Dry Creek Village Concept

As a Lehi resident who lives on 1100 W and 1400 S, I see and experience the problematic traffic daily. Many Sundays, parking overflows into our neighborhood and traffic backs up from Pioneer Crossing completely blocking access in or out of 1400 S. When school is in session, traffic is horrible and, at times, downright dangerous. Adding traffic and families to the already full elementary school, is just irresponsible and unwanted by residents affected by the high traffic levels and tiny roads. It truly is a matter of time before a child is killed on there way to school, and we just get to hope it isn’t our children. Don’t even get me started on the church shutting down access to their empty parking lot for Dry Creek students, as it was the only available safe pick up/drop-off zone on this road. Please, do not approve this housing complex at this particular spot. I understand the need for housing is dire, but this development will create increased traffic issues and classroom sizes in the area.

We are way to packed on this side and traffic is out of control!!! Why?? Stop building!!! We do not need anymore big community. I loved Lehi for the country feel and know it’s a city and no more farm land… This is truly depressing and makes me sick all the homes they keep adding. Just stop…….not to mention right by a elementary school???? We cannot handle any more in this area!!!! Also to add the schools are too packed and kids are not getting the schooling they need.. crime is jumping up and so are accidents.

There are multiple issues with this. First and foremost is traffic. 2100 is a NIGHTMARE!!! It takes a good 20 to 30 minutes to travel 1/4 to a 1/2 mile. You have the NEW HOSPITAL opening and lots of new developments already causing chaos. FIX IT FIRST! Second, I am sick and tired of you telling us you have to build first, before you can fix it. No. If the issue is fixing the housing crisis, its simple. Pass a city ordinance that requires buyers of single family homes and condos to be residents (NOT foreign investors) and NOT corporations. What that means is that you can ONLY buy a single family residence in Lehi IF you are a RESIDENT and a PERSON that will live in the property. I know that sucks. But the truth is that it would cause prices to drop (because residents wouldn't be fighting against banks and corporations to purchase homes as investment vehicles). It would cause the market to adjust. That means prices would DROP. It sucks, but if you REALLY want to fix the pricing issue, that is the way to do it. Not building more, expensive homes, that we don't even have the infrastructure (roads, water, and so forth) to support. The reason the prices are outrageous is because residents who need homes are competing against investors (foreign and domestic) to purchases homes. It was great. Because it kept prices adjust up. We all love to get good returns. But its time to admit that its hurting new home buyers.

This really needs more planning before you approve. You can’t even get onto 1100 W from 1400 S on Sundays. and when school is in session there are cars everywhere. it’s already too congested. Pioneer is a joke coming home at 5pm. Turning off pioneer heading south is also difficult with the Maverick and storage units.

We have an affordable housing crisis here in Lehi. Will these homes actually be affordable or will they be half a million dollar starter homes/condos? I have 3 adult children that can’t afford to live within an hour driving distance from Lehi. Who is going to pay for the infrastructure to accommodate all the traffic - it is already a problem. The lack of sidewalks in this area is just asking for a tragedy - if a child gets hit after we have begged for sidewalks, that will be on you Lehi City. How about water? We almost ran out of water last summer. This will definitely overwhelm our schools. It is comical that Lehi City just thinks these issues will magically solve themselves. This is a big fat no for me.

I am not opposed to developing this area to support housing. I understand there is a great demand for housing caused by a low supply. I have several concerns with this particular development described in the concept. My first concern is with traffic congestion. The average household in Utah has 2.5 vehicles according to the Census Bureau. That means adding 500 units off 1100 West will potentially add 1250 new vehicles. 1100 West is not fit to handle that level of traffic. I understand the developer is going to offer traffic calming measures to their development, but what does that mean for 1100 West? The road needs to be expanded to two lanes both ways to support traffic. Who pays for that? The developer or local taxpayers? This burden should be placed on the developer to pay for expanding the road. Will Lehi be offering public transportation in this area to help reduce traffic? How will the developer reduce the disruption that will be caused by the construction of this development? Blocking off 1100 West to move their equipment in and out of there is not the answer. Furthermore, a traffic light should be placed near the entrance of Dry Creek Elementary as a safety measure to protect the large number of children that walk to school. Will the developer pay for that? Speaking of Dry Creek Elementary, the school is crowded as it is, but adding high-density housing in this area will create a greater strain on the school. Dry Creek Elementary lacks adequate facilities to manage additional student growth. What input does Alpine School District have in this development and how will it impact schools in the area? Additionally, does Lehi have the resources to support high-density housing? Water usage ranges between 50 to 400 gallons of water per day, it could be more. With this new development that could mean 9 million to 73 million gallons of water per year. What actions are being taken to ensure there are adequate resources to support this development? What is the developer’s plan to align itself with Lehi’s push to conserve water? We do not need another developer promising affordable homes, which they most certainly will not be, and delivering shoddy homes so they can fill their pockets with money.
Ryan M

The lack of planning by Lehi City Leadership is appalling. Either they're asleep at the wheel or they hate Lehi residents. Look at this one area and tell me the city has any clue what they're doing.

