With council chambers near capacity, the Draper City Council voted 3-0 to approve development of nearly 20 acres at the intersection of Bangerter Parkway and 13800 South, bordered by 150 East and 300 East. Councilmembers Kathryn Dahlin, Bryn Heather Johnson and Fred Lowry voted. Mike Green and Tasha Lowery were absent. Mayor Troy Walker is required to vote only if there is a tie. 

“We have two missing councilmembers but we still have a quorum,” Walker said as the meeting commenced. 

The Planning Commission forwarded positive recommendation on the development agreements in 4-1 votes at their March 26 meeting. Previously, the Planning Commission forwarded negative recommendations to the council on the rezone of the property, but the council voted to approve rezones from residential to regional commercial contingent on the development agreements. 

Council chambers were near capacity for the public hearing on the Bangerter Crossroads development and the meeting went well past 10 p.m. (Mimi Darley Dutton/City Journals)

The majority 17.88 acres are owned by Tom Lloyd and 1.44 acres are owned by the Openshaws, thus two development agreements were considered separately. When rezones for each property were previously considered, city officials said Lloyd and the Openshaws were involved in litigation with one another. “I know some concern is if we have an access agreement. We’ve become best friends with our neighbors and intend to execute that after this meeting,” Charlie Openshaw said. 

Council chambers were packed with residents of the Brown Farm neighborhood because the development is directly across from them. More than 20 people spoke and nearly all expressed opposition. Walker lives in the Brown Farm neighborhood.

Though not confirmed by Draper City, councilmembers have said a Smith’s Marketplace is the planned “anchor tenant.” Lowery previously said the city is able to keep property taxes low because of sales tax revenue generated by businesses and losing Smith’s would have a negative impact.

David York spoke in opposition to both development agreements. “The development agreement wasn’t made public until today and doesn’t contain binding commitments on enforceable standards. The developer failed to meet your conditions. For people who live next to this project…they will be…cut off from residential neighbors and subjected to constant noise and delivery trucks. Thirteen separate significant code exceptions are being granted to this developer and the city allegedly gets tax revenue but the neighbors will pay in decreasing property values.”

“There is connectivity and everything you decide affects the other. We have gotten together as a neighborhood and met with everyone in city government we could, and the developer, and we have expressed concerns not just for Brown Farm but also adjacent neighborhoods. Draper City is concerned about raising property taxes...Draper City needs to…raise property taxes instead of making one neighborhood pay for it,” Christina Kesler Day said. 

The development agreement includes several right-turn only ingress and egress points meaning traffic will largely be engineered to drive around the perimeter to enter and exit the development. “I find myself on a traffic island that’s going to be a traffic tornado. You’re creating a disaster…I would suggest you do a traffic study that’s not done by the developer. You’re going to find traffic is double (what studies paid for by the developer have indicated). We’ve had several people ask you to do a traffic study before you pass this,” Bob Clark said. 

Rosemary Thomas said the meeting wasn’t properly noticed per city code because there wasn’t a sign along 300 East though there were signs on 13800 South and Bangerter. “At least one sign must be placed on every street the property touches…and the city must maintain the signs. The land use decision must be postponed until the city properly notifies residents,” Thomas said. City staff said a sign had been placed along 300 East and a photo was taken for proof, but staff wasn’t sure why that sign disappeared. 

Christina Smith talks with Brown Farm neighbors about their concerns before the City Council voted to approve development of nearly 20 acres across from their neighborhood. (Mimi Darley Dutton/City Journals)

Much discussion centered around mitigating large delivery trucks on 300 East and camouflaging the development from surrounding neighborhoods with tall, mature trees to be planted at the project outset rather than small saplings. Residents want a Hawk signal installed on 300 East and suggested the street’s intersection with Stokes Avenue, to keep pedestrians including school children safe as they cross with increased traffic from the development. Other discussions centered around the size and height of commercial signs for the development, height and brightness of lights within the development, and the percentage of landscaping.

Matt Smith looked at previous traffic studies conducted in the area by two different companies and discovered what he described as discrepancies in what was submitted to the city by Lloyd’s representative, Duaine Rasmussen. Smith is convinced traffic will be double what was presented to the city. Rasmussen admitted in the previous zoning change hearing the area already had near-failing traffic at times. Smith said, “What concerns me is the city council is voting before additional analysis you said would occur has happened. We shared deficiencies in the Hales Engineering (traffic) study…we requested a peer review…and Mike Barker (City Manager) said an independent peer review would be conducted, but you’re voting…before that happens. To me, approving a development agreement tonight is entirely out of sequence. Growth cannot come at the expense of sound analysis and public safety. This is not about being for or against development. Please complete the traffic study and independent review, then make a decision,” Smith said.

Lowry moved to approve the large development agreement with several conditions, including limiting truck access on 300 East, evaluation of a Hawk signal that, if necessary, the cost of which would be shared by the city and the developer, maximum lighting of 51-foot candles, and landscaping and fence totaling 8 ½ -feet tall as a buffer for nearby neighborhoods. Lowry wanted confirmation of an access agreement signed by both property owners, Openshaws and Lloyd, before the mayor signed the development agreement.

The day following the council’s vote, Draper’s Communications Director Linda Peterson said, “Our engineering division will require the traffic study. The party that will review it has not been determined yet.”

Walker said, “Change is difficult, especially when you’ve lived in an area for a long time. Councilmembers met with residents and asked the developer to make as many concessions as possible. As mayor, you sit through meetings where neighborhoods are impacted. This time, it affects my neighborhood. That’s how it is. I appreciate the city council and the city staff’s effort to ensure that residents were heard and the time they spent working toward the best possible outcome.”

Rasmussen said construction for the anchor tenant will start fall 2027.