Oro Valley council votes 7-0 to raise its own pay, adopts public camping ban

Oro Valley council votes 7-0 to raise its own pay, adopts public camping ban

ORO VALLEY — The Oro Valley Town Council voted 7-0 on Wednesday, October 21, to raise council salaries to $17,260.81 and the mayor's salary to $21,863.70. The council also tied future pay to the across-the-board raises town staff receive. The vote came at the last regular meeting for Mayor Joseph C. Winfield and council members Josh Nicolson and Joyce Jones-Ivey. All three voted for the increase.

Vice Mayor Melanie Barrett, who takes office as mayor Nov. 4, made the motion. She said the figures reflect what the council would have earned had it received the same adjustments as town staff since a 2006 resolution tied council pay to employee cost-of-living increases. She also amended the resolution to remove a car allowance. Council Member Elizabeth Robb had flagged that provision.

Barrett said no one should serve for the money, but she said people should not have to be independently wealthy to serve the town. She cited total council compensation of about $55,000 in Marana and about $32,000 in Sahuarita. She noted that comparable cities offer health care and pensions, which Oro Valley does not. She said council members would still be the lowest-paid town employees.

Town Attorney Steven Zraick told the council that a pay change must be adopted before the new council takes office Nov. 4 to take effect. He added that "what you do for one, you have to do for all." Zraick disputed that a mistake had been made. He said the 2006 resolution allowed only cost-of-living raises, and the town has not given a COLA by that name since 2013. Instead, employee increases were labeled market, merit or annual adjustments. He said Chief Financial Officer David Gephart calculated the catch-up figures. He also said the item would most likely need to be continued to the council's Oct. 28 special session because departments did not yet have all the information. The council voted on it that night.

Nicolson, who requested the item, first moved to have the citizen Budget and Finance Commission set council pay using comparisons with other Arizona cities. "I don't think council should decide our own pay," he said. That motion died after Council Member Harry "Mo" Greene withdrew his second.

Council Member Mary Murphy said she had seconded placing the item on the agenda for transparency, not to endorse a raise. She said she was uncomfortable giving herself a raise but considered the catch-up amount "the thing that was supposed to be happening the whole time." She said any comparison with other cities should be left to the future council.

Three people spoke during public comment:

• A resident called the increases "out of sight." The resident urged the council to limit any raise to the 3.6% Social Security cost-of-living increase and to table the matter for the incoming council.
• A former mayor recommended a 31% catch-up funded from town reserves.
• Council Member-elect Rosa Dailey urged matching Marana's compensation. She said she spent more than $23,000 on her self-funded campaign. "The future of Oro Valley should not be dependent on volunteerism or altruism," she said.

Camping ban, median rule approved

The council voted 7-0 to adopt Ordinance (O)26-13. The ordinance bans camping on town property and in washes or flood-prone areas, and it restricts pedestrians in traffic medians. No one spoke at the public hearing.

Police Lt. Duran presented the ordinance. He cited the U.S. Supreme Court's 6-3 Grants Pass v. Johnson ruling, which found cities may enforce camping bans even when shelter space is insufficient.

Under the ordinance:

• What counts as camping: pitching tents, laying down bedding to sleep, storing belongings, starting fires, cooking, or living in a parked vehicle on public property without a permit.
• Penalty: a violation is a class 1 misdemeanor.
• Before an arrest: officers should first give people a reasonable chance to relocate.
• Exemptions: relief-worker camps set up by government agencies during disasters.
• Homelessness: the ordinance states, "Nothing in this town code shall be construed to criminalize homelessness, target the homeless community, or otherwise criminalize an individual status rather than conduct."

Duran described finding people camping and building fires under the Oracle Road bridge at Pusch View on three occasions.

The median rule bars pedestrians from remaining in a median through two consecutive chances to cross. It applies regardless of activity, including panhandling or handing out flyers. Officers must give a warning before citing anyone. Duran said the department would start with public education, as it did with the town's texting-while-driving ordinance. He noted Oracle Road's 50 mph limit and La Cañada Drive's 45 mph limit.

