The Harvest Village development would add hundreds of condos and hotel rooms just north of the current Heber City limits. It would also build amenities including a sled hill, an ice-skating ribbon, a plaza and new trails. The developer has applied to annex the property into Heber City.
But constructing anything at that intersection is risky right now. The Heber Valley is still waiting for the Utah Department of Transportation to decide where it will build a much-needed bypass, and two of the possible routes go right through the land at the intersection of U.S. 40 and River Road.
Heber leaders have to figure out how to deal with the dilemma: should they move forward and risk the development getting in UDOT’s way? Or should they ask the developer to wait and risk losing the development?
Heber City attorney Jeremy Cook said the lack of direction from UDOT makes it difficult for the city to chart the best path forward. If the city lets the developer start building now, Cook thinks it would effectively rule out some bypass route options, depending on how long it takes UDOT to make a decision.
“To be blunt, in my opinion, the further they get along in this project, the less likely it is UDOT’s going to consider that alternative, and certainly the less likely it is that they would choose that alternative,” he said. “The reality of it is – both from a financial standpoint but probably more from a political standpoint – UDOT’s not going to go in and rip down hundreds of brand-new townhomes and a brand-new hotel.”
In the spring, the regional project manager for UDOT, Craig Hancock, estimated a route announcement by the end of 2024. On Monday, he told KPCW that’s no longer going to happen.
Heber City leaders have said they feel torn about how to handle the issue.
Council member Mike Johnston said even though he wants to approve the annexation, he doesn’t want to do anything that would delay the bypass.
“This is the most important thing that’s happening in this valley in the next 20-30 years,” he said.
He says while Heber leaders want to cooperate with UDOT, they’ve struggled with a lack of clear communication about the project’s timeline and how Heber Valley leaders can facilitate the process.
“We want to be partners, and we have not felt like we have been heard or been partners as Heber City,” he said. “We have tried not to insert ourselves so that UDOT could do their work, and it hasn’t seemed to work.”
Discussion of how to balance the Harvest Village application with the future bypass is back on the work agenda for the Heber City Council meeting Tuesday, Sept. 17. One possibility is to agree on a date when the city will stop waiting for UDOT and start issuing building permits.
No decisions will be made at Tuesday's meeting. More information about the plans is available on Heber City's website.
