Summit County residents invited to weigh in on Dakota Pacific proposal

Summit County residents will finally have a chance to have their say on a development proposal near the Park City Technology Center after months of anticipation.

The County Council is moving forward on its schedule to renegotiate a potential development agreement with Dakota Pacific Real Estate in Kimball Junction as officials fine-tune the clarification of the final elements of a plan designed to benefit the community in the area and schedule a public hearing. at 5.30pm on Thursday 7 November at the Newpark Hotel.

County Council Chairwoman Malena Stevens said officials will spend about 15 minutes explaining the details of the project. There is a developer’s proposal to build affordable apartments and single-family homes on the land behind the Skullcandy building, as well as a public-private partnership concept that could include an assisted living facility, civic space, retail stores, underground parking, a new transit center. , a public library and public meeting places such as an amphitheater. Feedback will then be collected until the end of the meeting.

This will be the first time the community will be allowed to comment on the proposal in the minutes. The County Council had planned to hold a public hearing earlier this year, but it was regularly postponed due to protracted discussions and numerous counterproposals.

Eventually, a subcommittee was formed in the spring and negotiations moved behind closed doors. Specific elements of the public-private partnership were unveiled last month.

Steve Borup, director of commercial development for Dakota Pacific, met with the County Council on Wednesday to explain some additional details of the proposal, including phased approach to the construction of 750 apartments and the likelihood of government funding being made available.

Borup suggested rotating the creation of units based on a milestone or a specific time period. He said Dakota Pacific can’t commit design funding without first knowing the site plans because the initial 80 to 90 percent of the units basically pay for the project’s initial costs, and that doesn’t make a profit for the land enterprise.

Phased releases will occur during the early stages of construction, not just when development begins or when properties are full. Full occupancy typically takes two and a half to three years after the project is approved.

The first milestone is expected to occur in December if the County Council approves a revised development agreement. At that point, Dakota Pacific will have built up to 170 affordable housing units, with full occupancy expected in 2027.

The next phase could begin when the SR 224 project is added to the Utah Department of Transportation’s State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) roster. Borup estimates this could happen in 2025 if the momentum for collaboration and finding a solution for the corridor continues. He said state officials could be forced to move forward with the project if the housing is built near the transit center, as proposed under the public-private partnership.

If this happens, a further 170 units will be built, with full occupancy forecast between 2027 and 2028.

The same number of units will be greenlit in 2026 and 2027, after the project has been in the STIP stage for one to two years. Full utilization is estimated at around 2028–2029 for the first wave and 2029–2031 for the second.

Development will stop after the first stage if the SR 224 project does not make it into STIP.

“The worst thing that can happen is that we end up with 170 units available, and that’s all that will be produced at that time,” Borup said. He estimates that by phase three, about half of the 250 designated affordable apartments will be built.

When SR 224 is about halfway completed, 70 units could be built. Borup wasn’t sure what year that might happen. There is also a chance to build 90 units of limited-eligible senior housing if a senior housing facility cannot be built in the area. These units will be excluded from the developer’s count.

The county is also considering building its own housing in the area through a public-private partnership, which could increase the total number of units to about 915. No information has been provided on when it might be built.

STIP financing is critical for Dakota Pacific because it eliminates some of its risks, the developer said. Once this happens, there will be confidence that the project will move forward despite any changes in schedule.

County Councilman Roger Armstrong called on Summit County and Dakota Pacific to work together with UDOT to ensure the most significant improvement project moves forward.

District employees prefer expansion of the roadway and construction of an overpass connect the two sides versus other alternatives proposed by the state, such as building a divided diamond interchange to divert traffic.

However, it is unclear whether changes will be made to the design. UDOT staff plans to make a formal presentation this winter, and a final decision could be made next summer.

Public-private partnership could cost Summit County $39 million. The cost of the podium parking lot is estimated at $20 million, the transit center at $11 million and the pedestrian bridge at $4 million. Officials are considering multiple funding sources to pay for the project.

Other costs will be shared with Dakota Pacific, but the County Council wanted to better understand what that cost breakdown looks like and how some of the square footage is used.

Once the details are worked out and public comments are received, the Summit County Council will be able to vote on the Dakota Pacific proposal. This could happen by the end of the year based on current timelines.

A vote to amend the development agreement would only affect the Technology Center land and would not guarantee that development would occur on the Sheldon Richins site as part of a public-private partnership.