor. He also said the team would be "amenable to reducing the height to 48 feet with a Conditional Exception Process for anything taller" and that buildings over that threshold would return to the commission and city council for project-specific approvals.

During public comment, a resident who identified himself as "Scotty from Bullhead" urged traffic and access changes and expressed skepticism about large-scale development. Commissioners discussed geographic limits for taller buildings and clarified that the height exception would apply only to commercial parcels, not residential zones, and that the senior housing campus (parcel 10) would not be eligible because it lies beyond the 390-foot buffer from the new Main Street.

A commissioner moved to approve the zoning map change with the new stipulations; the motion carried, 6-0.