General Information

Government Type

Municipality

Entity

Kaysville

Public Body

Kaysville Planning Commission

Notice Information

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Notice Title

Kaysville City Planning Commission Meeting Minutes

Notice Type(s)

Meeting

Event Start Date & Time

December 11, 2025 07:00 PM

Event End Date & Time

December 11, 2025 09:00 PM

Event Deadline Date & Time

12/11/25 07:00 PM

Description/Agenda

Kaysville City Planning Commission Meeting Minutes December 11, 2025 The Planning Commission meeting was held on Thursday, December 11, at 7:00 p.m. in the Kaysville City Hall located at 23 East Center Street. Planning Commission Members in Attendance: Chair Mike Packer, Commissioners Wilf Sommerkorn, David Moore, and Megan Sevy Staff in Attendance: Josh Belnap, Melinda Greenwood, Katie Ellis, Anne McNamara, and Mindi Edstrom, Public Attendees: Val Starkey, Jill Dredge, Liz Jackson, and Christine Richmond 1 - WELCOME AND MEETING ORDER Chair Packer welcomed all in attendance at the Kaysville City Planning Commission meeting. 2 - DECLARATION OF CONFLICTS OF INTEREST There were no conflicts of interest. 3 - PUBLIC HEARING ON AMENDING THE 2022 GENERAL PLAN TO INCLUDE WATER USE AND PRESERVATION REQUIRED BY THE UTAH STATE CODE 10-20-404 GENERAL PLAN PREPARATION Melinda Greenwood presented background information regarding the state-mandated addition of a water use, preservation, and conservation element to the City's General Plan. She explained that Senate Bill 110 requires cities of Kaysville's size to adopt this element by the end of the year to ensure that land use decisions are aligned with available water resources and to prevent over-development beyond existing water capacity. The element is intended to evaluate whether sufficient water exists for both indoor and outdoor uses associated with new development and redevelopment. Ms. Greenwood noted that the legislation requires the city to analyze how various development patterns impact water demand, acknowledging that residential development, particularly on larger lots, generally consumes more water than many commercial uses, though some commercial or light-industrial operations may also be high-use depending on activity. The plan must also identify strategies to reduce per-capita water use in both existing and future development, evaluate opportunities for water conservation in city operations, and formalize coordination with local water providers. Ms. Greenwood stated that Kaysville does not produce its own water, but instead purchases wholesale culinary water from Weber Basin Water and distributes it through the city's water system. In addition, the community is served by multiple secondary water companies, resulting in the need to coordinate with approximately five total water providers as part of this effort. Ms. Greenwood explained the requirements of Senate Bill 110 are now codified in Utah Code §10-20-404, which establishes expectations for future water-related planning, data evaluation, and system capacity review extending at least 20 years into the future, with updates required every five years. As part of compliance, the city has worked with the Division of Water Resources, the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food, Weber Basin Water Conservancy District and secondary irrigation companies. She described how the new water element will be incorporated into the General Plan alongside the city's future land-use map, adding goals, objectives, monitoring provisions, and analytical tools to help assess how land-use decisions may affect water supply and infrastructure. Ms. Greenwood concluded by noting that the city is also required to prepare a separate water conservation plan specific to its distribution system and acknowledged Public Works Director Josh Belnap for leading that effort. She stated that the timing of the legislation allowed the water conservation plan to be prepared in a way that supports both operational objectives and integration into the General Plan water element, after which she turned the presentation over to Mr. Belnap for further explanation. Josh Belnap provided an overview of Kaysville city's drinking water system, water usage patterns, and contractual supply capacity. He explained that while multiple providers serve the community, Kaysville city is the provider of culinary (drinking) water citywide, and three separate entities-Haight's Creek, Benchland, and Davis and Weber-supply secondary irrigation water. He noted that the city is in the process of updating its 2025 Water Conservation Plan, which is required by the state and must be revised every five years, and that this effort has been coordinated with the new General Plan water element. Mr. Belnap outlined typical water-use distribution patterns along the Wasatch Front, stating that approximately 80 percent of residential water consumption is for outdoor irrigation while about 20 percent is used indoors for household purposes that ultimately discharge to the sewer system. He emphasized that the city's operational focus is primarily on that indoor culinary water component, since it is the portion managed directly by the municipal system. Kaysville is distinct from some other communities because it does not operate its own irrigation system and does not generally rely on culinary water for landscape irrigation; instead, about 94 percent of properties in the city have access to both culinary and secondary irrigation services. He explained that this dual-system approach has been developed intentionally over the past several decades to reduce strain on the drinking water system. Mr. Belnap also described the concept of 'Equivalent Residential Connections' (ERCs), a measurement tool used to compare the water usage of different property types to that of a standard single-family home, which is treated as one ERC regardless of household size. Higher-demand