Dear Heber City Residents,
As the year draws to a close, I’ve been reflecting on the past 12 months. I find myself asking, “Have we done any good?” Luckily, the answer is a resounding YES!
There is so much good that has happened in the last year:
The new Smith’s Marketplace was completed and opened. It’s a great feeling to walk the aisles of the store and see neighbors and friends finding what they need here in Heber City and possibly making less trips to Orem or Park City when needing to shop. The increase in property tax from this project and the increase in sales tax both are a huge benefit to Heber City and Wasatch County Residents. I was thrilled that the developers of Smith’s agreed to a smaller sign, as it was going to be much larger in the original plans.
Hand in hand with this project, Heritage Farms Parkway was completed and opened. I think this is one of the best roads in the city! The Parkway has easy access from the east side of town and the two roundabouts allow for free flowing traffic north east of town. This is keeping traffic off of Main Street. There will be a roundabout at the termination of this road with Center Street in the not so distant future. The Temple will continue to be developed and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints have an MOU that they will build that roundabout as part of their construction process to better provide for traffic on that intersection. Thank you to Red Ledges for your participation in the construction of Heritage Farms Parkway, and we are looking forward to the completion of the 15 acre park and open space that borders the road in the coming months. Wonderful amenities and critical infrastructure keep Heber a beautiful place to live!
This past year, we also successfully completed phase 1B of the downtown water, sewer and pressurized irrigation project with 500 S being totally rebuilt. This is a herculean effort, as we are replacing all this critical infrastructure so that service of water, sewer and pressurized irrigation continues to be at its best for years to come.
This summer, the water feature opened at City Hall with a wonderful celebration of the history and future of the valley! There were many days this summer where I would come to City Hall and see families enjoying this new amenity, as well as the grassy areas and shade from the huge pine trees on the property. Developing places we can gather as a community is critical as we continue into the future!
Along with these many excellent projects that have been completed, we have much to look forward to in the new year, as well. The cemetery administration building and columbarium is well underway and should be completed sometime in 2025. The new bandstand mainstage that is at the Main Street Park and the southernly bookend of C Street is nearly completed ready to welcome the first concerts this next summer.
So many wonderful successes this year. Of course, there were hardships, setbacks, budget overruns, etc., but we have been able to meet and address every one of those issues together in our combined efforts. 2024 really is a year for the books!
The one major disappointment for me the past 12 months was that we were not able to come to an agreement yet on the CRA (Community Redevelopment Agency) with the School District and the County. In Utah, you are not allowed to arbitrarily raise taxes. For example, if Wasatch county was collecting $40 Million in taxes between 40,000 residents and 1,000 businesses, the only way to increase that $40 Million number is through truth in taxation, which is a public process to increase the percentage of the property values they collect. The taxable amount remains the same in a world where there is no growth. Now if someone’s property suddenly gains value over someone else’s, the property that gained value would need to pay more of the $40 Million total than the property that stayed the same.
This is why property valuations are so important. If all properties are going up in value at about the same rate, then taxes stay the same. If some properties increase in value disproportionately, they end up carrying more of that burden. The only other way to increase taxes is through growth of new development. If you now have 50,000 residents and the new properties are paying $10 million more in taxes based on their valuations, that increases the overall amount of taxes that can be collected benefiting the total population as we can pay for things faster. Adding to that example, when Wasatch High School was new, there was a 30 year bond issued to be paid by property taxes. Due to the growth in the valley, that school will be paid for much earlier than anticipated.
On your tax statement, there is a line item 21 that is Wasatch School District Bond. This will go to $0 once that bond is paid. Bonding is the right way to pay for a specific taxed project like a school because once it’s paid for the expense falls off. Now, I do not claim to be a tax expert but this all relates to the CRA. Smith’s Marketplace is the perfect example to use. Now that Smith’s has been completed (and I do not know the exact numbers so this is for illustrative purposes only) let’s say the property taxes went from $2,000 a year as agricultural land to where the City, County and School District will collect $700,000 Per year. Heber City receives 8% of that amount or approximately $56,000. The County receives approximately 10% or $70,000 and the School District receives $574,000. With the CRA, we are trying to split this increase of tax revenue from new growth over a small area of the downtown blocks of Heber that are ready for revitalization.
The map goes from the Smith’s property all the way down Main Street including 1 ½ blocks east and west of Main Street as well as properties at the intersection of 189 and near the airport. It locks in the current value of those properties for tax reasons and then as properties are redeveloped the City, County and School District would share in the increase of taxable revenue once the property is redeveloped. In the case of Smith’s, if the City was in agreement with the County and School District to share in the increase tax value known as the increment with 25% going to the entities and 75% coming back to the city, the School District would still receive an increase of $143,500 and the county would still receive an increase of $17,500 and then Heber City could take their share if the increment $483,000 to invest in community infrastructure. This would be things like C Street, sidewalks, burying power lines, park improvements, building a parking structure downtown, to buy the Fire Station, Heber Light and Power building, County Administration building to help shape what we want as a downtown for the next 100 years. I feel this is a very big deal for the residents of Heber City.
We were not able to come to an agreement with the county or the school district in 2024 but it is not the end of the world. We can still come to an agreement in 2025 and beyond as we are all trying to build a community we are proud of and where we want to continue to live and thrive. The important thing for citizens to realize is that the CRA does not increase anyone’s taxes and only has an impact on the area highlighted on the map. I keep hearing that we want a functional downtown, a walkable downtown, a community “living room”, if you will, and we can get there with the CRA.
