Lehi City Council and Redevelopment Agency Meeting Summary - October 27, 2026

The Lehi City Council met for a pre-council work session at 4:30 p.m. and a regular session at 7:00 p.m. on October 27, 2026, in the Lehi City Council Chambers (131 N. 100 E., Lehi, Utah). The pre-council featured department outlook presentations from Parks, Streets, Engineering, Finance, and Administration, followed by a working discussion on General Plan goals and policies. The regular session included an Epilepsy Awareness Month proclamation, a citizen award, the consent agenda, a Lehi Redevelopment Agency (RDA) meeting, a budget amendment public hearing, a concept plan request, a zone change, and an annexation. A closed session was held from approximately 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. before the regular session.

Consent Calendar

• Resolution #2026-67 approving an agreement with Hughes General Contractors, Inc. for the Public Works Storage Building was approved 5-0. Councilmember Lockhart noted the project is a significant investment of over $10 million and is needed because the city lacks adequate storage for current and future equipment under the public works master plan.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Citizen input was opened at 7:31 p.m. and closed with no speakers.
• Public hearings for the FY 2026-2027 Budget Amendment and the Logan Annexation were opened and closed with no public testimony.

Pre-Council Presentations and Reports

• Parks Department (Greg): The cemetery master plan for the upper cemetery includes a new office building, memorial event space, and expanded tree canopy; Lakeview Park is about 70% complete and will open in spring; the courthouse relocation to the old city hall is in design, with architectural work expected to conclude around May-June; playground replacements are out to bid for Olympic Park and Chapel Valley Parks; staffing requests include one trails position, one leisure parks position, and a volunteer coordinator.
• Streets Department (BJ Benson): The next budget cycle will request one street-sign operator and a fifth concrete crew member, with an asphalt operator possible by 2030. A city tree study identified over 2,000 trees, over half of which are undesirable species in planter strips. Last winter brought 3.7 inches of snow; the coming winter forecast is 50-65 inches. The city estimates $10,000 of salt per storm and has both salt bays full.
• Engineering (Brad Kennison): Staffing projections include a project manager next year, an engineer technician, a CAD technician by 2030, and a land surveyor/design engineer by 2031. Major projects include 2300 West right-of-way acquisition (20 properties, construction expected spring 2028), Pony Express Parkway (30% design, construction targeted 2028), the SR-92 pedestrian bridge, the FrontRunner trail (UDOT-funded), and the Point of the Mountain connector design study. CDBG-funded sidewalks are prioritized by proximity to schools and parks. Five traffic signals are planned over five years, including Willow Lane/Main Street and 850 East/200 South. Sewer work includes the Willow Lane pump station (80% design) and trunk lines along 17th West, plus a sewer bore under I-15 to enable development in the station area plan bowl.
• Finance (Dean Lundell): The 9-person department handles about 800 accounts payable checks per month, pays 1,100 employees biweekly, processes about 450 utility billing applications monthly, and serves about 32,500 power customers. The department budget is just under $1.6 million, with 85% for staffing and 60% funded through utility funds. The ERP system (Caselle) may need replacement in the future, which could cost several hundred thousand dollars per year.
• Administration: Future personnel requests will shift several part-time positions to full-time (events, communications, venue coordinator for the community room), add an HR training coordinator, and eventually add a videographer/graphic designer. Staff noted long-term interest in a concert or convention center through a partnership with the county or private sector.

Working Discussion: General Plan Goals and Policies

• Staff (Kim and Mike) presented maps highlighting conflict areas where heavy commercial and light industrial zoning touches residential designations, including the Walker property/Hadco area and a neighborhood southeast of it. They showed SketchUp visualizations of current buffering standards (8-foot fencing, required trees, setback distances) comparing warehouse and retail building scenarios from a residential backyard view.
• Council members discussed creating transition or buffer zones (potentially modeled on the Walker development agreement) between residential and more intense uses, possibly including a new zone with limited uses such as office space. Council requested an overlay map showing undeveloped land to distinguish current vs. future conflict areas.
• The council expressed support for a targeted, mini general-plan update rather than a wholesale revision, with public open houses for property owner input. Staff will refine the maps, and council members will review the plan's 16 goals to identify priorities. This will be an ongoing monthly work item.

Mayor and Council Reports

• A council member reported a library board concern that updated code language prevents alternate members from participating in discussion unless substituting for a voting member; the member suggested this may fit formal bodies like the planning commission but not the less formal library board.
• Council thanked the mayor and staff for the 2300 West solution funding a sidewalk and fence, noting neighbors are thrilled.
• Council recognized the North Lake Park community event held with Utah County over the weekend.
• Upcoming items: Lehi Junction historical marker unveiling November 7 at 11 a.m.; Hutching Museum events including the Skinwalker Ranch presentation (November 6-7) and the Magical Museum (November 20-21); Lehi Temple groundbreaking announced for December 5 (invitation only). Legislative watch items include a possible cap on municipal reserves, property tax discussions, and possible removal of moderate income housing goals.

Presentations and Awards (Regular Session)

• Epilepsy Awareness Month Proclamation: The mayor read the proclamation, and Sarah Hansen of the Epilepsy Foundation of Utah accepted. Statistics cited: nearly 3.4 million people in the U.S. including 34,000 in Utah live with active epilepsy; 30-40% of people with epilepsy have uncontrolled seizures; 25% of the public would be nervous around a person with epilepsy; 1 in 26 people develop epilepsy in their lifetime. November was proclaimed Epilepsy Awareness Month.
• Citizen Award: Tara Sandstrom received a Certificate of Recognition from the Lehi City Police Department for placing herself in the path of a moving vehicle on September 16, 2016, to protect children she was helping across an intersection.

