Provo Board of Adjustment denies appeal of car wash zoning verification at 3645 North Canyon Road

The Provo City Board of Adjustment on an administrative hearing denied an appeal disputing a zoning verification letter for a car wash at 3645 North Canyon Road and accepted a revised verification form that lists open code-enforcement cases rather than labeling them "current violations." The board’s action followed public comment from a neighboring resident about nighttime noise and a staff presentation about the limited scope of the verification letter.

The board’s decision matters because the zoning verification letter is the city’s formal statement of a property’s zoning status and whether open enforcement cases exist. The board concluded the amended letter accurately represented the city’s understanding of the property’s zoning status and pending enforcement activity and therefore denied the appellant’s request to overturn it.

City zoning staff told the board the property’s land use and zone are not in dispute; the reissued verification adds clarity by indicating whether there is an open code-enforcement case. Scott Johnson, the city’s zoning administrator, said the letter’s purpose is to “provide the applicant with information regarding the property itself, what the legal use is, what does zone that overrides the use within that, within that area.” He added that the field historically labeled “current violations” was not used to list specific code sections but to note whether an enforcement case exists.

Neighbor Dan Larson testified during public comment that noise from the automatic car wash has affected his ability to hear normal conversation at his front porch, saying, “When we're standing on our front porch at 75 decibels, you literally can't hear anybody talking.” He asked the board how to get the noise enforced; board members and staff said enforcement of noise rules falls under a different process (title 9) enforced by police, and the board of adjustment does not have jurisdiction over noise enforcement.

City staff and legal counsel described the open code-enforcement case as relating to lighting and hours of operation under the city’s zoning/code enforcement process (title 14 matters), while police handle alleged violations of the city noise code (title 9). Staff explained that code-enforcement investigations are private while open and become public records only after the case closes and a GRAMA request is processed.

Applicant representative Walter Keane and others asked for clearer detail in the zoning verification letter about which ordinances or code sections were being alleged; city staff and counsel said the verification letter’s purpose is to identify the zoning and to note the presence of open enforcement cases, not to list the specific alleged code violations while an investigation is ongoing.

After deliberation the board voted to deny the appeal and accept the amended zoning verification letter wording (changing the heading from “current violations” to “list of open cases”). The board recorded affirmative votes from several members; the public hearing was then closed and the meeting adjourned.

The decision does not itself resolve the open code-enforcement investigation into lighting and hours of operation, nor does it resolve separate police-enforced noise complaints. Those enforcement avenues remain in process.