Marana's downtown is no longer a lawsuit. In July 2026 the Arizona Supreme Court declined to review the last legal challenge standing between the town and 19 acres of town-owned land east of Marana Main Street and north of Civic Center Drive. That ground is supposed to become an 870,000-square-foot walkable district — restaurants, retail shops, a brewery, a coffee shop, a dance hall and a rodeo arena. With the case closed, developer Scott Stiteler can hire architects and start drawing it. 870,000 sq ft — Reported size of the planned Downtown Marana project. ~19 acres — Town-owned land under the lease, east of Marana Main Street. $84 million — Town reimbursement to the developer for building costs. Spring 2027 — Earliest target for the first businesses to open What the Court Actually Decided The fight was never about whether Marana should have a downtown. It was about who gets to vote on it. After the Town Council approved the lease and development agreement with Marana Urban LLC in December 2025 through Resolution No. 2025-121, a political committee called Arizonans for Responsible Development filed referendum petitions to put the agreement on a ballot. Marana's town clerk rejected them, Pima County Superior Court upheld that rejection, and in a memorandum decision filed June 23, 2026, the Arizona Court of Appeals affirmed — concluding the resolution was "not legislative but administrative and is therefore not referable." The reasoning matters more than the result. The appellate court found the council was implementing land-use parameters Marana had already adopted in a 2008 ordinance, the Rancho Marana West Town Center Specific Plan, rather than setting new policy. Town Manager Terry Rozema had argued exactly that from the start. With the Supreme Court declining review, that reading stands — and it has drawn attention well beyond Pima County from jurisdictions watching their own development agreements. The $84 Million Behind the Petitions The referendum drive was aimed at the deal's economics, not its design. Under the agreement, Marana reimburses Marana Urban an estimated $84 million for the cost of the buildings; the town has projected it takes in a net $96.1 million to $160.9 million in tax revenue across the life of the lease, which runs 75 years with a 25-year renewal option. The division of labor is what makes the structure unusual for a project this size in the Tucson metro: the town builds the public bones — electric, sewer, parking lots, and the brick walkways and archways that frame the district — while Stiteler and Rudy Dabdoub's group builds the buildings and recruits the tenants. That is a different risk profile than a conventional pad-by-pad commercial development, and it is the reason a lease dispute could stall the whole thing. Design First, Then Dirt Nothing gets built this summer. The design phase for the 20 acres is expected to run 12 to 18 months, with Stiteler estimating a groundbreaking in summer or fall 2026 and first businesses possibly opening in spring 2027. Phase 1 sits nearest the Marana Aquatic and Recreation Center and is required to deliver at least 15,000 square feet of commercial space, programmed as a sit-down restaurant, a brewery, a spa, an open outdoor recreation area, a temporary parking lot, and the brick-paved roadway with sidewalks, curbs, lighting and trees. Later phases must add at least 55,000 more square feet across a five-phase, eleven-year buildout. Read those two numbers correctly: they are contractual floors in the lease, not a forecast. The 870,000-square-foot figure describes the full project the architects are now being hired to draw. What It Changes Along Marana Main Street For owners in 85653 and the subdivisions off Marana Road and Sandario Road, the practical shift is that a walkable commercial core has moved from renderings to a design contract with a schedule attached. Marana's town code establishes a Downtown Neighborhood (DN) zone that permits a wide range of building types — houses, courtyard housing, townhouses, duplexes, triplexes, apartment buildings and live-work units — so the land ringing the district can add rooftops as the commercial center fills in, and Stiteler has said he plans separate residential and retail nearby to complement the project. Two things worth keeping in view: an eleven-year buildout means the amenity set arrives in installments, not at once, and the town's own infrastructure work on Civic Center Drive and the surrounding streets will mean construction activity through the early phases. If you are shopping in 85653 this year, the useful question at a showing is not whether the district happens — it is which phase your drive or your walk actually touches, and