Commission backs Sage Lakes PUD despite widespread resident opposition over traffic and neighborhood character

The Idaho Falls Planning and Zoning Commission on Oct. 7 voted to recommend to City Council approval of the Sage Lakes planned unit development, a large mixed‑residential proposal that would add 246 townhomes and about 74 single‑family lots on roughly 21.7 acres in the Fairway Estates/Sage Lakes area.

The applicant’s representative, who identified himself as Jared (the applicant’s firm and Visionary Homes were cited during the presentation), said the PUD was designed to be a “higher‑standard” alternative to conventional R‑2 development and that the plan reduces achievable density compared with what an R‑2 build‑out could allow. Jared told the commission the project proposes an overall density of about 11 units per acre, 25% minimum open space, sidewalks, trail connections and amenities including two playgrounds, a dog park and a pavilion. He said the project is largely consistent with the city’s ImagineIF comprehensive plan priorities for walkable, infill and mixed housing types.

Why it matters: The proposal would significantly increase the number of housing units in an area of the city that residents…