Big debate over Kimball Junction proposals: council weighs RFP unit mix and ties to UDOT SR-224 improvements

A lengthy council-wide discussion on Oct. 23 addressed competing proposals for county-owned parcels at Kimball Junction and a simultaneous public-private partnership (P3) proposal from Dakota Pacific Real Estate. Councilors and staff debated the RFP's scope, allowed development models, unit counts, affordability targets and the project's dependency on UDOT SR‑224 improvements.

County staff presented an RFP draft that asks respondents to evaluate several delivery models—sale, long-term ground lease, public-private partnership or a master development agreement—while proposing an up-to-210-unit cap with a preliminary product mix (10% small detached, 19% attached single-family and 71% multifamily for rent) and an affordability stratification across several AMI bands. Staff and council members emphasized the proposal could be adjusted and negotiated during an exclusive negotiating period if a preferred team were selected.

Councilors raised multiple concerns: some said 210 units felt too high for the parcel and urged a smaller, for-sale-focused alternative; others wanted to prioritize workforce housing and considered county ownership or partial ownership to preserve units for key employees. Council Member Chris Robinson urged including an alternate scenario limited to for-sale small-lot and attached housing, while Council Member Roger Armstrong advocated a strategic approach that could reserve a portion of units specifically for county and critical-service employees. Council debate also covered whether to allow outright sale of the land: some members preferred to keep county ownership or pursue long-term ground-lease models.

Separately, developers discussed timing and triggers for housing delivery. Dakota Pacific representatives proposed phasing residential entitlements and tying later phases to milestones—particularly SR‑224 improvements being added to the State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). Steve Borup of Dakota Pacific said the development company could phase affordable-unit releases tied to STIP milestones and that the project’s financial viability depended on a predictable sequence: "The worst thing that happens is we end up with 170 affordable units," he said, explaining the firm needs milestones and infrastructure certainty to attract private capital.

Council agreed not to issue a final RFP immediately. Instead staff were directed to convene a publicly noticed work session with members of the development community to test the draft RFP, gather feasibility feedback and add at least one alternative (a for-sale small-lot/attached-only option) before the county formally issues the RFP and schedules a public hearing. Staff also said they would prepare clearer financial ceilings and options for shared public-space costs (plaza, parks and promenade) for a subsequent meeting before a planned public hearing.

Next steps: staff will organize a public, noticed developer work session to vet the draft RFP and will also return with clarified cost-sharing scenarios for civic improvements and a timeframe tied to UDOT/STIP milestones to present at the upcoming public hearing.