Planning commission clears multiple Wasatch Peaks Ranch applications and flags procedural review questions

The Morgan County Planning Commission on March 26 recommended approval of several Wasatch Peaks Ranch applications and approved a small subdivision plat, with unanimous votes and a pledge from staff to review plat labeling for irrigation ditches.

Planning staff presented three related items for the Wasatch Peaks Ranch development at roughly 5233 West Wasatch Peaks Road: a site plan (application 25.054) for six townhomes, a companion small subdivision preliminary and final plat (application 25.055) for the six units, and a preliminary‑plat modification (application 25.051) to define 18 lots in Phases 6 C and 6 D of the larger development. Staff said the site plan and plats met applicable checklists and review requirements (engineering, drainage, photometrics for dark‑sky compliance and fire review) and recommended approval or recommendation to the County Commission as appropriate.

For the site plan (25.054), staff noted that engineered plans, a landscaping plan and a photometrics plan had been submitted and that the Morgan County Fire Department had reviewed and approved fire protection measures. The commission unanimously voted to recommend the site plan to the Morgan County Commission.

Commissioners approved the small subdivision plat (25.055) for the six townhome units (three buildings) on a combined 3.07‑acre site; because it is a small subdivision, staff explained preliminary and final plat review were combined. For the preliminary‑plat modification (25.051), staff described a broader phase of the development (combined approximately 276.6 acres) with lot sizes ranging from about 0.74 acres to 7.23 acres; the commission voted to recommend that modification to the County Commission.

The meeting included several procedural questions. Commissioners asked why site plans are routed to the County Commission while plats can be approved administratively or by the Planning Commission. Staff said that was the existing direction from county leadership and suggested the commission discuss a possible change with the County Commission; several commissioners asked to have the topic placed on a future agenda to consider aligning land‑use authority for site plans and plats.

Neighbors and commissioners also raised irrigation‑ditch concerns that overlapped with the Wasatch Peaks Ranch items. A public commenter and one commissioner noted ditches that run through development phases; planning staff said they had previously labeled some lines as stormwater but, after conversations with the commissioner and with Wasatch Peaks Ranch representatives, agreed to list those features as irrigation ditches on future plats and would check code requirements for mandatory labeling.

All motions related to the Wasatch Peaks Ranch items passed unanimously; staff will forward the county‑commission recommendations and confirm any ministerial plat labeling and easement requirements before recordation or final action by the County Commission.