The proposed Harvest Village and Crossings neighborhoods would sit on the west and east sides of U.S. 40, respectively. Combined, they’d bring almost 800 new units of housing, hotels and shopping to the intersection.
On Dec. 3, the council took a close look at draft development agreements, especially the affordable housing requirements. If developers built 10% affordable units, that would be 33 units for Harvest Village and 42 for Crossings.
Heber City Mayor Heidi Franco worried aloud that the units might become housing for seasonal workers, particularly young people from abroad working at the ski resorts on J1 visas. She said that’s not the city’s intention for affordable housing.
“You’re asking for the J1-type housing to come in, and especially in the Harvest Village, you say local employers would be able to buy these blocks of housing,” she said. “To me, it’s meeting ski resort housing needs, but not Heber City needs.”
But Councilmember Scott Phillips said that might not be such a bad thing. He said the advent of Deer Valley’s expanded resort base in Wasatch County should make Heber leaders rethink their role in the region.
“I was skeptical at first, thinking of this development, but when I really think hard about it, this gives Heber City an opportunity to participate in the Deer Valley East Village,” he said.
Phillips argued if affordable housing units north of town were used by resort workers, maybe it would free up homes in downtown Heber for local workers in other industries.
And Councilmember Mike Johnston said serving resort workers and serving Heber locals aren’t mutually exclusive.
“I can think of a dozen people in my neighborhood that are ski resort employees, including my daughter,” he said. “I mean, that’s what people do here in Heber.”
Councilmember Aaron Cheatwood said he saw an opportunity to push the developer to build more affordable housing than the 10% currently in the plans. He said the city shouldn’t just require the minimum.
“When we ask for affordable housing, we don’t want to be giving up additional density every time,” he said. “As an example, if you have 400 [units] in the county, I’d rather end at 420 and get 40 affordable housing, meaning that we give a little density, and they give a little profit.”
During public comment, Heber planning commissioner Tori Broughton agreed.
“I think we have a lot of leverage here to ask for more,” she said. “I would actually ask for 20% of affordable housing. We have a serious need for workforce housing in our valley, and as we continue to develop our downtown, that is only going to grow.”
Affordable housing aside, the high density of the plans was a concern for some leaders, including the mayor. And Councilmember Yvonne Barney said an affordable housing requirement isn’t a good enough reason to approve hundreds of units of new construction.
“In allowing this added density simply because there is the discussion of affordable housing, we are breaking promises,” she said.
Councilmembers agreed they need more time to discuss the number of units they would allow in a potential development agreement. They also want to negotiate more with the developer about the number of affordable units they’ll require.
The council will resume the discussion at its meeting Dec. 17.
