Commission recommends Veranda West master plan changes, including proposed surf park amid water and noise concerns

The Draper City Planning Commission voted to send positive recommendations to the city council on the Veranda West master area plan amendment and a related zoning text amendment and to approve a conditional‑use permit for an outdoor recreation surf park, while adding conditions on hours and noise mitigation.

Todd Taylor, the city planning staff contact, told commissioners the applicant proposes adding 32 stacked‑flat residential units, increasing retail by 1.16 acres and adding an 8.8‑acre outdoor recreation surf park as part of a reconfigured site plan for roughly 31.27 acres. Taylor said staff is recommending that the surf park submit a noise study and comply with the city's and county's noise standards as conditions of approval.

Jackson Shepherd, representing City Center Draper Holdings, said the surf lagoon would be part of a closed, recirculating system and that “the pool will use about 4,000,000 gallons of water” for the one‑time fill and that ongoing losses would be primarily evaporation. He added the project team had third‑party water‑use analyses and said, “it's actually very efficient use of water,” compared with other uses such as golf courses.

Commissioners pressed the applicants on water and parking. Adam Langford of Wasatch Residential Group said the residential components meet city parking code and that the development team would manage parking and operations across the project. Commissioners asked for a noise‑study requirement and suggested surf‑park hours be limited to avoid late‑night disturbance; staff recommended opening no earlier than 6 a.m. and closing no later than 11 p.m. as part of the conditional‑use permit.

On formal motions, the commission voted to forward a positive recommendation to city council on the master area plan and on the zoning text amendment, and approved the conditional‑use permit; at each step, one commissioner recorded a 'no' vote on the recommendation while the rest voted yes. The conditional‑use permit will not take effect unless and until the city council approves the legislative items (the master area plan and the text amendment).