Parowan planning commission recommends denying rezoning at 320 South 400 West

The Parowan Planning and Zoning Commission voted March 18 to recommend that the City Council deny a request to rezone a parcel at approximately 320 South 400 West (parcel A-0482-000000-0000) from A1 to R1A to allow a two‑lot split.

Planning staff opened the public hearing and described the limited scope of the request: the owner, Joseph Scott Edwards, seeks to split the existing parcel so two single‑family homes could be built. The applicant’s representative, Bob Plat, told the commission that the difference in frontage standards is the practical issue: “The total frontage of that lot on 400 West is 138 ft,” Plat said, and the proposed zone change to R1A would reduce the minimum frontage requirement from 75 feet to 65 feet per lot.

Neighbors who spoke at the hearing urged the commission to oppose the change. In a written statement read into the record, Sue Clott said the request would “create an R1A zone island within an A1 neighborhood,” increase density on a narrow dead‑end street and threaten the area’s rural character. Spike Res, who said he had spoken with several neighbors, said he “definitely oppose[d] this change.” Sandra Gibson cited Parowan’s code language on the A1 zone and raised safety and access concerns on the 14–to‑19‑foot pavement at the end of 400 West.

Planning staff answered commissioners’ technical questions about the site, explaining that A1 lots use R1 residential standards for setbacks and that the city’s future land‑use map classifies the area as light‑density residential, which can include R1A. Staff noted the parcel viewer shows roughly 138 feet of frontage and said the city has an administrative practice of asking structures to sit about 75 feet from the centerline of the nearby flood channel; precise setbacks and required road or utility work would be resolved at the building‑permit stage.

Commission discussion centered on whether approving a single‑parcel R1A in the middle of established A1 zoning would amount to an inappropriate “spot zone.” Multiple members said they have rarely recommended isolated rezones that create an R1A island surrounded entirely by A1 land and questioned whether the change would match the neighborhood’s character. Commissioners also discussed parcel size: staff estimated the existing lot is roughly two‑thirds of an acre, so a split would result in parcels of about one‑third of an acre (~14,000 square feet), larger than the roughly 10,000‑square‑foot minimum often associated with R1A.

A motion to give a negative recommendation to Parowan City Council on rezoning parcel A-0482-000000-0000 was moved and seconded and passed by voice vote. The planning commission’s recommendation is advisory; the city council will take up the rezoning request and make the final decision.

The commission then conducted routine member reports and adjourned.