commercial uses, such as restaurants, may account for multiple ERCs, while low-use commercial spaces may be less than one ERC. He reviewed current culinary water supply figures, noting that all drinking water is purchased from Weber Basin Water Conservancy District under a contract totaling approximately 2,700 acre-feet annually. The city also has access to an average of about 400 acre-feet of additional effective supply through credited spring water rights that Weber Basin applies toward treatment and irrigation operations, resulting in an effective contract capacity of roughly 3,100 acre-feet. In recent years, Kaysville has used about 2,400 acre-feet annually, leaving approximately 300 acre-feet of remaining capacity before reaching the base contract amount, not including the additional spring-water credit buffer. Commissioner Sommerkorn asked for clarification regarding how future water-demand projections are calculated, noting that Kaysville has limited remaining developable land and suggesting that population growth may not increase at the same rate as the projected increase in Equivalent Residential Connections (ERCs). Mr. Belnap responded that the projections are based on several assumptions, including current zoning, potential future land-use changes identified in the General Plan, existing ERC counts, and anticipated infill and redevelopment activity. He stated that the city currently has just over 10,000 ERCs and is projecting approximately 14,500 ERCs by 2060, acknowledging that the numbers are conservatively planned and could be lower under alternative growth-assumption scenarios. Mr. Belnap explained that the intent is to ensure sufficient capacity so that the city does not encounter constraints that could halt development, as has occurred in other Utah communities. Mr. Belnap noted that while the city remains near build-out, staff are planning for long-term system reliability and supplemental supply options. He reported that Kaysville owns several underground water rights and is seeking state approval for additional rights with the goal of installing non-primary well sources throughout the city to provide limited supplemental capacity in addition to contracted Weber Basin water. He reviewed historical practices, explaining that the city previously operated wells and spring-based collection systems until the 1960s and that some infrastructure remnants remain, though former wells and spring systems have since been capped. He stated that five prospective locations have been identified for future exploratory well studies. Mr. Belnap further described the planning horizon extending beyond 20 years to 2050-2060, emphasizing the importance of coordinated infrastructure planning among culinary water providers, irrigation companies, and the sewer district. He provided an overview of the three secondary irrigation companies serving Kaysville, noting that most residents are served by Davis and Weber Canal Company, followed by Haight's Creek Irrigation, with a smaller portion of the city served by Benchland Irrigation. He explained that irrigation providers are in the process of installing meters and are required by state law to fully meter and transition to usage-based billing by 2030. Mr. Belnap stated that the city has observed significant variation in irrigation consumption among east-side residents who do not have access to secondary water and therefore irrigate using culinary water under special protective measures. He reported that typical culinary-only customers use approximately 5,000-6,000 gallons per month, while some east-side properties have been documented using around 30,000 gallons per month indoors and over 150,000 gallons per month for irrigation, resulting in very high monthly bills. He noted that improved metering and usage data will help property owners better understand consumption levels and potentially reduce unnecessary costs while also reducing system impacts. Mr. Belnap concluded by acknowledging ongoing coordination with irrigation companies and expressing appreciation for the cooperative relationships supporting these planning efforts. Ms. Greenwood noted that one of the primary challenges in preparing the General Plan water element has been the lack of detailed and jurisdiction-specific data from secondary irrigation providers. She explained that while the city has accurate data for its culinary water system, the three irrigation companies serving Kaysville also serve areas outside the city limits, making it difficult to determine how much of their total distributed water is used within Kaysville boundaries. Because of this limitation, staff were unable to produce highly precise irrigation-specific water-use projections for inclusion in the General Plan and instead had to rely on broader estimates and assumptions. Ms. Greenwood stated that once irrigation providers complete systemwide metering and usage-based billing - which is required statewide by 2030 - the city expects that within a few years of implementation there will be more reliable data available to refine projections and update the General Plan with more detailed and accurate information. Mr. Belnap agreed and added that the intent of the state planning requirement is focused primarily on improving efficiency in outdoor irrigation water use rather than culinary indoor use, since most overall water consumption occurs through landscaping. He reiterated that better data will allow communities to evaluate irrigation consumption more accurately and identify opportunities for conservation. He also noted that while some irrigation data exists today, it cannot currently be separated or attributed to specific communities served by the same irrigation company. Chair Packer asked whether Weber Basin Water Conservancy District contracts, including Kaysville's allotment of approximately 2,700 acre-feet, are renegotiated periodically and whether there is