Stalled projects: Utah County

Progress on Midtown Village at 320 S. State in Orem is at a standstill. With developer Midtown Joint Venture struggling to get the financing needed to cover the project's costs, Big-D Construction halted work on the development's two towers back in January 2008.

More than a dozen subcontractors and other companies have lawsuits against the developer.

And even though restaurant owners have Pizzeria 712 open for business in the south tower at Midtown Village, the north tower remains in a nearly skeletal state. Construction on a third tower, which was to be situated west of the two existing structures, hasn't even been started.

In Utah County's Summit Ridge, a 2,000-acre development of homes, parks and commercial uses in south Santaquin, only one gasoline station has been built. Located just off I-15, 270 acres is devoted to commercial structures, said Troy Kunz, vice president of Summit Ridge communities.

"We get inquiries (for construction possibilities) all the time," Kunz said.

The site lends itself to all kinds of commercial structures, including big-box stores, office and light industrial. The developer has partnered with The Boyer Co. to move development along, though no other construction at the site is under way.

"I imagine the highway commercial will develop first," Kunz said.

Infrastructure work started in 2004, with home construction following. About 200 homes have been built in the residential area that has about 2,000 lots, he said.

A golf course complete with clubhouse was in the original plans, but those plans were shelved when the city contemplated what the maintenance costs would be, Santaquin City Councilman Martin Green said.

In Salem, a mixed-use townhome project has been under way for a couple of years, city recorder Jeff Nielson said. With four to five townhomes per structure, 10 units are completed and occupied while another building of five units is nearing completion.

In front, a half-dozen commercial pads are readied for construction.

"It's like strip mall," Nielson said.

The project by J&B Homes is off state Route 198 near 500 North on the west side.

When will the project be complete?

"If we knew that we'd be rich," Nielson said.

— Rodger L. Hardy and James Davis