The Sedona Transportation Master Plan (TMP), initiated in January 2018, includes Strategy 3, which is focused on improving Uptown Sedona parking through expanding existing facilities or constructing new ones. In early 2019, the City launched the Community Focus Area (CFA) Plan, known as "Plan Uptown," to assess parking needs and explore potential solutions. A study by Walter P. Moore, completed in December 2019, evaluated nine potential sites and recommended the North Forest site for a new parking facility due to the following criteria:

• The site is in an area of high demand for employee parking.

• The site provides potential for consolidation of new parking supply.

• The site is located on a hillside which can easily conceal a new parking structure.

• The site is on the opposite side of Uptown from the largest current parking supply, the Municipal Lot, providing a greater distribution of parking.

• The location of the site is on the southern end of Uptown, helping to mitigate the number of vehicles traveling throughout the most congested parts of Uptown.

• The site has good access for vehicular traffic near SR 89A.

• The site has potential for integration with a transit system.

Following this, in February 2020, the City Council approved the development of a three-level parking garage at the Forest Road site. A Request for Qualifications (RFQ) in September 2020 led to the selection of Gabor Lorant Architects, Inc. for the design, with the contract approved in November 2020. In March 2021, the City sought a Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR), resulting in McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. being selected for the construction phase in May 2021. A Community Plan Amendment and Zone Change for the site were approved by the City Council in September 2021. Design development was briefly paused in October 2022 for further study but resumed following a recommendation in November 2023 to proceed with the parking garage project, including a plan for employee parking and integration of guidance technology.