The Duchesne County Commission on Feb. 24 recessed the public hearing on proposed Ordinance 25-4-18, which would amend the county subdivision code, until March 10, 2025, at 1 p.m. The hearing was recessed after staff described proposed changes and dozens of residents and stakeholders spoke about water hauling, class D road mapping and enforcement, and agricultural-lot restrictions.

The proposed ordinance would narrow the scope of the county's minor-subdivision process and add new requirements for water, road access and well protection zones. County staff recommended postponing a final decision until the Duchesne County Planning Commission finalizes findings at its March 5 meeting and forwards a recommendation to the commission.

County staff described several substantive changes in 25-4-18: reducing the maximum number of lots that can be created via the minor-subdivision process from 10 to 4; clarifying that new lots (except agricultural remainders) must have culinary water approved by Tri-County Health and the Utah Division of Water Rights; requiring legal access on a designated class B or class D road; establishing a 100-foot well-protection radius to be shown on plats; and setting a 40-acre minimum for lots where county authorities cannot verify adequate water to serve all proposed lots. The ordinance also clarifies that lots designated for agricultural use under the Greenbelt assessment must remain in agricultural use unless a recorded amendment changes that designation.

One specific change would bar water hauling for the narrow state-code exemption at Utah Code
17-27a-605 (the provision that allows creating one 1-acre parcel from a parent parcel of at least 100 acres without survey/land-use approval). County staff said that, to avoid confusion, the proposed local rule would not permit water-hauling service to supply that special 1-acre parcel.

Public commenters were sharply divided. Local resident Drew Eschler told commissioners he supported the proposed amendment and its tighter water rules, saying, "I'm very much in favor of this amendment" and that the change aligns with state efforts to expedite water-related infrastructure. By contrast, developer and commenter Trenton Grant urged clearer definitions and better mapping of class D roads, and expressed concern that restrictions on water hauling would curtail a practical solution used by some property owners. Grant also urged stronger code enforcement and suggested the county consider mandatory homeowner-association or recreational-lot rules used elsewhere to help address road and maintenance issues.

Other public testimony urged larger-scale infrastructure investment rather than restriction. Keith Goodspeed described the long history of water challenges in the Uinta Basin and urged the county to prioritize pipeline and regional water projects while cautioning against immediate limits on water hauling.

Commissioners said the additional public input and recommended edits from the planning commission required more time. Commissioner Killian and Commissioner Miles moved to recess the hearing; during the roll call both commissioners voted "aye" and the motion carried. The hearing will reopen on March 10 at 1 p.m. so the commission can consider planning-commission recommendations and final staff edits.

If adopted, the ordinance would modify local implementation of state subdivision law and county code; it references Utah Code 17-27a-605, Tri-County Health Department standards, the Utah Division of Water Rights, and the Wildland-Urban Interface code for private road construction and emergency access.

The commission meeting packet included the draft text of Ordinance 25-4-18 and a set of draft findings prepared for the March 5 planning-commission meeting. The planning commission had continued its February 5 public hearing to consider amendments recommended by staff; county staff said the redlined draft before the commission at Feb. 24 incorporated those later amendments.

Next steps: The planning commission will finalize findings on March 5; the Duchesne County Commission will reopen the public hearing March 10 at 1 p.m. and may decide whether to adopt, amend or reject Ordinance 25-4-18 at that time.