Please note: This area is almost all "Very Low Residential Agricultural" zoning. The road is narrow and unimproved. There are no sidewalks. There are ditches on both sides of the street. The city knows this is dangerous, admitted this is dangerous and said they don't care about the safety of the children in the area - they'll possibly address it in the future. The city said kids are resilient, if they get pushed in a ditch they might get a little wet, but they'll get out. They're more worried about their own trucks falling into the ditches. See the Lehi City Planning Commission meeting on Oct 27, 2022 for exact quotes from Lehi City employees. When the city was pressed on whether they had considered the impact to the community and whether they should improve the road they said..."No, but we probably should with a lot more cars." That tells you everything you need to know.

Within 1 block we have:

- On the North end of the block we have a very popular Maverick gas station and a large Self Storage facility with a left turn only that has caused several major accidents on Pioneer Crossing.
- On the South end of the block we have a 3 church mega site. You can't get up or down 1100 W at any time on Sunday as more than 3,000 cars jam this area all day long. That's right, while everyone else in Lehi enjoys quieter and safer roads on Sunday, 1100 W becomes a massive safety danger and nuisance. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturdays are also a mess with all the different activities. Who at the city level helped plan this disaster?
- Just to the north of the mega church site we have a single access point elementary school. There is only one way in and one way out. The school doesn't have enough parking for staff so they require all parents and visitors to park on 1100 W. The school is over capacity as it is with portable classrooms in the back. This is a serious safety risk for all children and drivers on 1100 W. They want to add 500 more homes to a school that is over capacity and doesn't have access or parking.
Visit this school between 8-9 AM and when they get out of school and it's a miracle we haven't had a kid killed yet. The whole area is a disaster with cars backed up to nearly Pioneer and down to 1700 S. Try getting up or down this road during those times...I dare you.
- Only 100 feet from the school zone we have a new, Heavy Commercial distribution site the city magically gifted to Strata Networks (even though it's city land and there were no public meetings - this whole situation screams malfeasance. Don't worry, Lehi Legal team said it's all ok. If you want to talk about it you have to sue the city as they won't talk about it in public). Don't worry, the city tells us there is "only 1 truck per day in the morning and 1 in the evening" - yes this is a real quote from a Lehi City Council Meeting. There is no impact to the area is what they say in public.

Come look at the site and tell me what you think? Any rational human with heart beat sees a heavy commercial facility surrounded by "Very Low Residential Agricultural Zoning" and existing homes. City code does not allow for this type of business in a residential neighborhood. Strata Networks themselves has stated they will have at least 75-100 per day to the site. The road is so narrow they can't pull a truck in or out without going into oncoming traffic. Strata is having so many issues getting their trucks out they are now using neighborhood roads to access 500 W instead of going down 1100 W. I SEE IT EVERY DAY!

- Now Lehi City wants to use that same single access road the school uses to add a high density housing development with 500 units right in the middle of all of this. Remember, the school already overwhelms that road and has told families in the area to park on 1100 W and now we're going to toss in a 500 more residential units.

Wow, the absolute nonsense on display by the city is appalling. Remember, this area was supposed to be a regional sports park, but Mayor Mark Johnson and his regime screwed up so badly the people rejected him and his fiscally irresponsible plans. "Give me $50 Million dollars...trust me bro, I'll do good stuff with it." That was basically the city's sales pitch. He and his regime were untrustworthy then and are more bold today.

Lehi City leadership has shown to be completely incompetent of planning and leading OR it is rife with corruption. You can't get this much wrong and not be aware of it. If you can screw up this badly and not be aware of it then at least they're just incompetent. Either way, we must get new leadership ASAP!

The Dry Creek Village plan is nonsensical considering all of the other issues the city has already created in the immediate area and the plan must be defeated. Nothing in the area should be approved until the city fixes the mess they've created. You can't add a bigger mess to a giant mess and just hope things get better...that's not how this works. The city's reactive leadership is on full display here. They are kicking the can down the road until they're no longer in office when this place is an even bigger disaster and someone else is here to "fix it."

The city does not care about you or your family. Don't show up to a city council meeting or planning meeting thinking they're good people like you and just trying to do their best. Don't be naïve and think they're there to help or work for the people of Lehi. They work for Lehi City Corporation...a BUSINESS. They do not work for the people of Lehi.

