| Cabins sit along the banks of Scofield Reservoir, near where the new condominium project is set to begin. |
The proposed Scofield Shores development, which sparked an update of Carbon County’s planning codes, is set to be reheard by the planning board Tuesday.
Burke Priest and Justin Jones first appeared before the board Dec. 4, 2007. The men presented a proposal to construct 15 triplexes of affordable vacation homes on approximately six acres near Scofield Reservoir.
“We are envisioning a unique, quaint community with a circular drive and walking paths,” Burke told the boardmembers at the Dec. 4.
While that part of the vision was fairly clear, there were murkier aspects that came under scrutiny forcing Priest and Jones back to the drawing board. The men were tasked with clarifying where the water and sewer services would come from, deciding whether to restrict access to roads and looking at the type of structures that would be installed on the site.
The original design using factory built homes raised concerns from several boardmembers, in particular Mike Milovich who said getting financing for modular structures was an iffy proposition.
In December planning administrators were asked to come up with a proposed amendment to tighten the language concerning condominium density.
The density issue surfaced when boardmember Lynna Topolovec questioned whether the units would meet the required 20,000 square-foot requirement. As it turned out, the requirement was for single family dwellings and a search of the code book revealed no specifics for condominiums.
One reason the code may have lacked the pertinent information is that the county hasn’t had similar developments.
“The county has never had to consider a a condominium project before. This the first one in the county to to come before the commissioners,” said zoning administrator Gayla Williams on Dec. 4.
On Jan. 8, Burke, Priest and planning administrators had completed the assigned tasks.
The board reviewed the amendment to the development code, which specifies that the final density for condominium projects shall be individually considered based on the factors outlined in the section. Density shall not exceed two individual structures per acre, with not more than four individual dwelling units per structure.
Factors for the planning board to consider in recommending density may be water supply, culinary and firefighting.; sewage disposal, individual and central; access, public and private for firefighting, emergency, public officials; topography and soil conditions; location of streams, springs, lakes and fresh water within proposed development area; and other public safety factors
“Williams and I sat down and tried to envision what would fit in Carbon County,” said Dave Levanger, director of planning, on Jan. 8. “We knew it wouldn’t be huge density like you see in Vail, Colorado.”
Priest and Jones came prepared with a new rendering showing the revamped concept. The project would have 16 triplexes, separate covered garages and uncovered parking areas, three hot tub spots, three fire pit areas and a playground and swing set area. The men also resolved the issue of controlling traffic flow into the area.
“The revised conceptual drawing is a fully gated subdivision,” explained Burke.
In addition, Burke said he and Jones talked with several banks to be sure that new structures proposed for the development would meet the requirements for financing.
“We found that they can be fully financed by any bank,” said Burke.
The men came with letters from Scofield Town stating that the municipality would work with developers to provide water and sewer to the project.
In addition, a copy of the town council meeting minutes from Nov. 12, 2007 was presented to the planning board to show that Scofield officials agreed to a “feasible and conditional plan presented by an engineer for the development.”
The county planning board will meet March 4 at 4:30 p.m. at 65 South 100 East in Price.
For additional information about the proposed projects, Carbon County residents may contact Williams at 636-3710.