The Florence Town Council unanimously approved a land use amendment on October 21, 2025, clearing the way for MDI Rock to establish a retail landscape supply and rock processing facility on 10 acres at Arizona Farms Road. The Florence MDI Rock industrial rezoning changes the designation from Suburban Neighborhood to Industrial, aligning the property with the area’s evolution into an employment and industrial corridor.
The Planning and Zoning Commission had previously recommended the change by a 3-0 vote on October 2, 2025.
Landscape Supply Facility to Serve Growing Florence Market
MDI Rock plans to develop a retail landscape supply store offering decorative groundcover in more than 50 colors, along with riprap, flagstone, sand, gravel, surface select boulders, concrete pavers, mortar, and CMU block. The facility will not sell plants or trees. Customers will be able to purchase materials that are processed, separated, and stored on-site in large piles, then distributed with front loaders into accessible bins.
The company has operated in Arizona since 1988 and currently runs locations in Phoenix, Queen Creek, and Prescott. MDI Rock operates two decorative rock quarries in central Arizona. Their existing product offerings are available on their website, though the specific inventory at the Florence location has not been finalized.
Site Details and Existing Structures
The 10-acre property at 7309 W. Arizona Farms Road sits at the southwest corner of Arizona Farms and Attaway Road. The site currently contains a house, a vacant metal building with several below-grade docks, and a parking lot.
MDI Rock will repurpose the existing residential house to serve as the main office following extensive renovations. Until then, an office trailer will function as both the office and retail store, displaying sample and marketing materials. The existing metal building and associated loading docks will be used for truck and equipment repairs and maintenance. A new modular building is also planned for the site.
The development will include 51 parking spaces. Of these, 29 will be standard vehicle stalls and 13 will accommodate trucks with trailers, heavy equipment such as front loaders and backhoes, water trucks, and other larger hauling vehicles.
Strategic Location Near Rail and Future Transportation Corridors
Taylor Earl of the law firm Earl & Curley, representing MDI Rock, emphasized the site’s strategic advantages during his presentation to the council. The property sits adjacent to the Union Pacific and Copper Basin Railroad lines, providing crucial transportation infrastructure for the industrial operation.
“When you look at transportation and the way that this road ends, the Central Arizona roadway center, it ends right at Arizona Farms,” Earl explained. “That’s perfect for business, right? That’s perfect for the types of uses that would be contemplated within this general plan designation.”
Earl noted that the rail line represents a fixed asset that makes the location particularly valuable for industrial uses. “You can’t pick up and move a rail line,” he said. “Residential doesn’t like to be next to rail. It doesn’t benefit from being next to rail and commercial uses. Industrial uses greatly benefit.”
The property also benefits from proximity to major planned transportation projects. The proposed North-South Corridor (SR-505) will run to the east, with a planned interchange at Arizona Farms Road. Pinal County’s Central Arizona Parkway will traverse to the west, with proposed intersections at Judd Road, Attaway Road, and Arizona Farms Road.
Concerns Raised About Compatibility with Nearby Tech Development
Daniel Dobson, who owns property immediately north of the MDI Rock site, voiced concerns during the public hearing about the facility’s compatibility with the emerging technology corridor. His family’s Dobson Farms property recently received approval for massive data center and industrial development totaling 1,619 acres.
“The town’s recent rezoning cases have been positive steps towards creating a desirable tech hub here in Florence, and I have some major concerns about the compatibility of this proposed use in and around this tech corridor,” Dobson told the council.
He raised specific issues about noise from crushing operations, dust from rock processing, and the impact of heavy truck traffic on roads. Dobson requested that the town require traffic studies, dedicated turn lanes, and confirmation that impact fees adequately capture the project’s effects on infrastructure.
“My cousin, Chris Dobson, who has land next to this site also is not in favor of this operation for this location and believes an alternative site would better serve the area and community,” Daniel Dobson added.
Taylor Earl responded to the granite crushing concerns raised during the Planning and Zoning Commission hearing and reiterated at the council meeting. “The issue related to granite where there can be certain dust particles that can be a health hazard, that is not being proposed,” Earl confirmed. “It will not be part of our rezoning request that you’ll see coming back. So there will be other crushing operations, but not granite.”
When Councilmember Arthur Neal asked for absolute confirmation, Earl stated: “Correct. There is granite being crushed, significant amounts of granite being crushed, Vulcan, which is about a mile south of our site, but it is not being part of our proposal.”
Silver Cross Ranch Development and Mixed-Use Buffer
The 389-acre Silver Cross Ranch Master Planned Community lies to the south of the MDI Rock site. Currently under the jurisdiction of San Tan Valley and Pinal County, the development received approval from the Pinal County Board of Supervisors in July 2025 and is undergoing the permitting process. The community plans for approximately 1,195 homes.
Senior Planner Maricella Benitez addressed concerns about residential proximity during her presentation. “Surrounding this site will be commercial and mixed-uses so it’s not going to be residential directly surrounding it,” Benitez explained. Mixed-use and commercial development will line the northern portion of Silver Cross Ranch along Arizona Farms Road. This creates a buffer between the MDI Rock facility and residential areas.
Infrastructure and Next Steps Clarified
Several council members sought clarification about infrastructure requirements mentioned during public comment. Councilmember Tony Bencina asked whether traffic improvements like turn lanes would be negotiated as part of the vote.
Community Development Director A.J. Monroe clarified the process: “It won’t be part of a negotiation. It’ll be part of the requirements for the development of the site.”
Mayor Keith Eaton emphasized that the general plan amendment represents just one step in a larger approval process. “This is just the next step in the process. There’s steps where we have input as the town and council coming after this,” Eaton said. “And we will obviously take anything that we’ve heard into consideration with that.”
The applicant will need to return to the town with a rezoning application that includes detailed site plans, traffic studies, and development standards. Those plans will undergo additional review by the Planning and Zoning Commission and Town Council before construction can begin.
