Planning Commission backs rezoning at 128 North N Street, recommends two‑bedroom condition

The Salt Lake City Planning Commission on Jan. 22 voted unanimously to forward a recommendation to the City Council to rezone 128 North N Street from SR‑1A (Special Development Pattern Residential) to RMF‑30 (low‑density multifamily), with a condition that any newly built units provide a minimum of two bedrooms and that the requirement be secured in a development agreement before any certificate of occupancy is issued.

Planning staff presented the petition and a history of revisions to the proposal. Alicia Seeley, the planner assigned to the petition, told commissioners the applicant originally asked for RMU‑35 (which would have allowed up to five new units and up to 35 feet) but revised the request to RMF‑30 after neighbor comments and staff input. An error in the staff calculation discovered the day before the meeting reduced the feasible number of new infill units to three; the applicant therefore dropped an offered affordable unit and instead proposed family‑sized rental units by making the units two‑bedrooms each.

The project site includes a historically significant fourplex that would remain unchanged; the proposal would add infill units behind that building. Seeley said the change to RMF‑30 would raise the allowable building height on the lot from about 23 feet under SR‑1A to 30 feet, reduce lot area‑per‑unit standards from roughly 5,000 square feet per unit to 2,000 square feet per unit, and allow multifamily building forms and multiple buildings on a single parcel without street frontage for each building. Because the existing fourplex qualifies the parcel for building preservation incentives, the applicant proposed (and staff explained) reduced parking requirements under that incentive program: approximately one‑half off‑street parking space per additional dwelling unit, producing a minimum required total of four off‑street spaces for the seven total units the lot would contain after development. The applicant’s current concept includes five off‑street spaces and therefore meets that stated minimum.

Kenton Peters, the project architect (K P 2 Architects), said setbacks required by RMF‑30 (10 feet sides, 20 feet rear) and those requested by the fire department leave room for landscape buffering and surface parking inside the setbacks; Peters also said the buildable mass under RMF‑30 would be lower than the 35‑foot townhomes to the north and comparable to the 30‑foot condo building to the south. He added the design team intends to provide enclosed storage to offset any loss of the detached garages now on the north property line.

Public commenters were split. Jim Jenkin, former chair and current land‑use chair of the Avenues Community Council, said the revised proposal is an improvement over the earlier submission but flagged that demolition of existing garages could displace tenants who depend on secure, van‑size garage parking. Cindy Cromer, speaking for herself, criticized a piecemeal rezoning approach in the Avenues, said the SR‑1A zone is outdated, and asked for more modestly priced housing as community benefit rather than primarily two‑bedroom units. Deann Williams, immediate past HOA president for Notting Court Condominiums, raised concerns about construction staging, driveway access, vehicle turning space, and possible long‑term damage to neighboring property.

Commissioners discussed how to characterize the applicant’s proposed public benefit. Staff noted that by city code applicants proposing a zoning map amendment must identify a community benefit consistent with Title 19 and Plan Salt Lake. Commissioners debated whether listing “two‑bedroom units” as the benefit was the right framing; several preferred a finding that the proposal provides compatible infill and housing types the city’s plans seek, while requiring a development agreement that specifically guarantees the two‑bedroom unit condition. Ultimately Commissioner Mike Christensen moved and Commissioner Scott seconded the motion to forward a positive recommendation with the development‑agreement condition; commissioners voted unanimously in favor.

The council will receive the Planning Commission recommendation as a legislative zoning map amendment; if the City Council approves the rezoning, the development agreement would be executed between the council and the property owner to secure the two‑bedroom condition.

Votes at a glance: The commission’s recommendation to City Council passed unanimously (motion by Commissioner Mike Christensen; second by Commissioner Scott).