Jones-Ivey said shelters often lack room and urged partnerships with other municipalities so people are not pushed into Tucson washes. Duran said Sonora Behavioral Health has expanded and the department has more often found beds.

Annexation strategy puts Ina-Oracle first

The council voted 7-0 to adopt the 2026 annexation strategy update, which replaces the 2020 strategy. Barrett added an amendment requiring council action, not staff action, to move areas between tiers or add properties.

Assistant Town Manager Karl Shaddock said the strategy approves no annexations, zoning or spending. The plan has three tiers:

• Tier one: Ina and Oracle roads. This is the only tier-one area. Three shopping centers there would generate roughly $1.6 million a year in retail sales tax under a retail-only boundary, according to a staff planning estimate. A broader scenario that adds residential territory would still net more than $1 million a year after road costs. Staff plans a neighborhood town hall and an online FAQ page in early November.
• Tier two: La Encantada, the Foothills Mall area and the Oracle corridor. La Encantada is the strongest modeled opportunity, at about $4.5 million a year in retail sales tax and about $4.2 million net. Shaddock said annexing the residential pathway to reach it brings service obligations. Foothills Mall-area commercial properties are estimated at $2.75 million a year in retail sales tax, before costs.
• Tier three: two state trust land parcels. These include the Thornydale-Tangerine land the council declined to pursue Oct. 7.

Staff will deliver written reports twice a year beginning in spring.

Bond wish list backed

The council voted 7-0 to back the town's preliminary submissions for a potential November 2027 Pima County bond election. The list includes nine projects totaling about $42.5 million, plus a Chuck Huckelberry Loop extension that has not yet been priced.

Shaddock said Oro Valley holds about 8% of the county's net assessed value, so its property owners would pay roughly 8 cents of every dollar of bond debt if voters countywide approve it. For a $250,000 home, he estimated added taxes of about $16 a year per $100 million in bonds. He said that figure roughly doubles for the town's median home sale price of about $520,000.

The projects include:

• Converting a town building at 13101 N. Oracle Road into a police headquarters and regional emergency operations center
• Completing Naranja Park
• Upgrades at James D. Kriegh Park
• About $3.2 million in work at Steam Pump Ranch
• About $2 million each to rehabilitate the Rancho Vistoso Boulevard and Tangerine Road bridges over Big Wash
• A shared Moore Road intersection project with the county
• Two flood-control projects, including $2.56 million for a wash where nine homes flooded in 2014

Murphy asked to add an ADA restroom near the Arizona Heroes Memorial at Naranja Park. Robb suggested aquatic center repairs. Winfield proposed folding both into existing park projects. Barrett said she would not propose the tax herself but wanted residents to get projects if it passes. The county's advisory committee is scheduled to select projects in January.

Hillside grading exception

The council voted 7-0 to allow a 15-foot hillside cut, up from the 8-foot limit, for a single-family home at 625 W. Atua Place, on a lot platted in 1958. Barrett raised wall-collapse safety concerns, and the council added a condition requiring a six-foot wall or continuous vegetation as fall protection along the retaining wall. Winfield questioned how drainage would reach the street. Public Works Director Paul Keesler said detailed engineering would ensure downstream neighbors see no added flow.

Also discussed:

• After an executive session on the town manager's annual performance review, the council voted 6-0 to approve direction to staff. Barrett was out of the chambers for the vote.
• The consent agenda passed 7-0. It included a school resource officer agreement with Leman Academy of Excellence and adoption of the 2026 Pima County Community Wildfire Protection Plan.
• A resident raised privacy concerns about the town's new surveillance cameras.
• Tohono Chul leaders presented a 10- to 15-year master plan for the 49-acre garden. They said a 2025 study estimated the garden's annual economic impact at $7.35 million.
• Explore Oro Valley reported new sports bookings worth about $70,000 in room revenue, a 290% rise in website traffic over two months, and plans to retire its app in November.
• The council will hold a special session Oct. 28. The new council will be seated Nov. 4.

This report was drafted by Claude Opus 5.5 from a live transcript produced by Deepgram Nova-2, then reviewed and edited by Nicholas De Leon with Claude Opus 5.5, and published at 11:09 PM MST on October 21, 2026. Read more about how this is made.