Written from the meeting recording, not from the approved minutes.
In short: The council met for an afternoon work session and an evening policy session. Its biggest decision was the city's first property tax increase in about 15 years, adopted 4-1 along with next year's budget to pay for more sheriff's deputies — about $26 a month more on a $500,000 home. About a dozen residents asked for safety fixes on Silverlake Parkway; the council heard a traffic study on the road but took no action.
Present: Mayor Jared Gray and Councilmembers Melissa Clark, Brett Wright, Craig Whiting, Rich Wood, and Zac Huish (all five vote in the roll calls). Staff: City Manager Ben; Community Development Dir. Brandon Larsen; Planner Steven Lehmitz; Asst. City Engineer David Salazar; Admin. Services Dir. Kimberly Ruesch; City Attorney Marcus; Public Works "Brad"; parks/rec staffer Zac Hilton; Legislative Services "Sean/John."
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Decisions
| # | Agenda ref | Motion | Moved / Seconded | Vote | Result |
|---|
| 1 | 4 | Adjourn to closed session | Huish / Clark | 5-0 | Passed |
| 2 | 10.A–14.A | Approve the consent agenda, folding in three amendments (13.B, 13.F, 14.A) | Clark / Wright | Wood, Whiting, Wright, Clark yes; Huish's vote not captured (see About this transcript) | Passed |
| 3 | 16.A | Adopt the third amendment to the FY25-26 budget | Wright / Clark | 3-2 (Huish, Wood no — Wood later said he'd voted the wrong item) | Passed |
| 4 | 17.C | Adopt the FY26-27 interim budget and certified tax rate | Wright / Whiting | 4-1 (Huish no) | Passed |
| 5 | 18.A | Adopt the concept-plans ordinance, code 16.15, with a council-notification condition | Wright / Wood | 5-0 | Passed |
| 6 | 22 | Adjourn (9:48 PM) | Wood / Huish | Voice vote, unanimous | Passed |
Item 17.A, the executive-compensation hearing, was opened and closed with no speakers and no action, so it is not a motion.
Meeting map
| Agenda ref | Topic | ~Start (elapsed) | One-line note |
|---|
| — | Work session called to order (~4:02 PM) | 0:02 | Mayor jokes he needs a "baton"; running slightly informal. |
| 1.A | Annexation Policy Plan – add Area 7 | 0:02 | Info only; heads-up before July 7 council action. |
| 1.B | Transmission lines & the AG zone | 0:14 | Real substance: overlay vs. special-use debate. |
| 1.C | Sage Valley community entrance sign | 0:32 | Longest work-session item; Huish recused (his neighborhood). |
| 2 | City Manager items | ~0:53 | Brief; Ben had emailed council while traveling. |
| 3 | Agenda review | 0:55 | Ran ~1 hour and previewed nearly every policy-session item. |
| 7.A | Fire restrictions | 0:55 (review) / 2:04 (read) | Discussed in review; Stage 1 order read aloud at night. |
| 13.B | Rec sports sponsorship policy | 1:03 | On consent but got ~45 min of debate. |
| 13.C | West Coast Code Consultants contract | ~1:22 | 5-year term questioned; pass-through costs. |
| 13.E | Employee policy manual (credit card / phone stipend) | ~1:25 | Minor wording questions. |
| 13.F | MHTN City Hall & Library feasibility study | ~1:30 | Council wants direct involvement. |
| 14.A | Youth Council code 2.45 | 1:39 | Quorum-removal reversed to a floor of five. |
| 15.A | Silverlake Pkwy traffic study (procedure) | 1:43 | Decided to keep public comment in the normal slot. |
| 4 | Motion to closed session | 1:54 | 5-0. |
| 5–6 | Policy session call to order / prayer / pledge (7:02 PM) | 1:57 | Brett gave the prayer; Clark led pledge. |
| 7 | Info items / new parks manager intro | 2:00 | Kyle Markstrom introduced. |
| 7.A | Fire restrictions read | 2:04 | Battalion Chief Ken Aldridge (Unified Fire) read the order. |
| 8 | Public comments | 2:07 | Youth-council complaint, Legion MOU, ~12 Silverlake-road speakers. |
| 9 | Council/Mayor items | ~2:20 | Patriotic 4th-of-July reflections; safety reassurances. |
| 10.A/11.A/12.A | Bond release / change order / June 2 minutes | (review only) | Approved in consent block; no discussion. |
| 13.A/13.D | Fee schedule / settlement agreement | (review only) | No questions. |
| Consent vote | Items 10–14 as a block | 2:53 | Passed with three folded-in amendments. |
| 15.A | Silverlake traffic study presentation | 2:57 | Hails Engineering; discussion only, no action. |
| 16.A | 3rd amendment FY25-26 budget (public hearing) | 3:27 | No public comment; passed 3-2. |
| 17.A | Executive-officer compensation hearing | ~3:33 | Opened/closed, no comment, no action. |
| 17.B | Property tax impact schedule (read) | 3:33 | Mayor read the 218% schedule. |
| 17.C | FY26-27 interim budget + certified tax rate | 3:35 | Big tax-increase debate; passed 4-1. |
| 18.A | Concept plans code 16.15 (public hearing) | 4:04 | Passed 5-0 with a noticing amendment. |
| 19.A | Legislative priorities | ~4:19 | Seasonal-sign ordinance; concrete fence design. |
| 20/21 | Liaison reports / audit committee | ~4:30 | Advanced Air Mobility overlay idea surfaced here. |
| 22 | Adjournment (9:48 PM) | 4:43 | Voice vote; RDA meeting followed. |
Discussed but NOT on the agenda: American Legion draft MOU (public comment); youth-council governance/advisor complaint (beyond the 14.A code text); Advanced Air Mobility "vertiport" overlay zone; a library book drop-off at Ridley's parking lot; citywide speed study of 20 locations; tightening the fireworks map.
