Spanish Fork council approves Whispering Pines development agreement with 579-unit cap and emergency-access condition

The Spanish Fork City Council on a unanimous roll-call vote approved the Whispering Pines development agreement with Edge Homes, a legislative development agreement that establishes project design, utility reimbursement, right-of-way dedications and occupancy conditions.

The approval caps the project at 579 units and includes a condition that no more than 50 units may be occupied until an emergency-access connection to Gomex Road is in place, city staff said. The agreement also requires the developer to dedicate right-of-way for a multi-lane Fingerhut Road extension, build a new bridge over the railroad connecting to U.S. 6, and provide signalization and a roundabout at key intersections.

City planner Vaughn Pickell summarized the agreement during the public hearing, saying the document "memorializes the council's action" on the previously approved zone change and preliminary plat and that the development agreement will control where it conflicts with city ordinances because it is a legislative act. He told council members the developer will dedicate right-of-way for the Fingerhut Road widening in phase 1 and that the project includes a pressurized irrigation main and a reimbursement process for upsized utilities.

Paxton Guymon, in-house counsel for Edge Homes, thanked city staff and the council for negotiating the agreement and called the state appropriation for the bridge a major enabling factor. "We sort of pulled a rabbit out of a hat by getting the legislature to appropriate so much funding for this bridge," Guymon said, describing the grant money as making the project more feasible and improving traffic circulation.

Council members asked clarifying questions during the hearing. Council members conducting the roll call — Councilman Oiler, Councilman Carden, Councilman Tooke, Councilman Marshall and Councilwoman Beck — each voted "yes" to approve the agreement.

The agreement also includes standard development-agreement provisions such as vested-rights language and an identification of the mix of housing types (townhomes, condos and single-family homes). The council’s approval authorizes city staff to finalize the agreement consistent with the terms presented at the hearing.

Next steps listed in the agreement and discussed during the hearing include securing the right-of-way dedication with phase 1, coordinating utility upsizing reimbursements through the city's established process, and scheduling the required design and construction for the Fingerhut Road improvements and the railroad bridge in coordination with the state funding schedule.

The council’s motion to approve the Whispering Pines development agreement was made and seconded and passed by roll call: Oiler — yes; Carden — yes; Tooke — yes; Marshall — yes; Beck — yes.

The development agreement and related engineering and financing details will be public record at the city planning office; the council and the developer indicated they will continue coordination on construction phasing and utility reimbursements as the project proceeds.