The Master Development Plan Agreement, first signed with OMR investments in 2011, allows developer Perry Homes to build up to 1,256 residential dwellings, including a mix between single-family and multi-family units. Initially, the land was used for farming winter wheat.

Starting this summer, the project will be built on 205.10 acres of land near Hidden Hollow Elementary School. The project is divided up into six phases.

Along with the series of homes, plans indicate the development will include a single large pool, dog park, trailheads with associated parking lots and a large central park with pickleball courts.

As described in Chapter 3 of the Master Development Agreement, the neighborhoods will be neo-traditional, and each home will be individually unique in size, color and architecture. Xeriscape landscaping will also be implemented to avoid over-watering in lots.

Courtesy Eagle Mountain City

Perry Homes proposed an amendment to this agreement last month for the city to dispose of 38.44 acres of land as a way to lower density by prioritizing single-family units. This would add around 20 more units to their development. They also proposed for the road to be slightly shifted northwest, so it is more closely aligned to Pony Express Parkway.

The Planning Commission requested in January that the amendment be denied due to bike trails and migration routes in the area.

According to the Eagle Mountain City website, trails constructed on the property are popular among residents, so much so that several people expressed their concerns about the proposal.

“Everybody’s gotta live somewhere, right? Certainly anytime you build a house, or a building, or a parking lot, anywhere, there’s going to be direct environmental impacts to the area that you’re doing that,” said Todd Black, Eagle Mountain City wildlife biologist.

Black said his major concern is how to prevent negative impacts on the deer population, but the project will most likely not pose any threat.

In regards to public opinion, staff made recommendations to the City Council concerning the amendment on the Eagle Mountain City Ordinance. “Bike trails and their connections shall be preserved and/or rerouted to provide a similar amount of bike trails,” reads the council recommendations.

They also suggest improvements to increase open space, modifying the layout for safer entry and reducing the amount of project development to preserve hillsides on both sides of the planned road.

“The city is committed in doing everything we can to obtain open space for wildlife and outdoor recreation,” Eagle Mountain Mayor Tom Westmoreland said at the public hearing on Feb. 7. “It is a quality of life issue, so it’s important to us.”

Perry Homes re-arranged the amendment, and agreed that the city would be provided with a needed wildlife corridor passage area and mountain bike trail space, granted they receive flexible density transfers. The City Council allows a 10% maximum transfer.

Black will be working with the development team to plan the construction of a tree corridor, bound by eight-foot-tall fencing. Cattle guards will also be installed at grade crossings and a bridge will be constructed over Pony Express Parkway with an underpass for deer.