How the NIMBYism mindset is slowing Valley growth

In June 2023, TASER-maker and public safety technology company Axon revealed its intentions to develop a $1.3 billion mixed-use world headquarters campus at the neighborhood meeting of Stonebrook. After a high-profile negotiation, the Scottsdale City Council and Axon reached a compromise — but some Scottsdale residents remained unhappy with the settlement, reflecting a broader trend of groups opposing housing-related developments, often referred to as NIMBYism, short for “Not in my backyard.”  

Scottsdale Mayor Lisa Borowsky, who voted in favor of the deal, argued that while it wasn’t perfect, the city was able to negotiate significantly less apartments than what Axon initially proposed.  

Dissatisfied with the outcome, Taxpayers Against Awful Apartment Zoning Exemptions, also known as TAAAZE, filed a 12-page complaint this January, alleging that the new agreement was invalid because city leaders passed it before taking the proper steps. 

“NIMBYism is real, and it has become a major issue here in Arizona,” says Courtney LeVinus, president and CEO of the Arizona Multihousing Association. “We are seeing apartment development after development either get stopped or delayed when the NIMBYs show up and oppose projects.” 

“Entitlements that used to take one to two years are now taking more like two to four years,” LeVinus says. “It’s just really driving up the cost to develop here in Arizona.” 

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Joe Perotti, a real estate attorney with Gallagher & Kennedy, says NIMBYism is a phenomenon found in every community across the country because it stems from a universal human reaction.  

“People are not as welcome to change as developers, and we get that,” Perotti says. 

Many times, current residents are concerned that a new project will change the character of the neighborhood, LeVinus explains. The assumption is that new developments will create more traffic or reduce property values, but that does not tend to materialize once the development is finished. 

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Leake adds that misinformation can also fuel opposition. She says people will show up to a meeting upset over a social media post, but it isn’t until they engage with officials that they learn the truth. 

Keri Silvyn, attorney and owner of Lazarus & Silyvn, explains that it is often the more-vocal minority who makes things difficult for elected officials to make decisions. After practicing for three decades, she says going through the rezoning process is significantly more difficult now.  

“There’s a lot more people assuming the worst right now, so people get nervous about change — even if it ultimately is going to be good,” Silvyn says. 

Navigating NIMBYism 

Developers are in the business of building and are used to seeing landscapes be transformed. These firms spend time, energy and resources to create new projects that benefit the region, but Perotti says it’s important to remember that the people impacted most are the residents in those areas.  

Meeting with residents to hear about their concerns and how they may resolved is critical for success — Leake believes it’s the developer’s obligation to listen to the community. Neighbors tend to appreciate it, as do municipalities when they see developers making the effort. 

“The most helpful thing we can do is just provide information to people and work with neighborhoods the best we can to come to compromises,” she says. “It is important to make sure at least everyone feels heard and their questions are addressed — at least they have the information.” 

Leake says neglecting the community throughout the process leads to one of two outcomes. Either the case gets denied, which hurts the developer and the people who need that housing, or it’s approved despite the opposition without the neighborhood actually weighing in on what would make the development more palatable to them.  

That said, Silvyn says residents have a role to play in making these meetings less contentious.  

“We create these public forums where everybody and anybody can grab a microphone. We’re in a day and age where it’s hard to decipher the facts, and people are starting from a point of not trusting,” she continues. “Let’s assume that we can work through the problems, and if you can’t — then you can get angry. But you don’t have to come in angry to get our attention.” 

One particularly heated case Silvyn recalls was for a Walmart in Oro Valley that garnered a significant amount of opposition. 

“People were showing up at hearings and screaming and yelling,” she says. “There was one particular gentleman who was adamant that this was going to be just the complete destruction of Oro Valley.”  

But just two years after it was built, Silvyn shopped at that Walmart and was greeted by the same man who had yelled and screamed at her. 

“I remember I walked in, and I looked at him, and I said, ‘Are you kidding me?’” she recalls. “He looked at me, and he laughed, and he goes, ‘Turns out the world wasn’t really coming to an end.’” 

There have been some efforts made by the Legislature recently regarding zoning have been to simplify the zoning process by limiting the public process to allow for more development, Leake says. But what is an attempt to make the procedure easier, turns into local officials and community members ultimately losing the ability to weigh in at all. 

However, when opponents don’t allow multifamily developments to continue, it’s more likely the legislature is going to try to take that away. Leake suggests that neighbors should consider the big picture when a new housing project is announced. 

“If we don’t let these developments go through when they do make sense, then we’re just eventually going to lose control,” she says.