Just say NO until we see a real working plan that does not turn this part of Lehi into the City's dump yard.

As a nearby resident to this area I beg you please do not do this plan. This kind of high density housing in this already busy area would bottleneck traffic. 1100 west sees a high level of backed up traffic already especially around school times and on sundays with two churches right close. This type of high density housing also raises concern for water usage as well. Please do not follow with this plan.

This area is not the best location for this project. As others have commented 1100 W. is where children are dropped off and picked up that attend Dry Creek Elementary. Other children also travel to school along this road by bike, scooter, or on foot. Putting this large of a complex in will cause the over populated school to have even larger class sizes. Please consider an area that can house the large increase in population as well as avoid further congestion on 1100 W.

This is a terrible idea given the already bad congestion that occurs during school pick up and drop off. My boys walk home from school and I am worried the additional congestion will compromise their safety.

This will make traffic and school pickup/dropoff even more of a nightmare than it already is. Something needs to change structurally in the school parking lot to make this feasible.

Please reconsider recommending this high density plan. The roads and schools are not equipped to handle the current density let alone the additional load this will place on them. This is also drastically different zoning than the rest of the area. Most people that moved to this area of Lehi chose to live here because of the lower density of housing. One other thing to consider is the states plans to expand pioneer crossing. Why would we allow a build that most likely will need to be torn down within 10 years through for road expansions?

This area of Lehi has become a comedy of errors. The fact that this is being proposed with all of the outstanding issues at hand in this area is comical. How is this going to fix the issues already in place with the intersection by Maverik? How does this extra traffic effect the school that has ONE entrance and exit? Has the traffic study been done yet with the addition of the Strata Networks land purchase? How will that traffic study be effected by the number of cars that will be coming from this development? We all knew this farmers land would be built out eventually but 16 acres ading 150 new homes, which will eventually be 60 acres with 500 new homes? This just isn't something that anyone who has done their homework would suggest in this area.

What improvements to the streets, schools, utilities, and intersections are going to be made for this? What will be done to 1450 to ensure safety for kids and drivers? How will the situation at Dry Creek be handled? Why was this spot chosen over others? Why is the size being suggested decided upon? Adding 500 units to these 60 acres just seems crazy.

I have huge concerns about the location of this development and the effect it will have on the elementary school population and traffic demands for the school. Currently there are times of the day where traffic is at a dead stand still on 1100 west going both north and south bound due to the drop off and pick of students and all exits of this development will only add to this congestion. The roads are narrow on both 1100 W. and 1450 S. This development will make the traffic a complete nightmare for all. The elementary school has no options but shut 1450 S. down when busses are arriving due to the space the bus needs to make turns and the 9 busses arriving at the school. There is no where for drop off to happen when the busses are arriving. The church will not let the school use their parking lot and so the congestion ends on road ways. Some things need to happen before the building of any structure should be allowed. 1 the purchase of the land. And not ask for the donations. Companies who will make millions should not be asking for land to be donated from residents who use it to contribute to their lively hood. 2. 1450 S needs to be made a through street to allow flow of traffic both in and out of the elementary school. 3. Another elementary school needs to be built to reduce Dry Creek Elementary's population. Another high density housing will only take an already overflowing school that is well beyond it's capacity to extremely beyond it's capacity. Currently there are 3 high density developments that feed into Dry Creek from Saratoga Springs.
I also have concerns about the safety of my neighborhood and the housing prices. Lower income housing results in higher crime and affects house prices of the existing homes. We currently have 1,000,000 homes being built in the Taylor Cove development And the building of the high density housing will affect the price of those homes. It also brings concerns about the safety of the children who walk home in that area. The traffic on the streets increases the chances of a child being hit.

My first thoughts on such high density housing in this area is the traffic it will cause along 1100 w as well as with Dry Creek Elementary. I currently live along 1100 w and have my driveway blocked constantly with the traffic from the church and the school. The school only has one way in and out and may not have the capacity to accept that many new students in one influx once the housing is complete. Is there something in place for the school and along 1100 w to combats those issues? Is there going to be an issue with water? That’s a lot of people that would need water. Last year, Lehi city implemented water restrictions due to the drought and I’m worried this new development will cause more issues than not. If I remember correctly, traffic and safety was also something of a concern when the Maverik and churches were built along 1100 w. I have also witnessed many accidents in front of my house from people coming and going from church or the school. One went into my fence. It doesn’t seem like a safe plan for the community. I believe there are probably better places to build such high density housing. This would take away from the identity of Lehi City and what many of us have come to love about it or grown up with. If housing was to be built there, I feel it should be VLDRA or VLDR like the areas around it. Thank you, Alexis Johnson