Congratulations! You are making a difference!
During yesterday’s OVPC (Ogden Valley Planning Committee) meeting both the Planning Dept. staff and the Commission mentioned the numerous e-mails and phone calls they received concerning the rezone request ZP #10-27 for the Blacksmith Shop property in Eden. As a result of your efforts staff recommended a denial or tabling of the petition, and that the petitioner work with them to better utilize the property under current neighborhood commercial zoning and possibly a historical preservation approach. The Commission accepted staff’s recommendation and tabled the rezone request.
A discussion also ensued about the possibility of developing a historical zone for the one or two block area surrounding Eden Park.
That was the good news.
There were 4 Consent and 12 Regular agenda items scheduled for last night. After a 4 hour meeting the Commission only completed review and made recommendations on the 4 consent and first 6 regular agenda items. The remaining 6 items will be heard in a special OVPC meeting scheduled for Thursday, September 13. And, although the published Meeting Agenda did not indicate public input would not be permitted, there was no public input allowed on Sage Glen.
The Commission gave recommendations for: final approval of the Country Gardens Subdivision, preliminary/final approval for Saddleback Range Subdivision, preliminary approval for Basin View Estates Cluster Subdivision, Eden Valley Ranch Cluster Subdivision, Elk Shadow Subdivision, Phase I of Moose Mountain Estates Cluster Subdivision and Sage Glen Cluster Subdivision (all phases). In total 181 home sites were given recommendations for preliminary and/or final approval for development.
After major concerns expressed by some in the audience and a few of the Commissioners, a discussion was held about insufficient County infrastructure present to handle any water sheet flow and flooding from Country Gardens, Eden Valley Ranch or Elk Shadow to the homes and lands around these sites. The developers’ plans do not resolve these problems and homeowners could make matters even worse by building landscape berms. Additionally, these sites have been given Health Dept. approval for septic tanks!
Legal noted that the County Engineer is the final decision on possible water problems. The County Engineer said the impact fees recently passed will help with the cost of addressing some drainage problems in the County. What he failed to mention was that the impact fees will only be collected at the time of a building permit, not at the time of subdivision development. If only lots are sold in a development it may be years before the County has the necessary funds via impact fees to address this problem!
Presentation of Moose Mountain and Sage Glen Cluster Subdivisions redesigns were accepted by the Commission, again without any input allowed from the audience on Sage Glen.
Despite the concerns and the fact that we did not hear a definitive resolution to the water sheeting problems discussed, all of the developments recommended last night will go to the Weber County Commission for approval. No public input is usually allowed at such meetings. So let your voices be heard; get your typing skills sharpened and begin writing to the three County Commissioners on your concerns about these developments!
Our questions to our Commissioners should be, why are we approving any new developments using septic tanks? With the water quality already described as "polluted" and at best "Impaired" in Pineview Reservoir, what are our elected leaders thinking? We may have to live with existing septic tanks, but we certainly don't need any new ones!
We should also demand that the County Engineer give his total assurance that there will be no water sheeting problems
caused by the construction of these new subdivisions if they are approved by the Weber County Commission.
Your VCRD Staff
UPDATE - 8/29/07 2:00 PM Our humble State Representative, Gage Froerer, has sent some Property tax related articles and documents for posting on the Forum. Check back later this evening to review.
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