Council approves Villas at Annie's Acres zone change after neighbors press water and road concerns

Spanish Fork’s City Council on March 24 approved a zone change and an amended preliminary plat for the Villas at Annie’s Acres that adds 2.14 acres to an existing planned development and creates a new connection for Volunteer Drive.

The proposal, presented by community development staff, would allow construction of additional homes while enabling a road alignment the city and developer say will improve a long‑standing safety problem at Bradford Lane and its intersection with River Bottoms Road.

The measure drew two speakers from the public who urged caution. Diane Garcia, a neighbor who said her legal property description extends to the centerline of Bradford Lane, told the council she had not been consulted and raised two central concerns: public‑use of land that she continues to own and a drainage feature she said is tied to a water right.

"I own it. I pay taxes on it," Garcia said. "There is a drainage pipe that goes through this, and it is associated with a water right, and you can't just rip it out… If that is disturbed or not taken care of properly, the whole area will be flooded."

Jackie Larson, another nearby resident, pressed the council to delay approval until formal review by irrigation authorities. Larson said an LLC formed by the developer after prior hearings raised questions about timing and liability and argued the city should require review and clearances from the irrigation company and the state engineer before permitting construction.

"Do not approve this night until the court‑approved water conveyance is formally reviewed and cleared by the irrigation company and the state engineer," Larson said.

The applicant, David Erickson of Leisure Villas, said the addition pulls an adjacent parcel into the existing approved community and will reduce the need for off‑site road connections. "Bringing the Mills property into the existing community… eliminates any potential road connections under that future Volunteer Drive, brings it internal into our project instead of going out onto the road," Erickson said. He said the development includes plans to pipe and capture drainage.

City engineering staff and the project engineer said the alignment changes generally keep the roadway to the west, will widen the tight curve on Bradford Lane, and reconfigure the intersection so it will operate more like a four‑way junction with improved sight lines and striping. City counsel and staff noted the city will coordinate with Westfield Irrigation Company and, where necessary, the state engineer to address any changes to irrigation facilities or points of diversion.

Council members framed the decision around public safety improvements and adherence to code and staff conditions. Councilwoman Beck moved approval with findings that the project is consistent with the general plan (medium‑density residential) and the master planned development overlay, and subject to standard development and staff review conditions. The motion passed on roll call with Councilwoman Beck, Councilman Euler, Councilman Carden and Councilman Took voting yes.

The approval includes nine staff‑recommended conditions (on file with community development) addressing construction standards, staff comments and an amended development agreement. Staff told residents the city will continue coordination with irrigation entities and will provide supplemental information on rights‑of‑way and any future right‑of‑way acquisition steps.

Next steps: the developer will advance detailed engineering, address the listed staff conditions, and the council will receive future development‑agreement documents for formal execution.