Redevelopment Agency Session

The council recessed into the Lehi Redevelopment Agency meeting at approximately 7:34 p.m. to consider Resolution R-2026-09, an economic development agreement with Garff Properties (Metal Point LLC) for new car dealership incentives.

• Staff (Marlon) explained that the existing 2019 community reinvestment area (CRA) provides $250,000 incentives for the first three dealerships; two are used (Land Rover Jaguar and Porsche), with one remaining. The proposed new agreement created a $1.5 million incentive bucket for up to four additional new-car dealerships, drawn down as impact fees are incurred.
• The RDA has recouped about $600,000 and has approximately $6.6 million in obligations, including reimbursement to the city for Ashton Boulevard right-of-way and prior incentives. If dealerships are built every other year, the RDA projects it could pay off its obligations and still come out about $2.4 million ahead before the CRA expires in 2039. A council member confirmed the incentive is funded through sales tax increment rebates generated by the dealerships themselves, not from general fund appropriations.
• A council member raised the state Prohibition on Retail Facility Incentive Payments Act; staff stated the dealerships qualify for an exception because their retail sales floor space is under 20,000 square feet (only about a quarter of gross building area is retail space).
• Councilmember Newell made the successful motion to table R-2026-09 with direction to staff to prepare a revised agreement including: honor the 2019 agreement with the remaining $250,000 applied to the next new dealership; a Toyota-specific impact fee credit up to $500,000 (no unused credit carries to another building); building permit issued before January 1, 2030 (deadline pauses up to 12 months for a state franchise protest); the store must open within 18 months of permit issuance; and the dealership must operate in Lehi for 15 years or repay the credit pro-rata.
• Other council members expressed positions during discussion: one member initially proposed a $1 million cap with $250,000 per-dealership buckets, building-permit milestones every two years, and a 10-year stay covenant. Another council member criticized retail incentives as incentive wars that enrich developers and transfer economic activity, citing the city's prior $1 million incentive to bring Porsche/Audi from Orem and that dealership's later relocation within Lehi after the CRA ended.
• Outcome: The board voted 5-0 to table the resolution with the direction to bring back a written agreement at the first meeting in November.

Discussion Items and Public Hearings

• Budget Amendment FY 2026-2027 (Resolution #2026-68): The public hearing was opened and closed at 8:49 p.m. with no comments. The amendment includes carryover budget items, $300,000 for Station 81 redesign, $25,000 for risk damage (matching the city's insurance deductible), and use of proceeds from selling small parcels of park land to property owners who had encroached on city property. One council member noted Station 81 redesign had been discussed during the June budget sessions; staff said they would review records to ensure it was included. Approved 5-0.
• Tapley Project Concept (58 South 300 West): Petitioner Tapley Mitchell, a disabled veteran, proposed adding four townhome units while retaining existing structures, with two covered carport parking spaces per unit. The property is in a Mixed Use zone; because the city changed the mixed-use code in July to require 50% commercial uses and 30% individual ownership, the project became non-conforming. Since no formal application was filed before the change, the applicant could not be grandfathered. The council voted 4-1 to table the concept plan with direction to staff to draft a development agreement consistent with the proposal, including carports, waiver of the commercial requirement, and waiver of the individual ownership requirement. Councilmember Lockhart voted no, stating a preference for fixing the mixed-use code rather than creating another development agreement. Staff was also directed to bring a mixed-use code review to a future work session.
• 802 West State Street Zone Change (Ordinance #49-2026): Petitioner Lawrence Snow requested changing 0.72 acres from Mixed Use to Heavy Commercial; he owns the adjacent 830 and 850 parcels, already Heavy Commercial, and plans retail uses on the site. Staff confirmed the 8-foot buffering wall requirement still applies if a neighboring property within the Mixed Use zone is used residentially, unless waived by the neighbor. The ordinance was approved 5-0 with DRC comments and a general plan consistency finding.
• Logan Annexation (Resolution #2026-64 and Ordinance #50-2026): The public hearing was opened and closed at 9:37 p.m. with no comments. The council first approved the annexation agreement 5-0 for 2.68 acres at approximately 1300 S 1700 W with R-1-22 and TH-5 (transitional holding) zoning. During the ordinance discussion, petitioner Danny Logan stated he intended to annex only about half an acre around his home, not the full 2.68 acres; the plat submitted by his engineer showed the entire parcel being annexed. The council voted 5-0 to table Ordinance #50-2026 and rescind Resolution #2026-64 to clarify whether Utah County will allow annexation of a portion of a single unified parcel. The item is scheduled to return at the November 10 council meeting.

Key Outcomes

• Closed session: entered by unanimous roll call at approximately 6:00 p.m. in the Timpanogos Room under Utah Code 52-4-205.
• Consent agenda (Resolution #2026-67): approved 5-0.
• RDA Resolution R-2026-09: tabled 5-0 with specific revised terms and instruction to return in November.
• Budget amendment (Resolution #2026-68): approved 5-0.
• Tapley Project Concept: tabled 4-1 with direction for a development agreement and separate mixed-use code review; Councilmember Lockhart dissenting.
• Ordinance #49-2026 (802 W State Street): approved 5-0.
• Logan Annexation: Resolution #2026-64 initially approved 5-0 then rescinded 5-0; Ordinance #50-2026 tabled 5-0; return November 10.
• Items 6.5 and 6.6 (Library Board alternate appointments, Resolutions #2026-66 and #2026-65) were not reached before adjournment.