Council Tables C-4 For Further Study

“It’s a great idea to have a Town Hall meeting. I don’t think we’ll see this pass for a long time … if at all.” 

                                                        Ken Van Wagoner, Midway city councilman

Public Speaks Out on Midway’s C-4 Zone

by Robin M Johnson

After three months of study and four public meetings held by the planning commission, Midway’s C-4 zoning legislation went before the city council on Wednesday, May 24 for the first time. Prior to Wednesday night’s public hearing a petition was hand delivered while letters and emails poured into the Midway City office.

In the afternoon Jeff Drury presented the city with a petition against the proposed zone change that had gathered over 400 signatures within two days. Many included comments with their signature. Michael Henke, city planner, counted 61 letters and emails; 38 of the letters and emails were either against or very concerned about the C-4 zone, while nine were for, and 14 were considered multiples because they were submitted by someone who had already sent a previous letter or email.

Public comments in the meeting followed the same general pattern with a ratio of four to one; 26 comments were against the C-4 zone or had serious concerns, two liked the arts center but had concerns about the C-4 zone, one liked the C-4 but had concerns about the residential density, and six were for the C-4 zone.      

    

In a statement Karl Dodge, city councilman, recused himself from the C-4 zone discussion and vote since he owns one of six parcels of property proposed for the C-4 rezone if adopted by the city council. He and his wife have tried to sell the land multiple times over 23 years. The property is currently for sale and under contract. Dodge said he has stated several times publicly that he would recuse himself, and he has been careful not to speak publicly or privately about the proposal. In spite of this he said he has received several hateful letters calling him corrupt. Dodge said he hoped the discussion that followed would be one of civil discourse and then excused himself from the meeting.

In an opening statement Mayor Colleen Bonner said the C-4 zone has been in the works for about two years spurred by storage shed applications in the same area. When the applications were withdrawn the city went through the process of removing them from the C-2 code and investigating possibilities for appropriate development, what would be a good fit, on the south side of Memorial Hill. They sent the matter before the city planner and the planning commission.

Bonner said, “This is the city council’s first time to hear this presentation … a time for us to listen, hear, and understand YOU, and also a time for you to listen, hear, and understand US.”

Henke made essentially the same presentation he did on April 19 to the planning commission. A detailed article appeared in The Wasatch Wave on April 26. At this meeting a few new points were made. First, while Midway has enjoyed a great view of Memorial Hill for many years, this is the last large parcel left in the commercial zone and the city recognizes "something will happen" on this property. Henke outlined in more detail the differences between the current C-2 zone and the proposed C-4 zone emphasizing the C-2 zone uses are more compatible with patrons using a car to access the businesses along Main Street while the C-4 zone uses are more pedestrian friendly allowing customers to park their car and walk from business to business.

Public comments from those in favor of C-4 came from art supporters and citizens.  Mike Glen said he represented the Heber Valley Arts Coalition which supports the C-4 zone.  

Pat Sweeney, President of the Heber Valley Arts Council, said artists in the valley want a place to showcase their work, the arts center will make Heber Valley a must see place. She added, “More due diligence is needed … but a project of this magnitude is where we are headed.”

Mickey Oksner, former planning commission chairman, said he is proud of the general plan revision he and the planning commission worked on last year. He said Midway is a visitors market and “we live in a gold mine”. However, the 30 units per acre should be left off the table.

Courtland Nelson said, “If we don’t go down this road … we will be meeting with you again to raise taxes to buy and preserve that land.”

Public comments from those against C-4 also included citizens who enjoy the arts but did not feel a C-4 zone was the right fit for Midway or this property.

 Zelda Isaacson asked how close development would be to Memorial Hill. She said her brother, Alvah Kohler, served on the commission to preserve Memorial Hill. All of our open space is disappearing. In conclusion she said, “Don’t stuff Midway so full.”

Blake Meyers said from a civil engineering standpoint the density proposed would be a challenge and it is obvious the height proposed would lose the view corridor of Memorial Hill.

Nyle McMullin said Salt Lake county’s southeastern cities height limit is 30 feet, Midvale is 26 feet. Open space requirements in the same cities are 50 percent open space, 50 percent covered including driveways. He said, “If you want a city like that you can have it.” On the other hand cities west of 300 West do not have these limits. He said, “If you want one like west of 300 west, you’re going to get it!”

Carl Gray said, “I am not opposed to C-4, but economically it doesn’t work.” He said City Creek in Salt Lake City brings in $250,000,000 and they have Trax, buses, parking, etc. To fill in Midway’s C-4 it would need to bring in $45,000,000, about one-sixth of City Creek.

Robert Duncan said, “I ran an art gallery on Main Street for twelve years. I am one of those who stuck up a for sale sign. You advertise a village … if you want it, do it on Main Street … a natural destination in a town, grow from the natural village out. This (C-4) isn’t going to bring what you want.”

Suzie Fox said, “There is not enough parking in Midway even on Main Street. Businesses do not come here. I don’t want a River Woods in my home town.”

Holly Bodily said all these concerns were brought before the planning commission and should have been looked at more before sending this on to the city council. The numbers for bringing in tax revenue to replace the transient room tax do not pan out. The proposed moratorium should include mixed use residential. She said, “What’s best for Midway should be decided by the citizens.”

Several citizens asked the council to hold a town meeting on the matter since one hour of public input at two minutes per speaker was not enough time for such an important issue that would completely change the face, look, and feel of Midway. Others asked that the citizens have the opportunity to decide the future of Midway, whether it is a tax issue or a development issue.

Bonner said, “It’s my recommendation we table this for now. We need to work through the stacks of emails and letters as we try to manage the face of Midway. We need to be very careful, … study and digest this.”

Lisa Christian, city councilwoman, suggested the council take their time, schedule work meetings, and study before deciding.

Ken Van Wagoner, city councilman, said, “It’s a great idea to have a Town Hall meeting. I don’t think we’ll see this pass for a long time … if at all.”

Kent Kohler, city councilman, said, “I have a great respect for Memorial Hill. It’s our job to listen to you. We appreciate your input.” As the last good piece of property on Main Street, “we need to get this right.” Regarding height, traffic, and your other concerns, “a lot of concerns are the same as mine.”

Bob Probst said the council heard all concerned citizens. “I agree with a lot said tonight. It hasn’t fallen on deaf ears … there is a great deal of work to do to arrive at the right decision.”

Van Wagoner made a motion to table the matter and study the citizens concerns in letters and emails. It was seconded and the vote was unanimous in favor. 

Note: A series of articles will follow between now and June 14. Each article will focus on one aspect of the city's C-4 proposal as discussed in this meeting by the mayor, the city planner, and the public. The series will start out with an in depth look at density, then height and move on to Pedestrian Friendly vs. Automobile commercial uses, Including the Residential Portion of Mixed Use in the C-2 and C-3 Zones in the Moratorium, etc.