Rusty Webster, developer of the proposed Stonewright hotel at the center of town, is appealing the Francis City Council’s decision to twice deny its architectural and aesthetic components.
Without the architecture approved, he can’t get a building permit.
He appealed the denials in 3rd District Court July 9 but is now asking for a special public meeting by July 18 so the city can reverse course. Failing that, Webster plans to “litigate in earnest,” according to a letter from his attorneys to the council.
“We would love nothing more than to withdraw our suit and save ourselves and the citizens of Francis the time and cost of lengthy land use litigation,” Webster said in a press release. “Courts have been known to award developers tens of millions of dollars in damages for city violations of state land use law and we have no desire to bankrupt Francis City.”
Mayor Jeremie Forman, who did not vote on the architectural plans, declined KPCW’s request for comment July 15 and other councilmembers didn’t respond. No city council meeting was scheduled as of July 15.
The city council has twice voted 3-2 to deny the hotel architecture over a disagreement about what was once a fourth story.
Webster’s initial plan for the Stonewright involved four stories, but city code only allows for three. He says he changed the fourth into an unfinished attic and made aesthetic tweaks.
But a majority of the council says it looks the same and worries that it is still, effectively, a four-story building.
Webster’s demand letter, which he shared with KPCW, states he sought an opinion from the Utah Property Rights Ombudsman, an independent government office tasked with reviewing complaints against other government offices.
Ombudsman opinions are non-binding, but in this case, the office told Webster’s team nothing in state law or Francis city code prohibits unfinished attics.
Both the Stonewright and another planned hotel a mile up the road, a Best Western, have been unpopular among Francis residents.
But Webster’s attorneys say the city council can’t approve or deny projects based on “public clamor.”
They argue the city should instead let the experts who grant or deny building permits double check that the former fourth story is made into an unfinished attic.
Webster says he hasn’t served Francis City yet. The city is already fielding a separate lawsuit from residents over the other hotel, the Best Western.
