Parowan planners oppose R-3 rezone for ‘Jack Rabbit Flats,’ say R-2 would be preferable

The Parowan City Planning and Zoning Commission on May 6 voted unanimously to send a negative recommendation to City Council on a request to rezone parcel A-0026-0027-0000 from A-1 (Agricultural) to R-3 (High Density Residential), while stating that the commission would support an R-2 designation instead.

City Manager Dan Jessen introduced the application and presented a preliminary conceptual layout informally referred to as "Jack Rabbit Flats," showing 36 single-family lots. "The owner had been reluctant to rezone the entire parcel out of a desire to keep a portion in Greenbelt status, not realizing that zoning designation has no effect on Greenbelt eligibility—only the use of the land matters," Jessen said. Applicant engineer Jeffrey Thomas confirmed "the original intent had been to use 6,000 square foot lots," and said R-3 would provide flexibility for that lot mix.

Commissioners raised concerns about the structure types R-3 would permit. Commissioner Jamie Bonnett — backed by Commissioner Weston Reese and Councilmember David Harris — said she preferred R-2 because R-3 allows duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes that might not match neighboring development. Jessen told the commission that while R-3 allows different structure types, the maximum density under the city's ERU (equivalent residential unit) calculations is comparable with R-2; R-3 simply permits multi-unit building forms in addition to single-family types.

Traffic and access were also raised as material considerations. Commissioner Weston Reese noted the area currently funnels to a small number of ingress/egress points to 600 West; Jessen referenced the Transportation Master Plan showing planned roads, including an extension of 100 North and a connection to Center Street, and said the subdivision review process could require a second ingress/egress point.

The commission voted to forward a negative recommendation on the R-3 rezoning to City Council with explicit notation that it would support an R-2 designation. The motion was made by Commissioner Jamie Bonnett and seconded by Commissioner Weston Reese and carried unanimously (5-0).

Next steps: City Council will consider the zone change at a future public hearing; the commission noted a second public hearing before council would be required because residents had raised concerns about whether the original posting had been adequate.