Willard planning commission tables Canyon Bay rezoning after residents press for half-acre lots and clearer guarantees for orchard easement

Willard, Utah — The Willard City Planning Commission on Nov. 6, 2025 tabled a petition from Western Land Development to rezone about 24.83 acres at roughly 500 South and 200 West to a Master Planned Community (MPC) after extensive public comment and commissioner scrutiny.

The developer’s representative told the commission the plan has been revised from an earlier concept of roughly 84 units down to 50 units, and that the project would preserve roughly 3 acres of an existing peach orchard through a conservation-style agricultural easement. The applicant said the project’s average lot area is about 0.41 acres when measured across building lots and excluding the dedicated open space; the MPC proposal also includes nearly 2 acres of stormwater detention, a network of internal walking trails and a 10-foot asphalt trail intended to join broader local pathway planning.

Residents packed the hearing to press the commission to retain half-acre lots across the new development. “We moved here to get away from this … We want it left half acres,” said resident Laura Lee Darley during public comment. Neighbor Brian Barrett said the layout appears to “skirt around” the half-acre intent by creating narrow, long lots that meet area minimums while reducing typical frontage, which he said would alter neighborhood character and could affect property values.

Commissioners raised multiple technical and policy concerns. One commissioner asked that the development agreement explicitly fix a maximum density of 50 units and specify single-family dwellings so the site cannot later be reconfigured for multifamily housing. Commissioners and residents also pressed the applicant for clearer, enforceable language on who will hold and steward the agricultural easement, how irrigation and water rights will support the orchard, and whether sidewalks, trails and proposed roadway easements would place pathways adjacent to private backyards.

The applicant said the orchard easement would be legally restricted, that Willard City would have enforcement authority if maintenance obligations were not met, and that the developer intends to lease or sell the orchard parcel to a farmer for ongoing management. The applicant also said the MPC code allows tradeoffs of somewhat smaller lots in exchange for substantial permanent open space, and that many of the proposed lots have frontages of about 80–85 feet with setbacks designed to avoid the narrow, zero-setback pattern seen in nearby higher-density subdivisions.

Transportation and drainage were recurring public concerns. Residents asked how future roads and 12-foot easements would be located and whether 600 South would receive additional driveways; others asked how stormwater detention would be sized and whether it would be consolidated with adjacent detention basins. The applicant said nearly two acres of detention are planned and that certain ponds would be placed to efficiently connect with existing Heritage neighborhood detention.

After discussion, Commissioner [unnamed in public record] moved to table the request so developers could address the items raised; the motion was seconded and carried by voice vote. The commission suggested at least one additional work session before the application returns, and commissioners warned that some features — notably quarter-acre lots — may face pushback at the city council level.

Next steps: the applicant is expected to revise the development agreement and plan to address commissioner comments (density language, single-family dwelling specification, easement and water stewardship details, frontage and trail placement), likely convene another work session, and return to the Planning Commission before the city council considers a recommendation.

Policies and legal references discussed at the hearing included the Willard Zoning Code MPC provisions, the R-1 Half frontage/lot standards, Willard City handbook revisions, and the Willard Transportation Plan.