The Oakley City Council voted June 10 in favor of a site plan that could bring the town new stores, office space and restaurants.
Local businessman Steve Smith’s plan also promises an expanded post office, Ken’s Kash market and hardware store at the east end of Center Street. He can’t break ground just yet.
“Keep in mind: next step, development agreement,” Mayor Steve Wilmoth said June 10. “I know a lot of that has already started, to some extent. The two attorneys have been going back and forth, and we're working down through some of that. There will be two more public hearings on it.”
The layout for the proposed city center development has evolved substantially from its first iteration in 2023. Originally, Smith envisioned a master planned development to include land on both sides of state Route 32 from Weber Canyon Road down to the post office across Center Street.
By the end of last year, city officials had made it clear they only wanted their development agreement with Smith to include land north of Center Street.
Councilmember Tom Smart predicted the end result will be “spectacular.”
“I just want to thank you, Steve [Smith], and the planning commission,” Smart said. “I know it's been a tough three years, but I think that this is something that we could really be proud of.”
Smith says he and his development team have abandoned plans they had for any land west of state Route 32, including a steakhouse in the old barn on Millrace Road.
But his Deer Meadows Enterprises still owns the old Brooklawn Creamery on the east side of Route 32, at the Cow Alley intersection. That’ll be the steakhouse.
“We're going to have a steakhouse in Oakley,” Smith said. “And it's going to be nicer than anything you can find in Park City.”
Smith says the creamery will join Oakley Diner on the National Park Service’s Register of Historic Places, as he wants to “tip the hat to that history.”
But the steakhouse is a separate project and won’t be part of the development agreement with Oakley City.
