Council adopts updated development-agreement ordinance, repeals older code

Emigration Canyon's council on July 24 approved ordinance 2026-007 to add a modern development-agreement provision to the municipal code and repeal the older ordinance 18.04.040.

Claire Gilmore, the city's land use attorney, told the council the tool is "a land use tool where, essentially, it is a legislative decision" that lets the city negotiate design standards and other conditions with developers in special circumstances. She said the proposed ordinance aligns local code with state statute and provides clearer steps and parameters for staff and applicants.

Council members asked how the new language would apply to subdivisions and individual property owners; Gilmore said the provision is most likely to be used on unimproved land or atypical proposals but remains flexible. After a motion and second, the council adopted the ordinance in a roll-call vote. The ordinance repeals the previous development-agreement section and adds exhibit A language to Title 19 for future use.

What happens next: the ordinance takes effect per the city's adoption rules and will be used as a discretionary tool when applications require negotiated compromises on setbacks, height or other standards. Staff said redline comparisons were attempted at the planning-commission level but that files were too fragmented, which is why the council accepted a modernized replacement.