Arizona Coyotes eye north Mesa gravel pit near Loop 202 as future hockey home

The Arizona Coyotes may be closing in on the location for a new hockey arena after the team announced it sent a letter of intent to buy 41 acres of land in Mesa for $47 million.

Two areas in the city have been floated as prime potential locations: the Johnson-Stewart Materials LLC gravel pit along Alma School Road and Loop 202, which recently emerged as a possible leading contender; and the former Fiesta Mall site at Alma School Road and Southern Avenue. The team has said it is exploring options at six East Valley sites.

In a statement issued Wednesday, the hockey franchise wrote, "In addition to this property in Mesa, the club will continue to explore other potential sites in the east Valley."

The gravel pit includes a cluster of five parcels at the southwest corner of the freeway and Alma School Road. One Arizona land use expert confirmed to The Republic that the Johnson site was the one being eyed by the Coyotes.

Property owners of the site did not respond to inquiries from The Arizona Republic nor did a representative of the Coyotes.

But the parcels would have appeal to the Coyotes franchise. Mesa has earmarked the site as an entertainment district in its general plan. The Coyotes sought to pair their proposed hockey arena in Tempe with an adjoining entertainment district.

Unlike the failed Tempe plans to build on public land, in Mesa, construction of a hockey arena would happen on private property. The process would likely not need to go to voters as long as the city does not use more than $1.5 million to construct or aid in the construction of an entertainment facility, arena or other multipurpose facility, per the city charter.

Elected officials and a city spokesperson in Mesa said they found out about the Coyotes' letter of intent like everyone else, after Arizona Sports radio host John Gambadoro first reported the news on Tuesday.

“Hearing that the Coyotes have taken a step forward in their process to find a location in Mesa or the east Valley is exciting for all those eager to see professional hockey remain in Arizona. Mesa is a desirable location, and we will continue to follow along as they consider options,” Mesa Mayor John Giles said in a prepared statement to The Republic.

The city did not confirm which parcels in Mesa the Coyotes are eyeing or who received the letter of intent. A Mesa spokesperson said city staff members are looking into the details of the potential land purchase. William Jabjiniak, Mesa economic development director, declined comment.

In the months since Tempe voters rejected the plan for a 46-acre former landfill on the banks of Rio Salado, the Coyotes and others frequently have poured cold water on the notion of relocating to Fiesta Mall, which is now being demolished.

Vice Mayor Francisco Heredia, who represents west Mesa where the two sites are located, also was unaware of the potential sale and said he has not had any direct contact with the Coyotes or the team's representatives.

He said he would continue to champion his district as a prime area for developers to bring their business.

“My hope is to get a great redevelopment or development site that we can all be proud of and that has great aspects to leverage activity and entertainment and housing, perhaps,” he said.

In a search of publicly available emails sent to Mesa City Manager Chris Brady, Giles and Heredia, The Arizona Republic did not find any emails with direct correspondence with Coyotes representatives.

On May 31, two weeks after Tempe’s rejection of the Coyotes plan, Brady responded to an email from a land broker pitching the Hawes Crossings site along Loop 202 and Elliot Road as "a perfect home" for the team.

Brady responded, saying the city was not currently engaged in any ongoing discussions with the Coyotes and encouraged the developer to pitch his proposed location. “Good luck,” he wrote.

Coyotes President Xavier Gutierrez said in June that the NHL team is trying to avoid a public vote on the new arena.

In May, Giles told The Arizona Republic he doesn’t see a scenario where a vote would take place because it would be taken care of by private development. Instead, the development, on the Mesa land, would go to the Planning and Zoning Board and the City Council for zoning changes.

Land sales are typically not closed until after a city has zoned the land for the new use.

Here's what to know about the sites most frequently up for discussion.

Johnson-Stewart Materials LLC

Drive eastbound along Loop 202 and a gravel pit can be seen near the Alma School Road exit. The site has been subject to speculation that it could be a location that fits the Coyotes’ needs to be close to the Loop 101 corridor and closer to where the majority of the team’s season ticketholders live.

Since 1995, Johnson-Stewart Materials has operated as an inert landfill and mining reclamation project and provided outdoor storage for construction equipment, tractor-trailers, loaders, bulldozers and similar construction equipment.

The site is on 140 acres and is a county island within Maricopa County jurisdiction. It would need to be annexed into the city to receive water and sewer service, which typically takes about 90 days to process. Annexation is a city-initiated process and the county is not involved, said county spokesperson Fields Moseley.

According to the Maricopa County Assessor's Office, the full 140 acres are zoned for both rural and heavy industrial uses. The city would need to rezone the 41 acres the Coyotes are eyeing to zoning that would allow for an entertainment district.

A general plan amendment likely would be unnecessary because, in its 2014 long-term planning document, the city earmarked the area as a “mixed-use activity district” to allow retail areas and entertainment centers. A rezoning request, annexation petition and a site plan likely all would move through the city process concurrently.

Former Fiesta Mall site

The 80-acre site of the former Fiesta Mall site, while a popular option, may not fit the Coyotes' needs. The NHL franchise wants to build farther north and closer to Loop 101 to be near its lucrative fan base in Scottsdale.

Verde Investments Inc. began demolishing the 1.2-million-square-foot buildings in July to make way for multifamily housing, office space, commercial and open space. In its pre-submittal application with the city, developers were looking to rezone the site from limited commercial zoning to an infill development district.

In the works: Arizona Coyotes confirm attempt to purchase land for new arena in Mesa

Republic reporters Catherine Reagor, Sam Kmack and Corina Vanek contributed to this article.

Reporter Maritza Dominguez covers Mesa and Gilbert and can be reached at maritza.dominguez@arizonarepublic.com or 480-271-0646. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter: @maritzacdom.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Coyotes look at buying 41-acre gravel pit in Mesa for new home