On agenda but little/no discussion: 10.A, 11.A, 12.A, 13.A, 13.D (all waved through consent); 17.A (hearing opened and closed with zero speakers); the closed session (no substance recorded, properly closed).
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What was discussed
1.A — Annexation Policy Plan, Area 7 (Brandon Larsen)
This was an information-only briefing to get the council ready for a formal vote on July 7. The city's Annexation Policy Plan already names six areas the city is willing to annex, approved "end of November/1st-of-December-ish," and staff now wants to add a seventh. Area 7 sits near Utah Lake and is mostly state of Utah land plus some federal land and a handful of private owners. Larsen explained the city's interest in the mineral deposits it contains, which he described as "potential strategic resources … of value to the region, really, to the country."
A procedural wrinkle drove much of the discussion: because "there's no way to … amend an annexation plan," staff cannot simply tack Area 7 onto the existing plan and instead must re-run the entire approval track. That means an affected-entities meeting (currently in a 10-day feedback window, during which staff "haven't heard anything"), two planning commission meetings, and then the council vote on July 7. Wright, pointing to the Wasatch and "Wing and Clay" road example, asked whether adding land would leave the city stuck with inherited financial obligations such as road maintenance; Larsen said there is already "a joint arrangement" on that particular road, but confirmed that annexed land generally "becomes our responsibility."
Asked (of Marcus/Evan) whether an existing redevelopment agency (RDA) carries over on annexation, staff clarified that a county RDA "would continue to exist, but … with the county," not the city, unless it were affirmatively amended through an interlocal agreement. The mayor stressed that adopting the plan only signals the city's willingness to annex; the actual annexation later would come with an annexation agreement controlling zoning. Council asked that the presentation images be added to the packet and minutes.
1.B — Transmission Lines & the AG Zone (Brandon Larsen)
The most substantive work-session debate. The item came up because WSP and Rocky Mountain Power are advancing a transmission project running from Spanish Fork Canyon to the Mercer substation "down by Meta" — in effect, to power data centers. Their preferred "blue line" route crosses land zoned AG (agricultural), and the AG zone's utilities definition "doesn't mention anything about electrical transmission," meaning transmission lines are effectively not allowed exactly where the project needs to run. The council therefore had to decide how to make the lines legally possible.
Larsen laid out the two main paths: the simplest fix would add transmission as a special use under Chapter 17.75, while the alternative would create a new overlay zone. Whiting's central objection was that a special use offers no real control: "if they meet the criteria, we can't deny it." He and others favored an overlay precisely because it preserves discretion along with public-hearing and noticing protections. When a councilmember suggested a development agreement instead, Larsen and Marcus pushed back, noting that "Rocky Mountain Power … is not going to agree to a development agreement" and that the utility would obtain easements rather than buy property outright.
On the physical facts, the lines would stand roughly 90 to 120 feet tall, comparable to existing lines that already run through Liberty Farms and Woodhaven and over Lake Mountain, with the route entering through roughly two 160-acre sections. Consensus settled on pursuing an overlay, possibly a tiered one, and Larsen was directed to research how Lehi, Bluffdale, West Valley, West Jordan, and Herriman have handled similar zoning.
