Planning commission approves Meadows at Siz Road subdivision, site plan and three special exceptions amid traffic concerns

The Sandy City Planning Commission on Wednesday approved a three-part application for The Meadows at Siz Road, a 33-unit planned development at 8777 South 700 East, including seven single-family homes and 26 townhomes, and granted three special exceptions for private-street configuration and street-improvement requirements.

The developer, Brad Reynolds, said the project would use materials similar to other recent Sandy developments and include community amenities and on-site guest parking. "We have gone through extensive review with the zoning that's in place, and we have certainly made several changes to the site plan to try and make it amenable to the neighbors," Reynolds said.

Commissioners and staff said the development meets the city's PUD-10 standards and that transportation requirements will be met over time. "It is our intent to add a traffic signal on 700 East once that traffic signal warrants," said Britney Ward, assistant public works director and city engineer. Ward and transportation staff said the developer will donate right-of-way on Siz Road and that the city will install a signal there when warranted; they also described planned road widening to minor-collector standards to accommodate three lanes and turn pockets.

The project includes a private internal street that will be maintained by a homeowners association rather than dedicated as a public right-of-way. The commission approved special exceptions allowing privately maintained streets, units that do not front public streets, and narrower street dedications in the private portion. "This will be a planned development. It'll have an HOA. It will be privately maintained," staff said during the presentation.

Neighbors who spoke during public comment expressed concerns about traffic, speeding and sight lines on Siz Road and nearby Harvard Park. John Glassy, a nearby resident, asked whether the city would add speed mitigation measures: "Is that road gonna be widened? Is there any plan for that to be widened a little bit?" Albert Susie, another nearby resident, said Siz Road is "already a busy, narrow street" and asked how the new development would affect safety and parking.

Staff and the developer responded that the project provides the ordinance-required two covered parking spaces per unit plus 12 guest parking stalls distributed across the site; staff said parking stall dimensions meet city code and that additional on-street parking is not supported on Siz Road because the planned cross section does not allow it. Reynolds said the units will each include a two-car garage and that additional parking is provided in shared guest stalls and driveway areas.

The planning commission voted separately on the three requests. A motion approving the special exceptions carried; a subsequent motion found the preliminary site plan substantially complete; and the preliminary subdivision review was also approved. Commissioners asked for continued coordination with transportation staff on the timing and design of the Siz Road widening and the future traffic signal.

Commissioners also requested that the applicant continue to address concerns raised by nearby residents, including sight-line and emergency-access questions. The developer said the perimeter will include a six-foot concrete precast wall on the north and east property lines to buffer adjacent homes and provide privacy.

Staff noted the Greenway collector will bisect the property as required by the city's transportation master plan; that connection is intended to provide a secondary exit for existing neighborhoods to the north and to support future development west of the site. Road and signal improvements will be completed in phases as development and warranting conditions occur.

The commission recorded separate votes on the three items; each motion passed with an affirmative majority of commissioners present. Conditions listed in staff reports accompany each approval and will be enforced at final site-plan and subdivision submittal.

Planning staff and the applicant said they will return with refined construction plans during subsequent reviews, including final engineering details, landscaping and the precise design of the private street and guest-parking layout.

The commission’s approvals allow the project to move to the next steps of engineering and permitting, subject to the conditions in the staff reports and future coordination with public works and transportation staff.