Belt route for south Utah County in planning stages

SANTAQUIN — A planned I-215-type belt route would cross some of the most productive orchard land and farms in the state and could put an Arabian horse-breeding ranch out of business, the owner says.

City and county highway planners are looking at the possibility of building two interchanges on I-15, one south of Santaquin and another north of Santaquin between that city and Payson.

One of two proposed sites for the northern interchange would split Taylor Ranch in two, owner Rick Taylor said. That interchange would be at about 120000 South; the other would be at 124000 South. Taylor is taking steps to protect his ranch, Santaquin city planner Dennis Marker said.

McMillan Orchards President Robert McMillan said he wasn't aware of a meeting officials held a couple of months ago with some farmers, but he learned of the plans when Santaquin Mayor Jim DeGraffenreid and Marker came to his house.

The proposed route also goes through one of McMillan's orchards. The Mountainland Association of Governments, the lead planning agency, hasn't yet firmed up the route.

"That would impact us quite a bit, but we have to adapt and do what we have to do," McMillan said. "That's progress."

While the belt route may not be built for 50 years, the interchanges that would link it to I-15 may come in the next 15 years. Immediate plans are to preserve the corridor from development — when planners figure out where it will be — to prevent Lehi-like congestion that burst on to state Route 73 when Saratoga Springs and Eagle Mountain sprang up without any advance highway planning.

The Santaquin City Council also is looking at the circulation element of the city's general plan to determine what roads it will need to construct and widen. Typically, developers pay for that as the city develops, rather than burdening taxpayers, Marker said.

Plans to build three manufacturing plants in the Goshen Valley west of Santaquin are in the works, with one groundbreaking tentatively set for the spring, Marker said.

However, "we still don't have a signed deal," Utah County Commissioner Steve White said. "There are other possible projects, but nobody's ready to turn dirt."

Officials are still working on several loose ends, including state tax incentives, White said. They also want to firm up a water delivery system, power, gas and access to the nearby railroad.