Ivins City: Little but growing
Ivins, where I live, doesn’t get much attention compared to our county’s bigger cities, St. George and Washington City. But it’s growing and feeling the same growing pains as other cities in the area: perceived water challenges, increasing traffic, a need for more commercial tax revenue, concerns about large and intrusive development projects, poor development decisions, and the need for affordable (now called “attainable”) housing.
In January at a neighborhood meeting during which Mayor Hart and city manager and attorney Dale Coulam described a variety of issues affecting the city including the building of a new city hall to handle the growth, citizens were encouraged to review the city’s General Plan and specifically the city’s Moderate Income Housing Plan.
Many who moved to Ivins in the early 2000s, a community that several decades earlier was full of trailer homes, brought their money and planted roots in large, expensive homes with large properties helping to drive up the cost of housing in the area. With the effects of the rebounding economy following the Great Recession and the allure of living in Ivins with its new “moneyed” appearance, growth picked up again with the addition of new neighborhoods, a new medical school, a planned resort called Sentierre, and more, including multi-family housing to help meet the demand for reasonable-cost housing.
But all has not gone as smoothly as hoped, and some citizens question decisions that seem to be leaving Ivins somewhat scarred.
Since 2016, there has been very little progress on the “upscale” Sentierre project. The project sits just outside the scenic and much-visited Tuacahn outdoor amphitheater, but the area leading to Tuacahn is now marred by the clearing of the land proposed for the Sentierre development. Although there are construction trailers on site, the project appears to be in limbo at this point.
Other land such as that on which Rocky Vista School sits have also been cleared of natural vegetation, leaving areas that otherwise could have been left as they were until any real construction began, barren and with no effort to landscape.
Then there is the corner at the newest Ivins roundabout, which sits at the junction of Snow Canyon Parkway, Tuacahn Drive, and Snow Canyon Drive. Vacant lots exist on the north side with plans underway for a commercial development on the northeast side. The ethos concerning private property rights are strongly in favor of the property owner in our city, and the ordinances that affect the property at this busy roundabout have been written so that the owner can build what may add greatly to traffic challenges at busy times.
The city’s “Table of Uses” under “Zoning Regulations” (16.33.102: Table 33-2, Table of Uses, Nonresidential Zoning) gives the property developer the right to build a gas station there. Given that this is one of the major intersections in Ivins next to Red Mountain Spa and leading to Tuacahn and Snow Canyon Park, all popular tourist destinations, it’s unfortunate that when the table of uses was being developed citizens and leaders alike did not give more “specific” consideration to commercial property locations and what might end up there. So now, not only will Ivins have the unsightly Sentierre project affecting the views leading to Tuacahn but it will also have a busy area including a gas station and restaurant at the corner leading to Tuacahn.
Ivins touts itself as a “resort destination.” But with views such as this, some citizens, myself included, are beginning to wonder what the vision really is.
Now citizens are being encouraged to review city plans and ordinances including the table of uses to help ensure similar problems do not occur in the future. I applaud Ivins citizens who are willing to serve on the Planning Commission and City Council, positions that require them to oversee our complex ordinances. Those are big jobs. But citizens need to help too. If citizens are concerned about unsightly developments, they should learn how areas are zoned, what type of development might be allowed there and communicate concerns to leaders about shortcomings they see in the plans and ordinances.
The viewpoints expressed above are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Independent.
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