Commission approves preliminary plats for South Hills Pods 14, 15 and Southwest Pod 8A with water-availability conditions

The Herriman Planning Commission approved three preliminary plats within the South Hills master development: Pod 14, Pod 15 and Southwest Pod 8A. Staff recommended approval of each plat subject to technical conditions; a consistent, notable condition across the approvals is that the city will not issue any certificate of occupancy for lots in these pods until water service is available to the sites.

For Pod 14, staff said the plat includes additional open space compared with the development agreement because the submittal dedicates more acreage to open space; the actual unit count for the pod is lower than the maximum allowed under the master development agreement. Applicant Leif Smith told the commission the developer had complied with prior commission and council requests on the project and said the team was eager to begin building model and finished homes.

For Pod 15 staff again noted fewer units than were originally projected and reiterated the same water timing condition and standard preliminary-to-final plat issues to be resolved prior to recording and final construction.

Southwest Pod 8A proposes 59 single-family lots (66 at maximum allowance, 65 originally discussed); staff flagged a landscape requirement for the detention area as an item to be addressed in conditions of approval. The Pod 8A applicant described multiple existing and potential access points: a road-base route through adjacent pods, a connection to Porter Rockwell that is currently gated/barriered but could provide emergency access, and a haul/maintenance road that is maintained year-round; the applicant also emphasized future trail connections to the Juniper Canyon Recreation Area and the Bonneville Shoreline Trail and described planned mountain-bike amenities nearby.

Public hearings were opened for each plat and closed with no public comments. Motions to approve each item carried unanimously. The recorded motions were: approval of item 4.3 (Pod 14) on a motion by Adam, seconded by Andy; approval of item 4.4 (Pod 15) on a motion by Adam, seconded by Andy/Preston; and approval of item 4.5 (Southwest Pod 8A) on a motion by Adam, seconded by Jackson/Bridal. The transcript records unanimous support on each roll call.

Staff will require the remaining technical items be addressed during preliminary-to-final review and will enforce the water-availability condition prior to issuing certificates of occupancy. The developer representatives said they expect to proceed with model homes and phased construction consistent with the master development agreement and the city’s timing for water infrastructure delivery.