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Smithfield planners assign review of industrial corridor buffers, direct code updates
Summary
The Planning Commission directed Commissioners Mike Beckstead and Brad Thatcher to review a rapidly building industrial corridor west of Highway 91 and recommend buffer zones, map edits and changes to City Code Sections 17.80 (M-1) and 17.72 (GC); staff noted mitigation tools such as nuisance ordinances and Conditional Use Permits.
The Smithfield Planning Commission on May 20 assigned two commissioners to draft recommendations to limit potential impacts from a rapidly expanding industrial corridor west of Highway 91.
Chairman Jim Marshall said the corridor—between North Logan, Hyde Park and Smithfield—has seen fast industrial build-out and that the Commission should consider how future industrial uses interface with nearby residences and agricultural land. The Commission agreed that industrial development can bolster the city’s tax base but may create conflicts with adjacent uses.
Commissioner Mike Beckstead volunteered to review the parcels and asked the group to consider how buffer requirements could address aesthetic concerns and operational impacts such as odors. Commissioner Brad Thatcher also volunteered and said he wanted clearer definitions of which uses are permitted in the corridor and where they should be allowed.
Planning staff outlined specific tasks for Beckstead and Thatcher: review the Future Land Use Map and parcel map for the approximate area bounded by 100 East–800 East and 300 South to the long‑term annexation boundary (noted as 4400 North), recommend whether buffers are needed and how to depict them on the map, and propose edits to design standards and to City Code Sections 17.80 (M‑1) and 17.72 (GC). The Commission asked that recommendations be returned in one to two months for review and possible forwarding to the City Council.
Staff pointed to existing mitigation tools, including nuisance ordinances and the Conditional Use Permit process, as means to address traffic, noise and odor concerns raised during the discussion. Chairman Marshall suggested resources such as the Utah Land Institute and the Utah League of Cities and Towns for model code language.
The Commission’s assignment is procedural: it does not enact code changes tonight but establishes the review team and timeline for proposed buffer and code recommendations.
