Dozens of protesters stood in the wind, hail and snow Thursday evening at the City Hall parking lot to voice their opposition to two hotel developments in Francis, chanting and holding aloft signs decrying the proposed 24-hour businesses.“We live in a rural community. Our houses are hundreds of fe et apart, yet they want to put a hotel facility directly adjacent to residential properties,” said Bryan Devore, one of the demonstrators. “That is not the intent of our code. That is not the way we want to live. It’s an exploitation by a developer who understands recent law changes trying to manipulate them to override our city code, and the reality is the misinterpretations do not fit.”Francis City officials have been considering a proposal for a three-story Best Western on the northwest corner of Lambert Lane and S.R. 32, as well as an unfranchised hotel on the southwest corner of S.R. 35 and Spring Hollow Road.Residents have expressed concerns about privacy, traffic and safety since the inception of both projects because the hotels are near residential neighborhoods. They’ve also doubted the economic viability of not just one, but two hotels in the small, rural town.A group of protestors demonstrate outside of the Francis City Hall building on Thursday. Credit: Clayton Steward/Park Record“I think it’s a race to see who can put their hotel in first,” said Lindsay Hancock. “If you look at our current environment right now, you have restaurants that can’t fully staff or stay open. Most of our restaurants here close at 4 p.m. or 5 p.m., and they’re not open every day because they can’t properly staff. These hotels say, ‘Oh, we’ll prioritize hiring locals.’ You’re not going to be able to do that. If our current businesses can’t staff it, it’s not going to happen. That’s my biggest fear. It’s a disaster waiting to happen.”Hancock said she was also nervous about an increase in crime, pointing to similar hotels in Heber City and Roosevelt. She said she’d acquired public information regarding crime statistics tied to the hotels, which included cases of prostitution, sex trafficking and drug use.Amy Henderson, a Francis City resident whose property borders one of the hotels, echoed Hancock’s anxieties, adding that law enforcement agencies in the county would need to drive 20 or 30 minutes to respond to crime in Francis.The group of protesters gather in front of the Francis City Hall building before going in for the council meeting Thursday evening. Credit: Clayton Steward/Park Record“We can’t really control what’s going on in terms of temporary guests, and we’re concerned because these are neighborhoods, these are citizens with small children and elderly,” she said. “It’s just way too close for comfort.”Henderson said she was also worried about her family’s privacy, especially because of the City Council’s decision last summer to allow 45-foot-high buildings.“People can look out of their balconies from their hotel rooms and see us in our backyards,” she said. “Most of us in our neighborhood have hot tubs, so we’re in our swimsuits in a hot tub with all these strangers looking in on us. Unless we get a privacy fence approved, they can still see us, but can we get a privacy fence 45 feet high so no one can see down? Probably not. And would we want one? No.”Both during the protest and Thursday’s City Council meeting, residents expressed their disappointment with city councilors. Hancock said it felt as if city officials were more interested in protecting the rights of developers than the community members they were elected to represent.“Our city plan truly states that we will preserve agriculture, protect dark skies, open spaces and preserve the rural community that we are,” she said. “I don’t understand at all how even one hotel could fit within that. Our code should have been developed better to protect against that, and the fact that it wasn’t, and now citizens are standing up, saying, ‘Don’t approve these,’ and then they’re amending the codes for the developers just makes me angry.”Left: A line of citizens forms at the beginning of the public hearing portion of the Francis City Council meeting on Thursday evening. Right: The members of the Francis City Council listen to public comment about the proposed hotel development. Credit: Clayton Steward/Park RecordBut about an hour after the protest started, the City Council convened to discuss the Best Western hotel’s conditional-use permit — and eventually approved it in a 4-1 vote.“I know there’s sentiment in the community that council doesn’t listen to anybody. That’s all we’re doing is listening,” said City Councilor Clayton Querry. “But there’s a responsibility on this side of the table to follow the law and the code. We have to sit there and figure out what that is.”City Councilor Shana Fryer said the council had a tough job that night. “I don’t want the city to get sued, and I think we’re going to get sued one way or the other,” Fryer added. “We just better pick who’s going to sue us or whatever because I don’t see the decision tonight not coming up with a lawsuit. I’m just trying to watch out for the city, and that means all of you guys (the community), too. It’s not just us.”Before approving the conditional-use permit, however, the City Council modified the agreement and attached new requirements, including a safety and security plan from the developer. The hotel will also need to staff its front desk 24 hours a day, use a security and camera system, undergo sex trafficking training and work with the city engineer to create a plan to mitigate water runoff.Mayor Jeremie Forman also directly addressed residents’ concerns about crime.Mayor Jeremie Forman, center, addresses the room prior to the public comment portion of the meeting. Credit: Clayton Steward/Park Record“Crime occurs everywhere. I can tell you that most of you in this room, your head would spin if you knew the things I know about your neighborhood,” he said. “Francis is not as crime-free as you think it is. It’s a great place to live, but there are things that happen in every community, and that’s out of our control. We can’t control individuals. We don’t know what they may or may not do.”City Councilor Clint Summers was the lone dissenting vote on approving the conditional-use permit.Other portions of the development were approved unanimously, though, including the architectural design, lighting plan and parking. The overall site plan was tabled to give developers time to make adjustments.Harwood Development, the development firm proposing the hotel, estimated construction will not be completed for at least another one and a half to two years.The City Council also addressed an ordinance that would increase the maximum number of allowed stories in a building from three to four, another controversial issue that residents have tied to the other hotel development on S.R. 35 and Spring Hollow Road.Bob Wheaton gives public comment during the Francis City Council meeting on Thursday. Credit: Clayton Steward/Park Record“I don’t see four stories being needed. I think it’s too big,” Querry said. “We obviously have developments that are happy to be here and coming in front of us at three stories or less. If it’s trying to solve a problem, I think it’s solving a problem we don’t have. We can always revisit it later. … When we’re asking for public opinion, especially when it comes to making codes, what do people want to see in the city? It’s pretty overwhelming that most people don’t want four stories. I’m one of them.”Forman said he agreed with Querry and that he saw a benefit in allowing 45-foot buildings with only three stories, namely pointing to architectural designs and the overall appearance of developments within the city center zone.“Something to consider is many of these decisions are not just today. They’re 20, 30 maybe even 100-year type decisions where we’re going to be having these buildings with us for quite some time,” Forman said.The City Council ultimately voted 4-1 to reject the four-story ordinance, with only Fryer in favor of the change.Attendees of the Francis City Council meeting packed the building and several people were in the main entrance overflow area as the main chamber filled up. Credit: Clayton Steward/Park RecordThe post Demonstrators protest proposed Francis hotels; council approves one later appeared first on Park Record. ...read more read less