Fairview planners weigh smaller-lot housing

FAIRVIEW — The Fairview City Planning Commission spent much of its March 3 meeting discussing whether city rules should be adjusted to allow smaller-lot housing.

The meeting’s longest discussion centered on an affordable housing presentation from David Mast, who told the commission he wants to build modest starter homes in town where water and sewer are already in place.

“Affordable housing, where do we find it?” Mast said. “First-time buyers are going to have to spend at minimum $350,000 to $450,000 for their first home.”
He said he would like to see one of his proposed homes “sell at about $280,000 at top.”

Mast said he was looking at property on Brady Lane (N. 200 West) and described smaller homes modeled loosely on compact housing found in Moroni, but with more spacing and a more traditional single-family appearance. He told the commission he wanted “lot in town because of sewer and water and all that,” adding that building where utilities already exist would be “more economical than doing your septic systems.”

City discussion showed that the main obstacle was not minimum lot area as much as frontage. A city representative told the commission Fairview’s current code requires 90 feet of frontage and said the Brady Lane property might work better at 80 feet.

Commission Chair Jason Mardell said the parcel could still meet the city’s 10,000-square-foot requirement even if frontage remained the sticking point.
“It just doesn’t meet the frontage,” Mardell said during the discussion. Later, he added that while he did not have the authority to change the standard himself, “80 would be awesome.”

Public comment during the discussion reflected support for trying to create more entry-level housing. Mike Ricks told the commission he liked the idea because Mast appeared willing to hold prices down instead of simply charging as much as the market would bear.

“What I like about this opportunity, if there’s a way to do it, is that he’s willing to keep it affordable, and not just go to the market,” Ricks said.

The commission then discussed whether to handle the issue through a project-specific exception or through a broader zoning change. One speaker said the city could consider a nonconforming approach for a specific project but also raised the possibility of, “a zoning area where we could zone an area with some smaller lot sizes.” Another participant said a designated zone would be preferable so, “everybody knows,” what standards apply in that area.

Mardell suggested the matter might also intersect with the city’s minor subdivision process, depending on what the new code allows. Still, the discussion ended without formal action. One city speaker told commissioners, “I think that’s the way probably to go,” referring to more research on lot sizes and frontage standards, while also cautioning, “tonight’s not the night to make the decision.”