a risk that the allocation could be reduced in the future. Mr. Belnap responded that the city's primary contract with Weber Basin does not include a sunset clause and predates more recent statewide conservation frameworks, meaning the contract terms are relatively stable compared to newer agreements that contain more restrictive shortage provisions. He explained that Weber Basin has historically coordinated closely with municipalities during drought conditions and cited 2022 as an example when most communities were asked to reduce total indoor and outdoor water use by approximately 20 percent, while Kaysville was asked to reduce consumption by 10 percent due to its system characteristics. He stated that the city was able to achieve that reduction with community participation and emphasized that during drought years the city would continue to work collaboratively with Weber Basin to support regional resource sustainability while also communicating appropriate expectations to residents. Consultant Liz Jackson with GSBS Consulting reviewed the goals, policies, and recommendations contained in the draft Water Use and Preservation Element of the General Plan. She explained most of the proposed language builds upon policies already established in the city's 2025 Water Conservation Plan, with a few targeted updates to meet new state requirements related to evaluating how development patterns affect water demand. Ms. Jackson outlined recommended policies such as using ERC-based water demand estimates when reviewing rezoning and general plan amendments, integrating water-supply and level-of-service checks into development review, and encouraging compact development patterns where appropriate to help reduce irrigation needs. She discussed the long-term objective of developing a land-use water-demand tool that would allow the city to estimate projected water consumption associated with specific development proposals; however, due to current limitations in secondary irrigation data, she said staff and consultants elected not to finalize such a tool at this time. Instead, the plan recommends creating a land-use water-demand table for remaining developable land as part of a future General Plan update once more complete metering data becomes available. Ms. Jackson then summarized strategies intended to reduce future development water demand, including refining water-efficient landscaping standards, requiring landscaping agreements when culinary water is used for outdoor irrigation, coordinating with Weber Basin and secondary irrigation providers during development review, and maintaining culinary water use at or below 60 gallons per capita per day for new developments. She also noted the possibility of implementing additional water-wise landscaping regulations, such as limitations on turf areas. For existing development, she outlined recommendations such as expanding turf removal and landscape retrofit programs, increasing participation in the 'My Meter' customer portal, conducting targeted outreach to high-use accounts, investing in leak detection and line-replacement projects, reducing non-revenue water, and supporting full secondary metering across the community by 2030. Chair Packer requested clarification on the meaning of 'gpcd,' and Ms. Jackson and Mr. Belnap confirmed that the metric refers to gallons of water used per capita per day. Ms. Jackson continued by reviewing recommendations related to city operational practices, including converting more parks and public facilities to culinary irrigation in order to reduce flushing needs within the system, using advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) data to refine rate structures to encourage conservation, investing in high-return conservation projects funded through the Parks Water Efficiency Fund, and reducing system leaks and flushing volumes over time. She referenced the broader 2025 Water Conservation Plan, explaining that the city's long-term strategy for addressing projected 2060 water-supply needs includes a combination of additional Weber Basin allocations and exchanges, development of city-owned water rights and future wells, and conservation and demand-reduction measures. Ms. Jackson concluded by outlining next steps in the process, stating that the plan emphasizes ongoing coordination with Weber Basin Water Conservancy District, secondary irrigation providers, the Utah Division of Water Resources, and the Division of Drinking Water, along with periodic review of data and policies on a five-year cycle as required by the state. She noted that a key future milestone will be incorporation of new secondary-metering data after the statewide 2030 implementation deadline, which will allow the city to reevaluate supply, demand, and conservation progress during future plan updates. She also identified a minor text clarification to be made in the draft chapter and stated that staff will incorporate Planning Commission feedback, finalize revisions, and present the proposed General Plan amendment to the City Council, with the intent to adopt the water-element update before the end of the year. Chair Packer asked for clarification regarding a recommendation in the plan referring to converting some city parks to culinary water rather than secondary irrigation. Mr. Belnap explained that although the approach may initially appear counterintuitive, the change is intended to reduce the amount of system flushing required to maintain water quality in the culinary system. He described how, during warmer months, city staff sometimes open fire hydrants to flush stagnant water from lines in order to preserve adequate chlorine residuals and prevent temperature-related degradation. By converting selected parks to culinary irrigation, the city is able to route water through the system more consistently and in controlled quantities, which both improves circulation and reduces the volume of hydrant