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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Lehi City Council Meeting - December 10, 2024: Presentations, Attainable Housing, and School District Interlocal Amendment

Meeting Portal — Tuesday, December 10, 2024

BodyLehi, Utah

SessionMeeting Portal

DateTuesday, December 10, 2024

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 2:59:31

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:00

We ask for the blessing of safety upon all those who are not with us, especially those who are in service of our community both at home and abroad.

0:07

And we ask for the safe arrival of those who are not yet here this evening, given the traffic that is outdoors.

0:11

And we say these things in the name of Jesus Christ.

0:13

Amen.

0:14

Amen.

0:15

Thank you, Paige.

0:16

I guess for those that uh may be listening online or watching online, uh we did have a closed session advertised for the first thing tonight.

0:27

Uh the people that need to be involved in that closed session are stuck in traffic.

0:32

So we're gonna try to move ahead with uh uh one or maybe even two of our presentations beforehand.

0:41

Uh Dean, I hate to put the pressure on you, but Dean just walked in.

0:45

I think I'd be uh well we didn't think so either.

0:48

What a coincidence.

0:51

I just need to uh we're gonna do item 3.4 first if you think you because you're closer to being ready than anybody else right now.

1:15

It's possible first didn't realize it was five instead of five years.

1:19

On the screen, can you show?

1:30

Well, Dean's already up here.

1:32

I'll be sorry.

1:33

His won't take very long, so it's not taking very long.

1:36

Seems like at this point, let me go and go home.

2:02

Okay.

2:04

Yeah, we'll be brief.

2:05

So we do uh required to give a quarterly financial report.

2:10

I sent uh paper report out or a PDF of it out last Thursday.

2:15

The first quarter report typically doesn't have as much things going on because it's earlier in the year, and a lot of times a lot of our revenues don't come in until later, and so there's probably not as much information on the first quarter one as the other.

2:29

I don't know if anybody looked at it or had any questions or any concerns.

2:33

I didn't I didn't really have any concerns.

2:36

I didn't have any questions.

2:38

I found your information on Facebook, you know, the Facebook income interesting that that got missed somehow.

2:45

The Amazon.

2:45

Amazon, I'm sorry, Amazon.

2:47

Yeah, I that was interesting to see.

2:48

Yeah, it's just uh I called them, and it was just I don't know.

2:52

There's a lot of data going in there and out of there, and that's one that we would notice.

2:56

And so in fact I'll start with that, our sales tax slide.

3:02

Um so if you look at there's three sli three lines here, and this is calendar year, not fiscal year, so January through December.

3:09

The blue line is last year, the yellow line is our budget, and the red line is this year.

3:15

Um so the budget line is more of a the shape of the graph that I would I would consider.

3:22

In other words, last year was kind of weird that November was a lot higher than December.

3:27

Um this has been in kind of an odd year in the shape of how money has come in.

3:32

Now realizing this probably goes without saying, but you know, we have 12 months of sales tax reports, but it's not an even 12 months.

3:40

There are months that have more.

3:41

Uh obviously Christmas season is gonna have more, summer's gonna have more, March, June, September, and December are typically higher because a lot of businesses only report quarterly.

3:52

But um what we have seen this year, you know, other than April, is our receipts have kind of come in less than budget, even less than the previous year in some cases.

4:04

And that's not just the one bender.

4:07

There's I don't know, statewide it's down a little.

4:10

It's just not I think we're used to several years of year over year really high growth, and we haven't seen that recently, so um, but that's where we ear that's what that's where we are to date.

4:21

Again, it's not horrible, but it's not what we've seen over the past few years.

4:25

So Amazon doesn't account for the shortfall.

4:28

No, I mean a little bit of it.

4:30

But just state if you look at because it's not just Lehigh.

4:34

If I look at the statewide sales, they're they're not growing much either.

4:38

Okay.

4:39

And with regard to the overage, what are we at?

4:43

36 point something, 37 something.

4:47

It's like 36 percent, yeah.

4:49

Yeah.

4:50

So is that something that we could stop gaps with?

4:53

Yeah, so I'm still, I mean, when I say we're behind budget, we're a teeny bit behind budget.

5:00

Because you can look in July, we are ahead.

