A proposed RV park that could put 500 dwelling units on 110 acres in Garden City has some residents nervous it could alter the direction of the Bear Lake town’s development.
The project, called “Bear Lake RV Resort” in its application, would be situated between Hodges Canyon Road and the Pickleville Playhouse, taking up many of the fields west of existing houses on State Route 30.
“In one spot with that type of density, it’s the largest (development) we’ve ever seen in Garden City, by far,” said John Spuhler, who served as the town’s mayor from 2010-2018.
The RV resort is being proposed by Sun Communities, Inc., a real estate trust headquartered in the Detroit area.
While planning for the resort is still in early stages and much could change as it goes before the Planning Commission and Town Council, plans for the resort include mostly RV camping with some other luxury camping options.
A post on the Rich Civic Times newsletter states resort amenities could include a “clubhouse facility with indoor recreation and event space, resort style pool, parks and trail network and a Main Street area for additional amenity offerings.”
The company does not own the site’s land yet but is working with current owners and is asking the town to rezone the parcels, most of which are in residential zones, to a planned unit development designation that would allow an RV resort.
“The developer … who is a publicly traded company, is coming in and trying to change three separate zones that are zoned single-family that have no use, there’s no RV use in those zones,” Spuhler said. “Those are designed for single-family homes. And to move them into RV parks in areas that weren’t designed for that, it doesn’t meet our master plan in any way, shape or form. It’s in fact contrary to it. And that’s my problem with the council even considering it.”
With his wife, Melissa, and their son, Leo, Spuhler owns the Oso Blu resort consisting of five “luxury” yurts a little over a mile north of the proposed site.
Current Garden City Mayor Mike Leonhardt declined to comment on the project because it has not yet been formally presented in city meetings. Sun Communities did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Garden City General Plan, completed in 2014, includes goals to “allow development to occur on parcels of land most suitable for and capable of supporting the kind of development being proposed,” and to “channel development into areas where existing infrastructure is already in place or planned in the near future.”
Spuhler said he doesn’t believe the infrastructure is adequate for the resort as proposed.
“They’re completely asking for a specific rezoning so that they can build something that I think would be really challenging for our community in terms of traffic and just general infrastructure like sewer,” Spuhler said. “There’s a lot of reasons why we have a master plan, and frankly I don’t think we’re doing a very good job as a city looking at what does our master plan say and why would we allow this group to come in and rezone over 100 acres of land?”
Brian House, a resident of the area who served on the Planning Commission for 20 years and eight years on the Town Council, wrote to the Rich Civic Times that he objects to the project along similar lines.
“Although potentially allowed as a Planned Unit Development, does Garden City have the water?” House wrote, in part. “Is our sewer system capable of handing the increase? Already our sewer system seems to be maxed out on weekends with backed up sewer and stench north of Pickleville, some sewer pumps running on a lengthy basis.”
“If this particular development had been proposed in the zones that met the requirement, because we’ve looked at that, then I’d have a different take on it,” Spuhler said. “I still think there’s a lot to discuss related to parking issues, density, related to just how are people going to get on and off the highway. Those are RV units, those are larger than normal cars, and we already have a traffic congestion issue.”
Just down the road in Garden City, Sun Communities also acquired Blue Water Beach Resort for about $9 million in February, according to its 2021 1st quarter results.
The Town Planning & Zoning Commission will take comment on the plan at a public hearing beginning at 5 p.m. May 5 at 69 N. Paradise Parkway.
1 comment:
As a homeowner in Garden City, I strongly oppose the trailer park proposal and ask the planning committee to say no to this development. The entire area around Bear Lake has already grown too big and we do not need another project to utilize our water and place an undo burden on the sewer system and cause more demand on our lake and other resources. There has been so much development take place over the past few years to include hundreds of rental properties and we residents do not support the additional growth in our pristine valley. Please vote "NO" on this application.
Thank you,
Stephen and Caroline Pope
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