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Planning commission approves landscape exception for 1581 Mill Creek Drive
Summary
The Moab Planning Commission voted 4-0 to approve Planning Resolution 2025-12, allowing a 5-foot portion of the required 15-foot landscape buffer to be installed in the city right-of-way adjacent to 1581 Mill Creek Drive for a planned affordable multifamily development.
The Moab Planning Commission approved Planning Resolution 2025-12, a landscaping special exception for property at 1581 Mill Creek Drive, by a 4-0 roll-call vote during its regular meeting on Aug. 12, 2025.
The exception allows the developer to place 5 feet of the required 15-foot landscape buffer in the city right-of-way adjacent to Mill Creek Drive, rather than entirely on private frontage. Planning staff said the applicant will still provide a total of 15 feet of separation between the buildings and the street by splitting the buffer between the private property and the park strip in the right-of-way.
Planning Department staff Johanna Blanco summarized the department's analysis and said the request must be considered under the general landscape exception because the code section cited is not part of the landscaping buffer section: "This code section...is not eligible for that special buffer exception," Blanco said.
Applicant Jake Williams told the commission the project is an affordable housing development that has been awarded federal and state tax credits and "will stay affordable long term at an average of 60% of the area median income." He said tax-credit financing prohibits student-occupied units and that shifting five feet of landscape to the park strip produces a better pedestrian experience while avoiding additional footing and foundation work necessary on the steeper portion of the site. Williams said the development team hopes to break ground before the end of the year.
Commissioners asked about the extent of the proposed park strip and connectivity: the applicant said the landscaped strip would extend to the corner and tie into an existing ramp and crosswalk. Commissioners who spoke described the proposal as "straightforward" and as improving the pedestrian environment while preserving the total required buffer.
Action: The motion to approve Planning Resolution 2025-12 was moved by Miles Lofton and seconded by Shaylee Bryant. The roll-call vote was Shaylee Bryant: Aye; Miles Lofton: Aye; Carolyn Conant: Aye; Jill Tatton (chair): Aye. The motion passed 4-0.
The commission's approval is a land-use-level exception; implementation will proceed through subsequent site-plan and construction-permit reviews where staff will verify compliance with the conditions and the approved plan. No public testimony was submitted for this item at the meeting.
