Planning Commission reapproves Echelon mixed-use project at 5902 South 1900 West

The Royce City Planning Commission on Feb. 11 unanimously approved site plan and architectural review for the Echelon mixed-use project at approximately 5902 South 1900 West.

Porter Christiansen, vice president of operations at Sumatera Ventures, told the commission the project was previously approved by the city in 2022 and that the current application makes no changes to the earlier approved plans. "This project was approved back in 2022. We haven't changed anything and are just looking to get it reapproved so we can move forward and build it," Christiansen said.

Staff presentation noted the earlier civil plans had been stamped and the building permit was ready to issue but the prior developer never picked up permits and the approvals lapsed. "It was approved by the planning commission that actually had civil plans that were stamped and signed, the building permit ready to issue, and the developer never came and picked those up. So the approvals lapsed," a staff member identified as Steve said. Staff recommended approval of site plan and architecture with conditions listed in the staff report; the commission approved both motions unanimously.

The applicant described Echelon as a mixed-use building with ground-floor commercial space and residential units above. Christiansen described the project as a "39 unit mixed use project, bottom floor commercial, and the top 3 floors will be residential." In his presentation, floor plans shown to the commission depicted three commercial units on the main level and, on floors two through four, layouts the presenter said were "10, 1 bedroom units and 2 studio units each to make up the the 36 units." The transcript records both the developer's statement that the project is 39 units and floor-plan totals that add to 36; the number of residential units is not specified conclusively in the record.

Other materials shown to the commission included a site plan, landscape plan with green space and a gazebo, elevations, and unit floor plans. The developer said the project involves two existing single-family lots and that no design changes from the 2022 approval were proposed. The motions to approve the site plan and to approve architectural review passed unanimously; the transcript records the outcomes as "passes unanimously" but does not record numerical vote tallies or the names of movers and seconders.

Commissioners offered no substantive conditions or extended discussion beyond the staff-recommended conditions. A member of the commission observed that this project represents a return to the mixed-use development approach the commission has reviewed previously and expressed interest in seeing the project built.

The approval returns the previously lapsed project to an approved status subject to the conditions in the staff report. The record does not specify a construction start date or whether new permits have been filed for this reapproved application.