how long you are willing to wait for it. Quick reference (July 27, 2026): The Arizona Supreme Court declined to review Arizonans for Responsible Development's challenge to the Town of Marana's downtown lease, leaving the Court of Appeals' June 23, 2026 memorandum decision intact and the referendum effort closed. The lease covers roughly 19 acres of town-owned land east of Marana Main Street and north of Civic Center Drive, with Marana Urban LLC — Scott Stiteler and Rudy Dabdoub — as developer. Timelines on a project of this length shift; confirm current status with the Town of Marana before relying on any single date. The Takeaway Marana spent most of 2026 unable to answer the only question buyers actually ask about a project like this: is it really happening. As of late July, the answer is yes, with the caveat that "happening" currently means architects and a 12-to-18-month design phase rather than equipment on site. The court fight also left behind something more durable than a groundbreaking: an appellate ruling, now past review, that a development agreement carrying out an already-adopted specific plan is administrative and cannot be sent to the ballot. For anyone tracking northwest Tucson, that is the line with the longest shelf life. Sources Chamber Business News — "Court decision clears final legal hurdle for Marana hotel project" — chamberbusinessnews.com/2026/07/21/court-decision-clears-final-legal-hurdle-for-marana-hotel-project/ — accessed July 27, 2026 (for the Arizona Supreme Court declining review, the appellate ruling left intact, Resolution No. 2025-121, the roughly 19 acres east of Marana Main Street and north of Civic Center Drive, Town Manager Terry Rozema's administrative-act position, the estimated $84 million developer reimbursement, and the planned restaurants, retail shops, brewery, coffee shop, dance hall and rodeo arena). Chamber Business News — "Appeals court affirms Marana development ruling in referendum challenge" — chamberbusinessnews.com/2026/06/25/appeals-court-affirms-marana-development-ruling-in-referendum-challenge/ — accessed July 27, 2026 (for the memorandum decision filed June 23, 2026, the "not legislative but administrative and is therefore not referable" holding, and Arizonans for Responsible Development as the challenger). Chamber Business News — "Court rejects referenda challenges tied to Marana development projects" — chamberbusinessnews.com/2026/05/11/court-rejects-referenda-challenges-tied-to-marana-development-projects/ — accessed July 27, 2026 (for the Pima County Superior Court ruling upholding the town clerk's rejection of the petitions). Arizona Supreme Court — Arizonans for Responsible Development v. Town of Marana, No. CV-26-0203, filed appendix — azcourts.gov — accessed July 27, 2026 (for the case caption and docket). Arizona Daily Star / Tucson.com — "Downtown Marana project back on track after legal wrangling" — tucson.com — accessed July 27, 2026 (for the 870,000-square-foot project size, architects now able to begin design, the 12-to-18-month design phase, the summer or fall 2026 groundbreaking estimate, the spring 2027 first-business target, and the town's role building electric, sewer, parking lots, brick walkways and archways). Inside Tucson Business / Tucson Local Media — "Marana council OKs downtown lease and development plan" — insidetucsonbusiness.com and tucsonlocalmedia.com — accessed July 27, 2026 (for the December 2025 council approval of the lease with Marana Urban LLC, the 75-year term with a 25-year renewal option, the five-phase eleven-year buildout, the Phase 1 program and 15,000-square-foot minimum, the additional 55,000-square-foot minimum for later phases, the Rancho Marana West Town Center Specific Plan adopted in 2008, and the projected $96.1 million to $160.9 million net tax revenue). Town of Marana Land Development Code, Section 17-4-13 "Downtown neighborhood (DN)" — codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/maranaaz — accessed July 27, 2026 (for the building types permitted in the Downtown Neighborhood zone). Myheraldreview.com — "AZ Supreme Court Clarifies Development Rules Across State" — myheraldreview.com — accessed July 27, 2026 (for the statewide significance of the ruling for other Arizona jurisdictions). All details are current as of July 27, 2026; construction timelines and project programs change, so confirm current status with the Town of Marana before relying on any single figure. This post is for informational purposes only and is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase real estate. Kyle Berglund and Tierra Antigua Realty fully support and comply with the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act.