5:01

August and September we've been behind a little bit.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Parks and Recreation█████████████████17%

Community Engagement██████████████14%

Affordable Housing█████████████13%

Education███████████11%

Procedural████████8%

Engineering And Infrastructure████████8%

Government Structure██████6%

Zoning Regulations████4%

Fiscal Sustainability███3%

Summary of Proceedings

Lehi City Council Meeting - December 10, 2024

The Lehi City Council held a full meeting on December 10, 2024, starting with a pre-council session at 5:00 PM and a regular session at 7:00 PM. Due to traffic delays, the closed session was postponed, and presentations were moved forward. The council heard a quarterly finance report, a parks and recreation master plan presentation, and a chamber of commerce update. A lengthy discussion on the Attainable Housing Overlay Zone (AHOZ) resulted in a decision to schedule a future work session. The regular session included a proclamation for volunteerism, public comments, and approval of several resolutions, including a contested amendment to the interlocal agreement for the creation of a new school district.

Consent Calendar

Approved City Council minutes from October 8, 2024.
Approved purchase orders: Western United Electric Supply ($214,795.42) and Stuart C. Irby ($167,000).
Approved the 2025 City Council Meeting Schedule.
Approved Resolution #2024-60, amending the Interlocal Cooperation Agreement for the Utah County Major Crimes Task Force.
Item 4.5 (Resolution #2024-61, amendment to Water Infrastructure Development and Cost Sharing Agreement with Geneva Rock Products) was pulled from the consent agenda and polled separately (not approved in consent; voted on later? The transcript shows it was pulled but no further vote recorded; likely deferred or not passed. However, the summary should note it was pulled for separate consideration. Per accuracy, we note it was pulled but no decision is shown in transcript. Assume it was not approved at this meeting.)

Public Comments & Testimony

Ranked Choice Voting: A citizen spoke against ranked choice voting, calling it complicated and urging the city to return to traditional voting, noting that the current system forces voters to rank candidates in a way that may not reflect their true preferences.
Civil Air Patrol: Casey Smith, representing the Utah Wing of the Civil Air Patrol, invited the council and community to a unit activation ceremony for a new cadet squadron at the Utah Military Academy Lehigh campus on January 9, 2025.
HADCO Industrial Noise: Ross Carter expressed frustration with ongoing noise and light pollution from the HADCO facility (zoned light industrial), stating that enforcement has been lacking and that the city council has failed to address the issue for over a decade. He threatened political consequences if no action is taken.
Traffic Safety Proposal: Two Sky Ridge High School seniors, Austin Coons and Ella Giants, proposed adding two stop signs to create a three-way stop at the intersection of East Airport Drive and North 600 East Street to improve pedestrian safety for the new family park. The mayor directed the traffic engineer to review the MUTCD guidelines.

Discussion Items

Quarterly Finance Report (Pre-Council): Finance Director Dean presented a first-quarter report. Sales tax receipts are slightly below budget and prior year, but not alarming. The city's general fund balance is about 35%. Development fees (building permits) are down from 2021 peaks but similar to 2023. The park tax has collected $4.3 million, with $3 million available for capital projects (earmarked for Family Park). The city is working with its insurer to determine appropriate reserve levels for natural disasters.
Parks and Recreation Master Plan (Pre-Council): Anna Layborn (Design Workshop) and Scott Kerrin (Ballard King) presented the draft plan. Key findings: Lehi's population has grown 56% in the last decade, with high youth demographics. The city has 73 park properties (1,670 acres), 25 miles of natural trails, and 60 miles of paved trails. The Legacy Center is highly utilized (25% market penetration), with significant waitlists (60% for youth team sports). The outdoor pool is nearing the end of its useful life. Community survey (2,289 responses) indicated high support (80%) for additional funding for parks, with top desires for splash pads, natural areas, and trails. The plan’s five themes: Engaging Outdoor Experiences, Diverse Play & Programming, Community Connection & Identity, Matching Resources to Growth, and Nurturing Nature. No decisions were made; the plan will be refined.
Point of the Mountain Chamber of Commerce Report (Pre-Council): Marcy, new chamber president, reported on the past year’s activities, including ribbon cuttings, membership growth to over 400 (50% Lehi businesses), and events like Halloween on Main Street (1,500 kids). The chamber plans to focus on serving all business sizes, expanding training, and promoting local commerce. The council expressed appreciation for the chamber’s use of the Historic Railroad Depot.
Attainable Housing Overlay Zone (Pre-Council): Brittany and Jason Harris presented the AHOZ proposal (formerly CHAWS). The voluntary, discretionary overlay would allow developers to increase density in exchange for pricing homes at least 20% below market median, targeting critical/essential workers, first-time homebuyers, and Lehi residents not currently homeowners. Key mechanisms include a 10-year deed restriction, owner-occupancy requirement, and limited equity capture (up to 5 years). Council members expressed concerns: the ordinance may not meet state moderate-income housing goals (80% AMI), could use zoning to control land prices (a role not intended for zoning), and may not address infrastructure capacity (water, sewer, traffic). The council decided to schedule a future work session to discuss the proposal in more depth, possibly including other affordable housing strategies.

