Ever wondered how Wasatch County makes decisions around transportation, development and land use? The General Plan is a good place to start.
It’s a document that guides growth and development in unincorporated Wasatch County. June 15, Wasatch County Council members officially approved the first overhaul of the General Plan in more than two decades.
County Planner Austin Corry said the General Plan is designed with readability, community input, community values and continual review in mind.
“Those policies that you set should be grounded solidly in values that the community wants to protect,” Corry told the County Council on June 15.
It took more than a year to complete each phase of the update, which began in March 2025. That includes resident surveys, water committee meetings, workshops with land use scenarios and public open houses. The General Plan update draft was released this spring for public comment and review.
After 25 years with no update, Corry said the General Plan will be the well-researched roadmap the county can fall back on for planning decisions and guidelines. The General Plan does not change zoning, approve specific developments, regulate incorporated cities or override state or federal law.
“Aside from the fact that the current general plan is 25 years old, this gives us an opportunity to look at land use policy from the context of today and in good governance,” Corry said.
Top highlights from the update include the county’s focus on open space and rural development where it’s appropriate. Utah requires communities to have general plans, but it’s up to the community as to how seriously to plan and act on the document.
Corry said the General Plan update scores high for readability. That was important for Corry, who said he wanted the general public to be able to read and understand the document easily. The new General Plan is 125 pages, which is more than 170 pages shorter than the previous version.
He added that the county’s new roadmap is based on significant community feedback. The team saw more than 1,500 responses from Wasatch County residents through the community sentiment survey (508 responses), public meetings and open houses (1,120 responses) and comments on the draft document ahead of public hearings (47 comments).
“In the planning field, that’s a pretty remarkable response,” Corry said. “If you want any comparison to that, I helped Provo City with a plan. Provo City is much larger than Wasatch County, and they were really happy they got 70 responses at one point.”
Though no public commenters appeared at the General Plan public hearing on June 15, Wasatch County Manager Dustin Grabau said that’s a good thing.
“I think there are a lot of people aware that we are working on this, and while there may not be a lot of people in this room now, I don’t think that speaks to a lack of awareness or lack of support,” Grabau said. “I think, if anything, people would be here if they were concerned about it.”
Corry said he feels the general public is well represented in the General Plan.
“I also want to make it very clear that while some may consider this the end of the General Plan, I consider this the beginning,” Corry said.
The county, Corry said, should be proactively using the General Plan to stay true to common values and keep Wasatch County on the best path forward.