Maricopa County, AZ Zoning Overlays & Bonuses: Specific Plans Overview (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing chapter
- MCZO Chapter 7, Section 701 (PAD Overlay)
- Minimum PAD site size
- 160 acres
- Residential parcel plan form
- Final plat or approved Special Use Permit
- Non-residential parcel plan form
- Site plan under Ch. 3, § 305
- Applies only to
- Unincorporated Maricopa County
- Approving body (General Development Plan)
- Board of Supervisors
Summary
In unincorporated Maricopa County, no parcel inside a Planned Area Development (PAD) overlay can be built on until the county approves a Specific Development Plan for it. The plan must track the General Development Plan the Board of Supervisors already approved for the whole PAD.
Article 701.5. Specific Development Plan: 1. Submittal and approval of a Specific Development Plan is required prior to development of any parcel within a PAD. 2. The Specific Development Plan shall be generally consistent with the development parameters set forth in the General Development Plan. Refinements in site configuration and development parcel size are allowable, as long as any limitations applied to the overall PAD are met... 3. For residential parcels, the Specific Development Plan shall be a final plat or an approved Special Use Permit, processed in the same manner and with the same requirements set forth in the County Subdivision Regulations or this Ordinance. 4. For non-residential parcels, the Specific Development Plan shall be a site plan processed in the same manner and with the same requirements set forth for a precise plan of development in Chapter 3, Section 305.
Full Breakdown
The county's PAD Overlay Zoning District (Zoning Ordinance Section 701) lets large sites, at least 160 acres, get one General Development Plan approved by the Board of Supervisors covering land use, density, and design parameters for the whole area. But approval of that master plan does not authorize construction. 5 requires a separate Specific Development Plan for each individual development parcel before anything is built, and that plan must stay "generally consistent" with the parameters the Board already approved, though refinements to site configuration and parcel size are allowed as long as the PAD's overall limits are met.
The application must include a legal description of the parcel and show how it relates to the approved PAD and any other Specific Development Plans already approved within it, plus an accounting of density or intensity if the PAD approval capped it. The format of the Specific Development Plan depends on use: for residential parcels it must be a final plat or an approved Special Use Permit, processed under the County Subdivision Regulations or the Zoning Ordinance itself; for non-residential parcels it must be a site plan, processed the same way as a precise plan of development under Chapter 3, Section 305.
This two-tier structure (PAD General Development Plan, then per-parcel Specific Development Plan) applies only in the unincorporated county; Phoenix, Mesa, Chandler, Scottsdale and the county's other incorporated cities administer their own planned-development processes under their own codes.
Violations & Fines
Development on a PAD parcel without an approved Specific Development Plan is not authorized under the Ordinance, so building or zoning clearance requests are denied until one is approved by the Department of Planning and Development. Major changes to an approved General Development Plan (a different zoning district category, a 5%-or-more change in a district's area, relocated major streets, or anything the Planning & Development Director flags for review) must be reprocessed through the full Commission and Board of Supervisors hearing process; minor amendments can be approved administratively by the Department.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I build on my PAD parcel once the overall PAD is approved?
What has to match between the two plans?
Does this process apply inside Phoenix or Scottsdale?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Maricopa County
Compare Maricopa County to another location·View the Arizona zoning overlays & bonuses overview
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