Key Outcomes

Proclamation for Commitment to Volunteerism: Approved unanimously. The city committed to promoting volunteerism via JustServe.org.
Resolution #2024-62 (Broadband Infrastructure Grant): Approved (unanimous) to pre-register for the BEAD grant program; actual application will come back to council.
Sunrise Office Building Condominium Conversion: Approved (unanimous) with all DRC comments.
Ordinance #67-2024 (Development Code Amendment, Chapter 37): Approved (4-0) to add an exception to connectivity standards for vehicular safety, with the word “however” removed from section 5A. The amendment allows a stub street to be closed to vehicular traffic (but maintain pedestrian/bike connectivity) due to grade differences and safety concerns, subject to planning commission and DRC review.
Resolution #2024-59 (School District Interlocal Amendment): Approved (3-1, Michelle opposed). Councilmember Michelle voted no, stating the amendment expands city roles beyond state code (53G-3-202) and that the city should not be involved in dividing assets or naming the school district. The majority argued it is necessary to keep work moving until a new school board is elected and legislation clarifies responsibilities. The amendment requires unanimous approval from all six participating cities (Lehi, Cedar Hills, Highland, Alpine, American Fork, Draper).
Appointments:
- Library Board: Susan Peterson appointed (unanimous).
- Planning Commission: Nicole Coonsey, Tyson Iyer, Greg Jackson, and Bo Jones reappointed (unanimous).
Adjournment: Meeting adjourned at approximately 9:30 PM.

Meeting Transcript

We ask for the blessing of safety upon all those who are not with us, especially those who are in service of our community both at home and abroad. And we ask for the safe arrival of those who are not yet here this evening, given the traffic that is outdoors. And we say these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. Amen. Thank you, Paige. I guess for those that uh may be listening online or watching online, uh we did have a closed session advertised for the first thing tonight. Uh the people that need to be involved in that closed session are stuck in traffic. So we're gonna try to move ahead with uh uh one or maybe even two of our presentations beforehand. Uh Dean, I hate to put the pressure on you, but Dean just walked in. I think I'd be uh well we didn't think so either. What a coincidence. I just need to uh we're gonna do item 3.4 first if you think you because you're closer to being ready than anybody else right now. It's possible first didn't realize it was five instead of five years. On the screen, can you show? Well, Dean's already up here. I'll be sorry. His won't take very long, so it's not taking very long. Seems like at this point, let me go and go home. Okay. Yeah, we'll be brief. So we do uh required to give a quarterly financial report. I sent uh paper report out or a PDF of it out last Thursday. The first quarter report typically doesn't have as much things going on because it's earlier in the year, and a lot of times a lot of our revenues don't come in until later, and so there's probably not as much information on the first quarter one as the other. I don't know if anybody looked at it or had any questions or any concerns. I didn't I didn't really have any concerns. I didn't have any questions. I found your information on Facebook, you know, the Facebook income interesting that that got missed somehow. The Amazon. Amazon, I'm sorry, Amazon. Yeah, I that was interesting to see. Yeah, it's just uh I called them, and it was just I don't know. There's a lot of data going in there and out of there, and that's one that we would notice. And so in fact I'll start with that, our sales tax slide. Um so if you look at there's three sli three lines here, and this is calendar year, not fiscal year, so January through December. The blue line is last year, the yellow line is our budget, and the red line is this year. Um so the budget line is more of a the shape of the graph that I would I would consider. In other words, last year was kind of weird that November was a lot higher than December. Um this has been in kind of an odd year in the shape of how money has come in. Now realizing this probably goes without saying, but you know, we have 12 months of sales tax reports, but it's not an even 12 months. There are months that have more. Uh obviously Christmas season is gonna have more, summer's gonna have more, March, June, September, and December are typically higher because a lot of businesses only report quarterly. But um what we have seen this year, you know, other than April, is our receipts have kind of come in less than budget, even less than the previous year in some cases. And that's not just the one bender. There's I don't know, statewide it's down a little. It's just not I think we're used to several years of year over year really high growth, and we haven't seen that recently, so um, but that's where we ear that's what that's where we are to date. Again, it's not horrible, but it's not what we've seen over the past few years. So Amazon doesn't account for the shortfall. No, I mean a little bit of it. But just state if you look at because it's not just Lehigh.

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