Blue Sky, a luxury resort nestled in the mountains near Wanship, requested approval of a 31-lot preliminary subdivision last week, an ask that was granted by the Eastern Summit County Planning Commission in a 3-1 vote. The project is a dramatic decrease in size from its previously proposed — and c ontroversial — expansion.Local businessman Mike Phillips owns the resort with his wife, Barbara. The Phillips previously asked the Eastern Summit County Planning Commission in November to rezone the land northeast of where The Lodge at Blue Sky currently sits from AG-40 to AG-10.Rezoning the area would have increased the allowed density on the property and opened the door for a 639-acre, 76-lot subdivision nicknamed The Farms at Blue Sky. The master planned development would have had homes ranging from 3,200 square feet to 3,800 square feet, as well as a new wastewater treatment plant and amenities.East Side residents implored commissioners to veto the expansion, expressing concerns about infrastructure, traffic and the effect more luxury resort space might have on the rural character of the 400-person Wanship community. They also created and circulated a petition after the meeting to gather signatures from opposing residents in the area.The Planning Commission ultimately decided not to vote on the request last fall. Instead, commissioners asked Phillips to put together a written response to the community’s concerns, saying it would be discussed at a later date before they make a decision.But Phillips withdrew the original Farms at Blue Sky application on Jan. 23. Then, he requested a 31-lot subdivision — a 59% decrease from the first proposal — using already-established bonus density provisions in the Eastern Summit County Development Code.Bonus density provisions allow developers to obtain an increase in density on a property as long as they also commit to preserving a certain amount of open space. In Blue Sky’s case, the 31-lot subdivision would be permitted in return for the guaranteed preservation of approximately 492 acres. The development would sit on the remaining 147 acres.“It does have to be preserved through a deed restriction, which we will create and make sure it’s all up to snuff when the plat gets recorded,” explained Summit County principal planner Jennifer Strader.The largest lots would have around 8 acres of space, and Blue Sky plans on creating pedestrian and horseback-riding trails on the property as well.Roy Williams, a Blue Sky representative who appeared before the Planning Commission last week, said he’d spent considerable time speaking with Wanship residents who opposed the original expansion plans.The top concerns included traffic on Old Lincoln Highway, the effect of possible water runoff issues and wildlife conservation. Williams emphasized the resort’s partnership with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources to tag and monitor elk herds, as well as the resort’s employment of professional engineers to design the layout.Despite Williams’ explanations, though, planning commissioners still had concerns about water runoff and waste management.“Within the conditions of approval for the new subdivision, we are absolutely required to design the road, the gutters, if you will, the catch basins and control the runoff. That’s not something that’s just up to the developer to decide. We’re guided by code, both local and state code, for water management,” Williams responded. “I’m not really understanding the relevance of what’s there now in relationship to what we’re approving this evening.”Blue Sky developers also submitted ideas to change Old Lincoln Highway in order to mitigate traffic congestion. However, the traffic analysis for the project was already accepted by county engineers even without further changes to the road, according to Strader.“Because we reduced the density more than half, we didn’t do another traffic study because back in August, the traffic study for the 72 residential lots indicated that there was no mitigation required and that all the intersections were operating at a level of service that were satisfactory,” Williams explained.The luxury resort agreed to implement roadway improvements on Old Lincoln Highway when the conditional-use permit for Crescent Lodge was approved in February 2024, which Williams said should also help mitigate residents’ traffic concerns for The Farms development.Those improvements include passing zones, white shoulder stripes, new 35 mph signs that are visible as drivers leave the Blue Sky property and speed limit pavement markings.“With the traffic on Old Lincoln Highway, it is a county road. The owners of Blue Sky Ranch aren’t required to police that road,” Williams said. “We obviously encourage guests and employees to obey the traffic laws, but the actual enforcement of those traffic laws needs to be by county law enforcement.”A handful of residents spoke during a public hearing regarding the new proposal. They still weren’t convinced that the water and traffic problems had been solved, a sentiment shared by planning commissioners Marion Wheaton and David Darcey.“We discussed the traffic calming study that was done back in June of 2021. We talked about speeding, and a number of those items that were in that traffic calming study were implemented, but it still feels like the striping and the painting that you’re volunteering to do is woefully inadequate,” Darcey said.The Planning Commission’s traffic concerns received pushback from Helen Strachan, a deputy attorney on the county’s legal team.“What I’m struggling with is that the county engineer has said that it meets the requirements under our code, and I don’t see any evidence, other than conjecture, in the record that says something differently,” Strachan said. “I understand public comment about traffic, but we don’t have any scientific evidence other than a traffic study that says that it complies with the code and that no further mitigation is needed. I don’t know where else we go from there.”Strader and Strachan both emphasized the Planning Commission is legally required to approve the development if it meets the necessary standards in the application because of a recent change in state law. The law also forces the Planning Commission to hold only one public hearing on the issue.“It’s like every subdivision application. You process a lot of subdivision applications that meet base zoning and you look at the criteria of the code and measure the application against those standards,” Strachan said. “This is no different than any other subdivision application that you approve.”Wheaton made a motion to approve the subdivision, which passed in a 3-1 vote. Wheaton, Darcey and Planning Commissioner Bridget Hayes voted in favor of the motion while Planning Commissioner Bill Wilde voted against it.The post Eastern Planning Commission approves new Blue Sky subdivision appeared first on Park Record. ...read more read less