A dormant development that sparked controversy when brought before the public in 2009 is back. This time, the developer is proposing 230 units on 300 acres near Old Ranch Road.
The Stone Ridge developers submitted a preliminary outline of the project in the same location in December, 2009. The public hearings that followed were filled with objections by neighboring residents in Mountain Ranch Estates and Trailside Park.
Developers had not moved forward with the project since last November prior to filing a completed application last week, according to Summit County Planner A.C. Caus.
“The plans are still preliminary,” said Caus. “We are still waiting for approval from service providers and the fire district that may have access issues with the development.”
The current plan includes 230 units on 47 buildable acres, according to Caus. The number of workforce housing units is yet to be negotiated, but Caus estimates it will be around 59 units.
“We worked carefully with the county staff to create a plan that can be supported,” said Bruce Baird, land-owner Nadine Gilmore’s lawyer. “It took us a while to move forward because of the economy and because we wanted to address the legitimate concerns raised by the development’s opponents.”
Baird said the new development plan preserves the viewshed and addresses some design issues neighbors had.
“Our main challenge moving forward is neighbors who are hypercritical about development and want this land to be open space at someone else’s expense,” said Baird. “The development will be located in between two existing neighborhoods. And it is less dense, has more trails, open space and is better designed than both of them. Yet they oppose it anyways.”
No decision by the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission or the County Council was made when the development was first proposed two years ago. Baird hopes this time, the project will move through the planning process quickly.
“We are hoping for a work session with the planning commissioners on Oct. 25, a public hearing in November, and have the County Council’s decision by January,” he said.