The Summit County council adopted a temporary ordinance April 9 allowing developers such as Dakota Pacific Real Estate to apply for what’s called an administrative development agreement.
That means Snyderville Basin developers can strike a deal that doesn’t require a vote of the Summit County Council, only the county manager, and can’t be overturned by voters.
But the new process, which will be an option for six months, is really meant for one developer: Dakota Pacific.
“If we didn't pass this ordinance today, and if an application came in and we didn't have this process available, what would happen at that point?” Councilmember Megan McKenna asked Community Development Director Peter Barnes April 9.
“Then we're going to be in some form of legal jeopardy, and I don't want that to be the case,” he said.
Barnes was referring to a new state law, Senate Bill 26, that lawmakers intended to greenlight Dakota Pacific’s controversial development in Kimball Junction along Tech Center Drive.
The company can now apply for a development similar to the one the county approved in December.
Residents then sought to overturn it in a referendum. It’s unclear if the issue will make the November ballot.
Under SB26, Dakota Pacific can apply for a development agreement that residents wouldn’t be able to overturn.
The council’s decision complying with SB26 lets any developer apply for that kind of agreement too, except in eastern Summit County.
But Councilmember Chris Robinson said the county doesn’t have to let anybody but Dakota Pacific go through with it.
“The ordinance itself says that it's not obligatory … to accept such an application, but in the case of Dakota Pacific, the state legislature has removed that discretion,” he said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour.”
“Discretion” will be the key word going forward. It refers to officials’ ability to tell developers “yes” or “no.”
Should Dakota Pacific file its building application, County Manager Shayne Scott has the discretion to deny it only if it doesn’t comply with SB26 and preexisting county building requirements.
Residents can appeal the county manager’s decision to the county council. County civil attorney Dave Thomas said that would be hard for the council to overturn.
“You sit in a quasi-judicial setting — not as legislators — which means your discretion is very much limited to whether or not the county manager ‘checked the boxes’ correctly,” Thomas told the council.
The last time legislators passed a law to let Dakota Pacific build, Summit County sued both of them.
The county and developer paused their legal battle in December 2023 when Utah lawmakers asked them to reach an agreement, which they did one year later.
Dakota Pacific now has six months to apply for a new agreement.
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