Perry Homes seeks special residential district for 1,200+ acres; council reviews master plan
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Summary
Perry Homes presented a Residential Special District (RSD) covering about 1,227 acres on Tooele’s northwest quadrant that, if approved, would let the developer set its own zoning standards within state law and could deliver roughly 2–2.5 units per acre over multiple decades.
Perry Homes representatives and Tooele City staff presented a proposed Compass Pointe Residential Special District (RSD) to the city council at a work session April 2, asking the council to consider a zoning tool that would allow developer‑authored development standards across roughly 1,227 acres in the city’s northwest quadrant.
Andrew Agard, Tooele City’s community development director, told the council an RSD is a tool in Tooele City Code (Title 7 Chapter 14b) that permits a developer to write a zoning code for a designated area as long as state law, building codes and fire codes remain in force. “This is a big ticket item…this document, if it were to be adopted by the city council, really will govern development in a large portion of the city for 10, 20, maybe even 30 years,” Agard said.
Lindsay Neve, presenting for Perry Homes, said the RSD would provide flexibility for a mix of product types — from compact townhomes and courtyard homes to larger single‑family products — and that Perry plans an overall density in the 2 to 2.5 units‑per‑acre range. Neve said the application envisions about 3,600 residential units across the master plan footprint, 50 acres of open space (47 acres of parks and detention plus a minimum of 3 acres preserved open space), and infrastructure sequencing that the developer intends to annex to the North Tooele Special Service District for utilities.
Agard noted the city is tracking unit allotments under a settlement agreement that originally accounted for 4,800 units across the broader area; he said roughly 3,319 of the current allotment remain available for future plats. Because the proposed RSD’s average density is about two units per acre, Agard told the council the area included in the RSD actually contains more land than the current unit allotment requires, and that portions of the RSD boundary could later shift to other uses if unit allotments are exhausted.
Council members asked detailed questions about design standards, trails and open space. Neve said the large open space area is intended to accommodate a regional park and that trails are planned along roadways and will be built in phases with the subdivisions. She said the applicant anticipates submitting a multifamily (apartment) site plan for the 3100 North area soon and beginning village‑scale platting in summer months.
No action was taken at the work session. Agard and Perry Homes said the RSD will continue through staff review, additional drafts and the formal public hearing process. Council members and staff emphasized that any RSD must still satisfy state land‑use code (LUDMA) and building/fire codes, and that the RSD does not relieve the developer of infrastructure modeling, traffic impact studies or engineering reviews required at later platting stages.
If adopted later in the process, the RSD would provide the developer a single tailored zoning document that supersedes the city’s standard zoning for the included land while leaving state codes and public‑safety standards intact. Council members and staff said they expect the project to be a multiple‑decade buildout and asked staff to ensure that trails, parkland dedications and utility sequencing are aligned with the city’s recreation and water‑infrastructure plans.
