The Eastern Summit County Planning Commission issued a negative recommendation regarding the creation of a new Lost Creek Community Zone, a move that signals significant local opposition to a proposal to transform the rural Browns Canyon area into a high-density residential hub. The decision follows intense scrutiny over whether the county should amend its development code to allow for thousands of new homes in a region currently restricted by strict zoning regulations.
Zoning Hurdles for Browns Canyon
The proposed amendment to the Eastern Summit County Development Code would create the Lost Creek Community Zone, a new designation specifically designed to enable development in the Browns Canyon area. According to a work session held by the Eastern Summit County Planning Commission, the zone would represent a major shift in land use for the region. Currently, much of the Browns Canyon area is zoned for a single home per 80 acres, a restriction that would be fundamentally altered by the new zone.
As KPCW reported, the development spearheaded by Ivory Homes would seek to build between 2,300 and 3,000 homes on approximately 400 acres of land. The project is being pursued on behalf of members of the Garff and Rogers families to rezone the Garff-Rogers ranchland. Because current zoning does not permit such density, the primary legal hurdle is the creation of the zone itself, a process that must occur before any specific development applications can be reviewed.
Infrastructure and Water Concerns
Summit County Community Development Director Peter Barnes noted that the current legislative focus is narrow, focusing on whether the county should change its code to make more housing possible. Barnes explained to KPCW that even if the commission were to approve the creation of the new zone, the county could still deny specific applications for development later on. The current process requires the commission to decide on the zone's existence before Ivory Homes can apply for specific entitlements.
Commissioner David Darcey has expressed concerns that the community is focused more on the specific impacts of the project rather than the legal process of zoning changes. During a June meeting with Ivory Homes, Darcey identified traffic and water as the two most critical issues facing the area. He emphasized the need for the new code to include specific verbiage to ensure the county is comfortable with the requirements of the new zone, calling water the "elephant in the room" for rural Summit County.
Water Resource Management Strategies
Water provision remains a central point of contention for the proposed Lost Creek development. Ivory Homes has commissioned a well-siting study and has begun drilling a test well to address sustainability concerns. The company estimates that three to four wells will be required to support the projected 3,000 homes. To provide context for the scale of this requirement, KPCW reported that three wells in the Park Meadows area currently account for roughly half of all water used in Park City.
Chris Gamvroulas, President of Ivory Development, has stated that the company intends to prioritize water conservation once the supply is established. Gamvroulas told the planning commission in June that the cost of drilling, storing, and buying water rights is high, and the company's goal is to reduce average water use per household to approximately 0.3 acre-feet.
To achieve these conservation goals, Ivory representatives have expressed a willingness to mandate drip irrigation instead of traditional sprinklers and have stated they would explicitly ban the construction of golf courses within the development. Gamvroulas noted that similar water-saving mandates, such as less water-intensive landscaping, are already part of development agreements for other Ivory projects, such as Park City Heights.
The Scale of Ivory Development
The scale of Ivory Development's operations is significant within the Utah real estate market. Chris Gamvroulas, who serves as President of Ivory Development—the land acquisition and development affiliate for Ivory Homes—has been involved in the planning and construction of over 20,000 home sites and apartments. His portfolio includes hundreds of acres of retail, industrial, and commercial properties, totaling nearly $2 billion in real estate assets.
Gamvroulas, a University of Utah alumnus, has held various leadership roles in public policy and community development. His professional history includes eight years in state government, including three years as Assistant Director of the Division of Business and Economic Development. He has also served as President of the Utah Property Rights Coalition and has held leadership positions on the boards of the Salt Lake Chamber and the National Association of Homebuilders.
Future of the Zone
The decision by the Eastern Summit County Planning Commission to issue a negative recommendation marks a critical turning point in the effort to rezone the Browns Canyon area. While the creation of the Lost Creek Community Zone remains a subject of debate, the commission's stance highlights the friction between large-scale residential expansion and the preservation of rural infrastructure and resources.
