A state law that would bypass local laws to allow the development of duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes and rental townhomes in neighborhoods zoned for single-family homes is sparking organized opposition months before it’s set to take effect.
The opposition in Arizona, where the law applies to areas within 1 mile of designated central business districts, is centered in Phoenix, the Arizona Republic reported.
Pushback is similar to various efforts by homeowners in California to frustrate recently passed state laws intended to spur development of duplexes in single-family neighborhoods.
Arizona’s House Bill 2721, which was passed in 2024 and goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2026, would cover an area of the City of Phoenix that includes more than 10 neighborhoods considered historic.
A number of them, including the Willo, Coronado and Encanto-Palmcroft districts, are chock full of homes valued at more than $1 million, more than double the median price in the city.
“My biggest concern is a homeowner sells to a developer who is going to tear down a unique historic home and put up a fourplex on a single-family home lot that won’t be affordable,” Willo Neighborhood Association President Brad Brauer told the Arizona Republic. “Legislation says developers can’t be stopped from doing that.”
House Bill 2721 applies to municipalities with populations of 75,000 or more, and limits new developments to two stories. The roster of cities where the law will apply also includes Tempe, Mesa, Glendale, Tucson and Flagstaff.
The City of Phoenix expanded its central business district from 2 square miles to 12 square miles a few months after the law passed, dramatically expanding the territory and the number of neighborhoods subject to the law based on the 1-mile radius.
The board of the Willo Neighborhood Association, one of the high-end, “historic” neighborhoods in the path of the new law, has circulated a petition calling for protection to keep single-family zoning, gathering 1,200 signatures so far.
State Representative Aaron Márquez, a Democrat from Phoenix, has introduced legislation to carve “historic” neighborhoods out of the new law.
Owners of historic homes get discounts on property taxes in exchange for observing design and building regulations.
HB 2721 does not require multifamily developments in historic areas to meet design and building guidelines.
Márquez’s bill, dubbed HB 2719, appears to be stuck in the state legislature at this point.
— Jerry Sullivan
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