flushing and associated staff time. Mr. Belnap stated that this results in overall lower water use when compared to routine flushing, while still maintaining necessary water quality throughout the system. Commissioner Sommerkorn then asked whether the plan ultimately concludes that Kaysville will require additional water supply at full build-out. Mr. Belnap confirmed that current projections indicate a potential need for approximately 100 to 150 acre-feet of additional supply, though actual demand may be lower depending on consumption trends. He reiterated that the projections are intentionally conservative to ensure the city maintains adequate capacity. In response to follow-up questions, Mr. Belnap explained that the city's long-term strategy for meeting future water needs includes three primary components: continued conservation efforts to reduce overall demand, the potential purchase of additional contracted water from Weber Basin (which does have capacity available but at a higher cost tier), and development of supplemental groundwater wells to provide a lower-cost supplemental source. He stated that the goal is to rely first on conservation and supplemental well capacity in order to minimize the need to enter into more expensive water contracts, while still ensuring sufficient long-range supply. Chair Packer opened up the meeting to the Public Hearing. Val Starkey addressed the Commission and shared remarks in support of the city's water planning efforts while emphasizing the importance of increased citizen involvement in conservation. He referenced personal experiences living in areas with limited water availability, including Arizona, Las Vegas, and Honduras, where strict water-use limitations influenced his perspective on water consumption and stewardship. Mr. Starkey stated that the proposed plan contains positive components related to using existing resources responsibly and planning for future needs, but he expressed concern that it does not place enough emphasis on the role of residents in conservation efforts. He suggested that the city formally organize a citizen-based group or committee focused on water conservation initiatives, education, and idea-sharing, stating his belief that residents are more likely to participate and support conservation when they understand the issues and are actively engaged in the process. He encouraged city leaders or relevant governing bodies to consider establishing such an effort as part of the broader conservation strategy. Jill Dredge addressed the Commission and referenced comments made during the prior week's City Council meeting, where some Council members reportedly expressed concern about missing or incomplete information in the packet materials related to the proposed water-element plan. Speaking from the perspective of an audience member, she said it appeared that the State is requiring cities to adopt the new water-planning element while key irrigation-usage data is still unavailable, and she questioned how the city could fully comply with the mandate under those conditions. Ms. Dredge asked whether it would be possible to delay adoption of the plan or postpone portions of it until more complete information becomes available. She further reiterated her understanding that the State requires the plan to be adopted by the end of the year, and she asked how the city could commit to the plan within that deadline if the necessary data is not yet available to fully support some of its recommendations and projections. Chair Packer closed the Public Hearing. Ms. Greenwood responded to public comments regarding timing and data limitations in the State-mandated water-planning requirements. She acknowledged that the implementation timeframe is challenging because many secondary irrigation providers will not have complete metering data for several more years. However, she explained that the State Legislature advanced the requirement following a significant drought period, likely concluding that establishing long-range planning and conservation policies now was preferable to delaying until full data sets are available. Ms. Greenwood noted that some Utah communities without secondary irrigation systems already have complete water data and are therefore better positioned to meet the requirement. She also clarified that concerns raised at the prior City Council work session were largely due to the fact that a draft of the plan was not yet ready for inclusion in that packet, rather than missing data within the plan itself. Mr. Belnap added that the city has been clear with State officials that it lacks reliable irrigation-use data and is unwilling to rely on speculative estimates. He stated that, after multiple discussions, the State agreed that Kaysville could adopt a plan grounded in the verified culinary-water data the city does control, with a commitment to incorporate secondary-water information once accurate metering and reporting become available. He emphasized that the plan is structured to allow future updates when defensible data exists. Commissioner Sommerkorn followed up by asking about potential risks associated with unknown secondary-water capacity and whether the city could face situations where irrigation providers cannot serve future development. Mr. Belnap acknowledged that such scenarios are possible but explained that coordination among the city, irrigation companies, and other utility providers already occurs early in the development-review process. He described how proposed projects are evaluated collaboratively for service-capacity concerns, and in some cases development has been delayed or deemed infeasible due to irrigation-system limitations. He stated that this coordination is consistent with State expectations for inter-agency planning and serves as a safeguard to prevent approval of projects where adequate secondary-water resources are not available. Ms. Richmond added