A proposal for a mixed-use neighborhood intended for residents 55 and older is moving to the Summit County Council for final approval after the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission unanimously forwarded a positive recommendation on Tuesday.
The 8-acre Silver Creek property is slightly southeast of Silver Creek Village. It is currently zoned as community commercial, but Bridgwater Consulting Group, which is helping develop the project alongside the property’s owners, requested a change to the neighborhood mixed-use zone to accommodate the project’s residential units.
The proposal includes plans for 74 residential units, with 30 of those earmarked as affordable housing. All units would be for sale rather than for rent, and the market rate units would be priced “consistent” with the Summit County and Park City area, according to the Bridgwater Consulting Group.
The consulting firm did not cite a specific price point for the affordable units, but the development team emphasized the community intends to serve residents 55 or older.
The developers said they couldn’t legally restrict who moves in based on an applicant’s age, but the development’s marketing materials would target an older demographic. Bridgwater Consulting Group representatives said the neighborhood will provide older adults with an opportunity to downsize and stay in Summit County as they age.
In addition to housing, the proposal includes 6,300 square feet of commercial space and 5,600 square feet for indoor amenities. The development team is also coordinating with the county and High Valley Transit to install a transit hub to encourage residents to use public transportation, and trail connections would allow pedestrians and bikers to travel to Kimball Junction without a car.
The market rate units would have subterranean parking, while the affordable units would have surface parking. The developers said the difference in parking is due to the site’s layout and that expanding the underground garage would be too expensive and likely inconvenient for the affordable housing residents because of its location.
Developers also plan to build a park and amphitheater on the property, as well as a geothermal system underneath parking lots and walkways to melt snow in the winter and prevent residents from needing to shovel.
County planner Amir Caus said the county already contacted the Utah Department of Transportation about the development’s potential traffic impacts.
“We personally took UDOT on the tour of the entire Basin, but more particularly that entire neighborhood,” Caus said. “They’re taking into consideration resolving the current traffic issues, which we know are great, but also future projects as well, including this project.”
Planning Commissioner Spencer Young praised the developers’ decision to offer for sale affordable housing. Young said he supported a residential development in an area of the county dominated by commercial businesses, which was a concern Planning Commissioner Heather Peteroy raised.
“I actually think bringing a little bit of diversity to that area of the Basin isn’t a bad thing,” Young said. “It’s actually a healthy thing, so I don’t have a problem with that. The focus on mass transportation and active transportation seems really well thought out, and it is going to be helpful to the residents that live there, especially the residents they’re targeting. … I think the positives by far outweigh any negatives that would bring.”
The County Council will decide whether to rezone the property and approve the master plan development document, but a discussion had not been scheduled as of Thursday afternoon. If the County Council supports the project, staff will work with the development team to draft a legally binding development agreement.