The last few meetings have had some topics that obviously people are passionate about. In the November 5th meeting, there was an annexation petition brought forward by the Provost Family. Their property is near the new high school and they came to request annexation into the city with a concept to build multi-family type housing. This was not for annexation approval, but was only the petition to start the annexation process. This was a tricky one as it does sit in the Heber City Annexation Plan Area, but what they were bringing forward was a higher density project and that part of the annexation area is planned for larger lots and less density. I did understand the desire to annex now, as the high school is being built, because it would give the Provost Family access to sewer through the school property and connections as that infrastructure is now going in. That is why I voted yes for this petition. I, too, agree with the rest of the council that the density will need to be less per our current plan, but it would make sense next to the school to have a little higher density to provide housing for families and teachers that we desperately need. It was a tough vote, as I was the only supporter, mainly for the sewer line connection that is going to be much more costly later.
UDOT has been visiting us once a month and giving us an update on the EIS. It looks like their studies are showing a raised 4-lane highway with few access points is going to be the most viable option for the bypass road. They are looking to complete the study sometime in 2025 and bring the recommended routes to the public in 2026. There are going to be open houses and local involvement all along the way as this is the single largest question for all of the residents I speak to who ask me, “When is the bypass coming?” It is something we need incorporated into the long term plan of the valley.
This last meeting, there were two real estate agents that brought forward the idea to annex property east of Mill Road to allow for higher densities than the 1 home per acre that is currently approved. Mill Road is the agreed upon boundary of the city with the county and I am not willing to cross that. I think it would be wonderful to see some developments near the schools planned like Cobblestone with smaller lots and open space and that are very pleasant places to live and where families can gather. High density in that area is not part of any master plan. The council had no interest in even discussing the prospect as we respect the county and our agreements with them especially east of Mill Road.
The Harvest Village/Crossings annexation north of town is causing some controversy and contention. We have been discussing this annexation for over 4 years. The area of HWY 40 and River Road/HWY 32 has been a point of contention for some time. The county approved density in that area and labeled it as a “town center” years ago in the county master plan. If you do the math, the county had approved 729.93 ERUs without an affordable housing requirement of units that would be deed restricted in perpetuity. The current agreement is to allow 715 market rate ERUs and that is split between residential and commercial. However, we also are seeking to approve 75 affordable housing ERUs, 25% which must be built onsite and 75% that can be built elsewhere, or they can pay a fee in lieu, $35,000 per ERU for the Crossings and $60,000 per ERU for the Harvest Village.
These funds will go toward deed restricted housing which is so sorely needed. NVOZ stands for North Village Overlay Zone and there are different rules that apply to construction under the NVOZ than the county or Heber City. The developers are going to abide by the existing zoning of the NVOZ on densities and project design. The Crossings is going to build a very expensive key road that is the final piece to connect Valley Hills Boulevard all the way to HWY 32. In the next few years, there are going to be two or three more lights between Heber and River Road slowing traffic as well. It will be wonderful to have an alternative route. One of the aspects of this that I’m most excited about are the preservation fees that will be collected to go to buying land in the North Fields to preserve as open space. With 715 ERUs, that will be the equivalent of $1,787,500 of preservation fees for land purchases for preservation. If we want it to be preserved, we really need to buy it or place it in conservation easements. There are many needs that this development will help us to achieve over the next 20 years. This is one of the more strategic corners in the valley and I am sure eventually there will be something built on the northeast as well. Because of private property rights, the question is not should it happen but how best can it happen to protect the rural character of the valley. We must know as a community that if we want open space to remain that way forever, we need to purchase it - there is no other way. So, we voted 3 to 2 last Tuesday to approve the annexation of the properties including almost 100 acres dependent on the approval of the Master Development Agreements which will come after more deliberation and communication in the coming months.
These developers have made great efforts to do all that the city is asking them to do, even working with council members that have requested changes to the agreement who have stated they will never vote for it. The only way to make a lasting and meaningful process is to negotiate in good faith and understanding that the city has goals for things they would like from the annexation and the developers also have goals. The point where no one is completely happy yet still working together makes for a good negotiation. Each side must give more than they wanted to in order to arrive at a better place than we were before. With these developments that has been 4 years in the making.
What do we have to look forward to in 2025? We are still working on the downtown water, sewer and pressurized irrigation entering Phase 1C and the final phase of this massive project. Thank you to all citizens affected by the construction and to the staff for all of their work to get it done. Heber City will welcome the opening of the second golf course within city limits this summer as the Tiger Woods designed golf course at Marcella Skyline is scheduled to open for play. Looking forward to coming to an agreement with the county and the school district on the pending CRA so that we can have a downtown with outdoor dining and opportunities as a community to gather.
Our biggest challenge for the next year is to continue to work with UDOT on a finalized route and plan for the bypass road on the west side of Heber City. This is critical to our success moving forward. We all have experienced the traffic coming and going from town and it is clear that infrastructure is our biggest problem at this time. Let’s focus on what is most important so that we can meet the needs of those who already live here!
2025 is also an election year and I would encourage good people to run for office. This is not an easy job and there is a lot of work to do and we need good people in these positions to plan wisely for the growth that is coming. Heber City is no longer a secret and we need to wisely keep moving into the future. Thank you, neighbors, for an excellent year! Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Best,
D. Scott Phillips
Comments