Herriman council approves land swaps, MDAs and road reimbursements to enable housing and a proposed Southwest Athletic Complex amid resident objections

Herriman — The Herriman City Council voted April 23 to approve a suite of land-use changes, master development agreements (MDAs) and reimbursement deals intended to enable new housing and to assemble land the city says is needed to pursue a regional Southwest Athletic Complex.

The package included: a general-plan and zoning change and an MDA for the Sorrento/Walker property (18.05 acres at 5616 West 12900 South) that limits the project to 113 dwelling units under an R‑110 base zone; amendments to the Olympia and Creek Ridge MDAs that allow property swaps and reallocate open-space obligations; approval of a Big Bend Cove MDA for 11 private‑HOA homes on 2.54 acres; a reimbursement deal for construction of a 1,900‑foot section of 6400 West (about $5.6 million, bond-funded); an amended reimbursement for 126 South/118 South (increasing the total reimbursable amount to about $4.3 million); and a property‑exchange agreement that transfers developer parcels to the city and city parcels to the developer as part of assembling the athletic‑complex site.

Why the council approved the package

City staff and council members framed the actions as a coordinated, council‑driven strategy to consolidate acreage and leverage outside funding for a larger, programmable park and regional athletic complex. Mayor and council members said the city cannot afford to build multiple full‑amenity parks across every neighborhood and that assembling 50+ contiguous acres increases the city’s chance to secure county, regional and state grant dollars and transportation funding.

“As we were looking for that we probably were not gonna be able to build all these parks like that’s just a battle that all cities are facing right now,” the mayor said while explaining the rationale for consolidating open space and pursuing outside funding. Council…