8,785 ACRES EAST OF PROMONTORY POINT
Brice Wallace
The creation of a West Weber inland port project area is on hold until May as the Utah Inland Port Authority reviews possible impacts of development there on wetlands and the Great Salt Lake.
The UIPA board heard about the proposed area in January and had planned to have it on its March meeting agenda for possible approval. But at the March meeting, Ben Hart, UIPA’s executive director, said the board will consider the area at its May meeting after further study.
The proposed project area consists of the Little Mountain and Weber Bend zones totaling about 8,785 acres east of Promontory Point near the eastern shore of the Great Salt Lake.
“We want to make sure that the plan and budget with the wetlands strategy that we’re developing is thoroughly reviewed, that it’s got buy-in from all of the different stakeholder parties, and that all of the questions that we have, any other outstanding issues, are answered,” Hart said at the meeting.
“We want to make sure that the wetlands strategy associated with that is accounting for all of the dynamics that are relevant.”
In a news release, the port authority said it is “strengthening collaborations with community leaders and stakeholders” for the proposed project area, “focusing sharply on wetland conservation.”
A comprehensive wetland protection strategy for the area is expected to be released in the coming weeks and included in the project area’s plan.
The port authority established a “robust” policy framework in November, which it said “is pivotal in guiding both current and future initiatives. It emphasizes the ecological importance of wetlands in promoting biodiversity, enhancing water quality, and providing flood mitigation benefits.”
Hart acknowledged at the March meeting that “there are a lot of wetlands in the Weber County project area.”
“We’re not going to hide anything. We’re going off of historical data, but we also want to balance with what’s on the ground today. So, we’re finding the right balance between historical data, what has been considered wetlands, and then ultimately future characterization and development around these sites, so we want to make sure that we’re in a good place and we’ve found the right balance there. So, we are pushing that (approval) a couple of months just to make sure that we’ve got enough time to get all of these strategies vetted and ready for the board review and final approval.”
The UIPA news release said the port authority’s overarching mission is “to balance economic growth with ecological preservation.”
“Weber County is committed to responsible development, ensuring our economic growth aligns with environmental preservation and Weber County’s Western Weber General Plan,” said Stephanie Russell, Weber County’s economic development director. “We look forward to continued collaboration with UIPA, landowners and other stakeholders as we finalize our wetlands protection strategy.”
“Working together with the community and landowners, we’re not just planning a project; we’re ensuring that our environmental heritage is preserved for future generations,” said Joel Ferry, a UIPA board member and director of the Utah Department of Natural Resources. “Our commitment to wetland conservation is fundamental to our vision for sustainable development.”
At the board’s January meeting, supporters of the creation of a West Weber project area said it could help the county realize its vision there for the next half-century. The Weber County Commission has adopted a resolution requesting the establishment of the project area because of the potential for new jobs, a boost to the local economy, access to state and federal resources, and assisting with the development of the West Weber Industrial District and Renewable Energy Hub.
UIPA documents indicate that economic development incentives would generally favor advanced manufacturing, aerospace and defense, distribution and logistics, data centers and renewable energy.
If approved, West Weber would join eight other project areas in the state: an area in Salt Lake County, including in the Northwest Quadrant of Salt Lake City and parts of West Valley City and Magna; the Iron Springs Inland Port near Cedar City; the Verk Industrial Park project area in Spanish Fork; the Golden Spike project area in Garland, Tremonton, Brigham City and other parts of Box Elder County; the Central Utah Agri-Park in three parts of Juab County; the Mineral Mountains project area, consisting of four zones in Beaver County in parts of Beaver City, Beaver County and Milford City; the Tooele Valley area; and the Twenty Wells area in Grantsville in Tooele County.
The board approved the creation of each of those areas, except for the Northwest Quadrant, last year.
“We’re not going to be doing the same number — and I’ve mentioned this before — but we’re not going to be doing the same number of new project area adoptions as what we did last year,” Hart said at the March meeting. “We will be slowing that down significantly....”