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County commissioners tabled a huge new development they like because they're simply not equipped to handle it or a surge of expected similar developments.
"We haven't done this kind of thing so we want to make sure our ducks are in a row," said Commissioner Steve White.
Developer Cole Cannon wants the commission to rezone 180 acres of his 400-acre development from agriculture to high-density residential a mile and a half from Lincoln Beach on the south shore of Utah Lake.
It would be the first step for what the commission calls a "boutique" city that would total 677 homes.
Cannon has pitched the project as a self-sustaining community that would include a water recycling facility, homes powered 50 percent by renewable energy and plenty of green space.
Commissioners want a developer agreement that assures infrastructure will be entirely built before they change any zoning.
The drawback is that the county doesn't have any such agreement written up.
"We need to do some work on this from a broader perspective," said Commissioner Larry Ellertson.
Cannon, aware of the concern, gave commissioners a copy of a 38-page developer agreement he used on a project in Wasatch County.
"They're just proceeding with caution, which is understandable," he said later. "We're certainly beholden to that process and we will to do anything we can."
OTHER PROJECTS
Though the commission tabled the project on Tuesday, they said Utah County residents in unincorporated areas better get used to such proposals.
"In 18 to 20 years, there will be a million people in Utah County. Period," White said. "Our fertility rate is going to cause that."
Cannon said there are five developers in the West Mountain area watching him take the arrows and smooth the way for future subdivisions and towns.
"I'm not the only one. I'm the first one." |
Can't wait
Go Utah Valley.
