“Way too much.”
That was Wasatch County Councilor Kendall Crittenden’s assessment of Philo Development’s proposal to construct 862 single-family dwellings and two “resort hotels” across more than 4,000 acres of land owned by the Utah Trust Lands Administration and the Christensen family.
His sentiment was echoed by the remainder of the County Council.
Greg Whitehead of Philo Development raised the discussion of developing 720 acres of Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) land and just about 3,600 acres owned by the Christensen family with the Wasatch County Council last week. Whitehead had a simple goal: confirm the developer is on the right track.
Turns out, county councilors don’t think so.
“In my opinion, if 500 (units) is the max, I could feel comfortable voting for it,” Councilor Spencer Park said. “And that’s even really pushing my threshold.”
Crittenden agreed, saying 800-plus units is too much density. He said “that’s a non-starter” for him.
Whitehead explained that Philo Development’s goal is to create a project that will allow individuals to “appreciate the land.” After all, 4,000 acres of property is a lot of land to cover. So, Whitehead said the goal is to create as much open space as possible.
“And so we want to be excellent stewards of this land, and we want to be excellent community members in the Heber Valley,” Whitehead said. “Our driving force is not financial gain; our driving force, yes, we are developers, but we want to do something that everyone can be proud of.”
Just about 37% of the development, or 1,500 acres of land, would be dedicated to open space and will include hiking trails with access to the main roads. That’s all open for the public, Whitehead said. Though there may eventually be a fee to even out the costs of maintaining that open space.
“We’re not passing anything on to taxpayers,” Whitehead said.
On the development side, Whitehead said developer-led surveys have shown that most individuals looking to buy in the area will be purchasing second homes. Whitehead saw that as a positive for reducing traffic — especially if there are services developed like a gas station and grocery store.
“If we add some general service up there, we can prevent a handful of trips down into the main valley,” Whitehead said.
Some county councilors, including Park and Colleen Bonner, objected to the possibility of a small grocery store, local medical services and a dentist. Whitehead suggested these services would keep the community from traveling for necessities, but county councilors said those services won’t be necessary if there are only part-time residents.
“That’s not our job to fix that problem,” Bonner said.
When it comes to the “resort” properties Whitehead suggested, Philo Development apparently is straying away from traditional hotels. According to Whitehead, they would be “non-traditional” in nature. Cabins and yurts are options the developer is leaning toward to “fit in with the outdoors,” he said.
Because the Christensen acreage and state lands are being discussed together, Whitehead broke it down to a total of 862 units overall, with two of the resort-like properties. But he stressed that this project will not happen quickly.
“This is a lot of land. So, this is like a 25, 30-year-plus project. This is not happening overnight,” Whitehead said. “We have lots of time to plan with impact fees and traffic. We have time to research and do it right.”
But, as County Councilor Luke Searle said, officials are not as interested in lumping state lands in with Christensen lands.
“I think what you’re getting from this council is that we’re not super interested in viewing Christensen land the same way as the SITLA lands,” Searle said.
He added that what the County Council may approve for state lands is not equal to what they would approve for other properties. Searle said 5 acres per lot, as proposed, may work on one end but not the other. At most, the County Council said there should be 360 units or fewer on Christensen lands, no matter if its single-family homes or “resort-style” dwellings.
“I think maybe we’re okay with the SITLA numbers, but we don’t necessarily want to extend those same numbers, and that’s what you’ve presented here across the board,” Bonner said. “For me, the direction would be to come back.”
Philo Development will now continue Wasatch Highlands development discussions with the County Council in upcoming meetings this fall.