Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use Wasatch Choice topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Wasatch Choice land‑use map updated: region adds new centers to guide growth
Summary
The Wasatch Front Regional Council approved a mid‑cycle update to the Wasatch Choice land‑use vision that adds new and expanded centers across the region, increasing the number of identified centers by about 58 percent to guide future housing and transportation choices.
The Wasatch Front Regional Council on May 22 reviewed and accepted a mid‑cycle update to the Wasatch Choice regional land‑use map that reflects community workshops and city follow‑ups held since 2023.
Advocates who led the update said the map emphasizes “centers” — neighborhood, city and urban centers — to focus growth near transit and create more transportation choices. Tim Watkins, a WFRC planner, told the council the update is based on workshop feedback and a community review process and that the map will feed into regional travel demand modeling ahead of fall transportation scenario workshops.
The update increases the number of centers in the Wasatch Choice map from about 199 to 316, a roughly 58 percent rise driven largely by additions of neighborhood centers. Watkins said the centers “provide a multiplicity of benefits” including more transportation choices and the ability to absorb growth in locations communities want to develop.
Mayor Bob Dandoy of Roy, who chaired the Regional Growth Committee that reviewed the update, said the workshops helped neighboring cities coordinate corridor‑level planning. “It’s a testimony of the importance of what’s happening and what we’re witnessing here,” Dandoy told the council during discussion.
WFRC staff demonstrated a web mapping tool that shows the 2023 baseline and the 2025 updates side‑by‑side; staff emphasized the map shows community aspirations, not necessarily existing land uses. Staff also previewed visual examples of the center types — neighborhood centers depicted at one to three stories and urban centers shown at higher intensity — and said a menu of center images will be published soon on wasatchchoice.org.
Council members said the update will help align local land‑use choices with regional transportation investments. Ted Knowlton of WFRC noted the land‑use updates will “shape the regional transportation plan” and travel demand modeling that informs which transportation projects are prioritized.
The council did not take a separate vote on the land‑use mapping item at the meeting; staff said the update is part of the ongoing Wasatch Choice process and will be incorporated into the regional transportation planning sequence.
