Utah County leaders stall on services for new development

PROVO — A year after approving a more than 600-acre development that could become a new town, the Utah County Commission has stalled on approving a special-service district to fund sewer, roads and fire protection for the area.

Commissioners said they had unresolved issues with Cole Cannon's West Mountain project, but they didn't say what those were and they didn't set a date to revisit the issue.

Commissioner Gary Anderson said he had issues with both the development and the service district.

"They're both tied together," Anderson said, expressing concern that if the development failed, the county could get stuck with it.

Earlier, he said the development was premature and that it was a move away from county policy, which leans toward attaching new developments to existing cities.

"This is creating a city," Anderson said. "I'm not ready to move forward on it."

Initial fire protection service could come from neighboring Payson and the county. Cannon said he is in negotiations with the Strawberry Water Users Association to provide water.

Most roads leading to the area are state roads, Cannon said, arguing against Anderson's concern that the county would need to expand its roads to accommodate the project. The new community has five roads for access, Cannon said, dispelling the concerns of comparing access into Eagle Mountain and Saratoga Springs, which has just one or two roads.

Cannon said he had 1,800 acre feet of water available for a geothermal power plant to support the new community. The development would have "affordable housing" in the $200,000 range.

However, assistant Utah County Recorder Rod Campbell told the commission that the market now is in $150,000-$180,000 starter homes.

Nearby resident Kent Wetzel sad the area has developed into a 5-acre ranchette community for people who like to ride horses and enjoy the open area of the country.

"We would lose a whole culture," Wetzel said.

Real estate broker Helene Carter Thomas of Benjamin said she doubted the development would support "affordable homes" because of the distance to other services families enjoy.

"They couldn't afford the gas to drive back and forth," Thomas said.

Eldon Neeves of Citizens for Rural Utah suggested that commissioners consider a comprehensive plan to preserve rural Utah County that would also help developers.

Cannon, a developer from California with another project in Heber City, noted that all of the opposition comes from outside the boundaries of his hillside project.

e-mail: rodger@desnews.com