further context regarding the plan's approach to secondary-water data and future planning tools. She explained that secondary irrigation providers are currently in the process of installing customer-level meters and will eventually implement usage-based billing structures. During this interim period, the plan recommends that the city focus on public education efforts to help residents understand irrigation conservation practices before metered billing begins, which may otherwise result in unexpected increases in customer costs. Ms. Richmond also noted that the plan includes recommendations to refine growth estimates and developable-land calculations so that, once full metering data becomes available, a more detailed and effective planning tool can be prepared during a future General Plan update cycle. Chair Packer expressed appreciation for the work completed on the plan and observed that the effort represents both the development of a workable strategy and preparation for more refined planning as additional data becomes available over time. Commissioner Moore also commented, expressing strong confidence in the expertise and judgment of Mr. Belnap and stating that he believes future updates will result in a solid long-term plan for the community once additional information is available. Ms. Greenwood then reported that the revised draft plan had been submitted to the State earlier in the week and that State officials confirmed the document satisfies statutory requirements. She explained that, because the State provided a $15,000 grant to assist with plan preparation, adoption before the end of the year is necessary to secure reimbursement of costs associated with the project for consultants and engineering analysis. Ms. Greenwood stated staff recommends the Planning Commission forward a favorable recommendation to the City Council to approve a resolution amending the city's 2022 General Plan by adding Chapter 6: Kaysville Water Use and Preservation. She followed the staff recommendation with an invitation for Commissioners to continue discussion, request changes, or review specific sections of the draft prior to final action. Commissioner Sommerkorn made a motion recommending that the Planning Commission forward a favorable recommendation to the City Council for adoption of the proposed Water Use and Preservation Element of the General Plan. In his motion, he acknowledged that some secondary-water data is not yet available but stated that the State has reviewed the draft and confirmed that it meets statutory compliance requirements. He further noted that the motion is made with the understanding that the city will continue efforts to obtain additional irrigation-use data and refine the plan in the future as more complete information becomes available. Commissioner Moore seconded the motion, and the vote was unanimous in favor of the motion (4-0). Commissioner Packer: Yay Commissioner Moore: Yay Commissioner Sevy: Yay Commissioner Sommerkorn: Yay 4 - APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM THE NOVEMBER 13, 2025 PLANNING COMMISSION Commissioner Moore made a motion to approve the November 13, 2025, Planning Commission meeting minutes as presented, and Commissioner Sommerkorn seconded the motion, and the vote was unanimous in favor of the motion (3-0) with one abstention. Commissioner Packer: Yay Commissioner Moore: Yay Commissioner Sevy: Abstained Commissioner Sommerkorn: Yay 5 - OTHER MATTERS THAT PROPERLY COME BEFORE THE PLANNING COMMISSION Ms. Greenwood provided closing administrative updates to the Planning Commission. She informed the Commission that an item would be included on the agenda for the upcoming City Council meeting to appoint Commissioner David Moore as a regular Planning Commission member, following the resignation of Commissioner Paul Allred. Commissioner Moore would complete the remainder of Mr. Allred's term through June of the following year, after which reappointments would be evaluated. Ms. Greenwood noted that the city would also work with the Mayor to fill the resulting alternate-member vacancy. She stated that this meeting would likely be the final Planning Commission meeting of the year and expressed appreciation to the Commissioners for their service. Ms. Greenwood also provided a brief outlook of anticipated upcoming agenda items. She stated that a revised version of the Symphony project rezone application may return to the Commission in January as the applicant continues addressing outstanding concerns. Additionally, staff plan to bring forward several rezones of city-owned park properties to align their zoning with public-use designations, noting that some parks are currently zoned residential, which can affect long-term land-use data and planning analysis. She explained that staff will likely schedule those rezones on lighter meeting agendas to avoid overlap with larger or more complex applications. Ms. Greenwood further mentioned that staff are preparing several text amendments, including updates related to RLUPIA and other ordinance revisions, and that public hearing notices will be issued as those items are scheduled in the coming months. Ms. Edstrom shared information of the city event, Kaysville GIVES and how the community, staff, businesses, and many others have been involved and how over 150 families benefit from the efforts of her committee and volunteers. 6 - ADJOURNMENT Chair Packer adjourned the meeting at 8:05 pm.

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Meeting Information

Meeting Location

23 East Center Street
KAYSVILLE, UT 84037
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Contact Name

Anne McNamara

Contact Email

amcnamara@kaysville.gov

Notice Posting Details

Notice Posted On

January 05, 2026 04:14 PM

Notice Last Edited On

January 05, 2026 04:14 PM

Deadline Date

December 11, 2025 07:00 PM

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