If someone is going to start a new town in Utah County, Commissioner Steve White prefers it turn out a little more like Saratoga Springs than Eagle Mountain.

The former was planned with the help of the county government while the latter was a developer-based model that, White says, resulted in the some of the highest phone, power, natural gas and electricity bills. A new proposal for a 677-lot development near Lincoln Beach on the south end of Utah Lake has their attention.

"We have a responsibility to those future homeowners," White said.

The plan

Cole Cannon, who is developing West Lake Estates, took his plan to the county commission after the planning commission recently turned him down 4-2. On Tuesday, county commissioners were mostly positive about the proposal.

Cannon's specific request is to change the zoning on 180 acres -- where a portion of the fledgling town would be located -- from agriculture to high-density residential. It would be the first step in the development of a self-sustaining community built out by 2020 that would include a water recycling facility, homes powered 50 percent by renewable energy, green space and some "affordable housing" that would cost somewhere south of $200,000.

"By affordable we by no means mean cheap," he said of the quality. The average home price of the development is expected to be $400,000.

The energy requirement would be enforced through a homeowner's agreement in which personal wind turbines would be installed or "green" credits purchased ensuring power comes from such sources as hydroelectric or other wind farms.

What's the problem?

With promises of such a utopia, why get turned down by the planning commission?

• The property only has one working well at the moment, not enough to service the homes. Water is the No. 1 requirement of any new development on county land. Cannon said more wells will be developed.

• Though it's only about 15 minutes from the Provo Towne Centre mall, there is concern that getting emergency services to the site would be an expensive endeavor.

• Another priority of the county's planning division is to preserve agriculture. While the proposed property isn't particularly suited to farming or grazing, such a large development could disturb surrounding areas that are used for agriculture.

• Normal county residential density is one home per 5 acres. The zoning being requested would allow a density as high as six housing units per acre, though Cannon said the average lot size would be three-fifths of an acre.

A positive response

The planning commission may have turned Cannon down, but county commissioners were clearly intrigued with the idea.

"You're asking us to change our basic philosophy, and I think it's time to do that," said Commissioner Gary Anderson. "This may be the project."

White wants to see more affordable housing in the county that doesn't consist of multi-unit dwellings. He said after the meeting that with many households living on two incomes, $200,000 is affordable housing. At the same time, he doesn't want a repeat of Eagle Mountain's early years.

"We just want to make sure that the developer has some golden handcuffs on," he said. "You're not hearing a lot of objection up here to the concept."

The commission plans to have the proposal on their Tuesday agenda where they can take a range of actions, from approval to rejection to "anything in the middle."