Gilbert has taken the lead in the the metropolitan Phoenix area by becoming the first to designate a formally designating a commuter rail station.
On July 25, 2000, the Gilbert Town Council approved an update to their General Plan, calling for a densely populated urban “village” south of Williams Field Road, between Recker and Higley. Among the centerpieces of this development is the designation of a future commuter rail stop southwest of that intersection. This is to be surrounded by retail, office, and residential spaces, in a traditional “Main Street” town center design.
The Independent newspapers quotes planning director Jerry Swanson: “The village center will be a high density center modeled after the Mill Avenue area in Tempe, centered at the intersection of Williams Field Road and Recker… it will have a higher density than anywhere else in town.” The design is to encourage pedestrian and bicycle access, with shuttle buses linking to the college and airport facilities.
Gilbert’s changed General Plan, Community Design Element, now seeks to “Promote and design a commuter-rail / shuttle-bus transit station, with a park & ride lot along the Union Pacific Railroad tracks, near the Village Center” and “Promote rail-oriented development around the future rail transit station so that commuter rail transit will be feasible and implemented for the East Valley and the Gilbert Gateway area.”
The developers of the Cooley Station property, on which the designated rail station lies, are enthusiastic about the promise of commuter rail service for the residents who will live in the new community. ARPA hopes to continue to work with the town and with the developers to fulfill this potential.
With funding forthcoming from SRP, among other sources, and a possible Commuter Rail study later this year, it is greatly encouraging to see ARPA’s efforts over the past 22 years finally paying off in an integrated transportation system with buses, light rail, commuter rail, regional rail, and intercity rail.
We are getting there – one step at a time.