1.C — Sage Valley Community Entrance Sign (Steven Lehmitz)
The longest work-session item. The Sage Valley neighborhood applied to install a monument entrance sign at Airport Road and Whelan Drive, estimated at about $3,500 in materials, which the residents (who have no homeowners association, or HOA) would build and maintain; the design also includes a post hole for a flagpole. Huish recused himself, noting "this is my neighborhood," but observed that a Patterson-era monument sign in the area had been removed during utility work and never replaced. That fit a broader pattern the council acknowledged: the city has been removing monument signs citywide as roads widen and has not been replacing them.
The discussion centered on practical risks. Members raised placement (moving the sign north or east to stay clear of future road-widening), long-term maintenance, and liability "when a car hits this," as well as the awkward question of who would sign the lease — with no HOA, that burden would fall on a single homeowner, which members called "a pretty heavy lift." Clark pressed for design-continuity standards so entrance signs across the city share a consistent look, asking pointedly, "Are they going to be painted fluorescent pink?" The rough consensus was that if the sign is allowed, the city should own it — treating it "as a gift to the city, much like … statues" — while making clear to the neighborhood that "there's no guarantee that sign stays there."
13.B — Recreational Sports Sponsorship Policy
On consent, but drew roughly 45 minutes of debate. The proposed policy would let local businesses sponsor youth recreation teams, placing up to four logos per jersey and charging a single flat fee across all sports except Junior Jazz and hockey. Even if every advertising slot were filled for twelve months, the policy would bring in only about $7,500 — a figure several members judged far too low given the program's scale, which includes roughly 1,200 soccer participants across spring and fall, about 2,000 Junior Jazz players, and a registration fee near $60.
Much of the debate turned on where the money should go. A councilmember, worried that sponsorship dollars would simply be swallowed up by general program overhead rather than reaching families, moved to strike the middle bullets of Section 6 (equipment, fields, coach certification, and administration), warning that "you will soak it all up … it'll never even see the intended purpose." The compromise kept bullets 1, 2, and the last. City Manager Ben then flagged a related problem: any revenue would vanish into the general fund unless it were earmarked, so he recommended creating a separate special revenue fund and adding an "other one-time use as approved by council" bullet — both of which the council accepted.
On logistics, members confirmed the jerseys would be reversible and questioned the 7-business-day appeal window but kept it to protect ordering deadlines. The item stayed on consent so it could meet the jersey-ordering deadline.
13.C — West Coast Code Consultants (WC3) contract
Wright questioned why the contract ran for a five-year term. Staff explained that the agreement is non-exclusive and that all fees pass through to developers rather than costing the city, and that a longer contract was needed because the current third-party plan reviewer is "overwhelmed." A five-year price lock, they argued, is better than re-bidding "every one to two years."
13.F — MHTN Architects City Hall & Library feasibility study
Clark insisted that two councilmembers be embedded in the study from the start "rather than … wait until the decisions are made and then say no." The council agreed to notice a full-council kickoff meeting and to update the contract scope to provide for ongoing council involvement. The change was folded into the consent motion.
14.A — Youth Council Code 2.45
The proposed amendment to code 2.45 would have struck the youth council's quorum requirement, so that "whoever shows up … will have a right to vote." Whiting objected to setting that example: "It would be difficult for me if we decided to suspend the quorum of the city council… and yet we've got the youth council that we're trying to teach and train." The council instead redefined quorum as "one more than half … or at least five voting members, whichever is less." Members noted that youth-council applications have "almost double[d]" this year.
15.A — Silverlake Pkwy Traffic Study (David Salazar + Hails Engineering)
Discussion only, no action. The study looked at two alternatives for routing traffic — (A) Silverlake Parkway, shown in red, and (B) Porter's Crossing, shown in green — against the future Lake Mountain Corridor (blue), which is now a Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) facility. Modeling looked at 2026, 2035, and 2050. It found Pony Express Parkway already carrying roughly 35,000 trips per day, "in excess of capacity," and recommended widening it to seven lanes by 2035 to move its level of service from E/F back to C; by 2035, about half of Silverlake's traffic is projected to be cut-through.
The specific recommendations included converting the Silverlake and Golden Eagle roundabout to a signal (cutting the queue from 375 to 175 feet), realigning Woodhaven into a signalized T-intersection, restricting Campbell Circle to emergency-exit-only, relocating a "cluttered mailbox" (about $8,000), and adding striping at Silver Lake Elementary — with the Silverlake-side work totaling roughly $3.9 million. The engineer was emphatic that stop signs are the wrong tool: "Stop signs are not traffic calming measures … a dangerous practice and I do not recommend it," proposing instead a citywide speed study covering 20 locations.
The study also carried a road-classification error worth noting: Golden Eagle is a minor collector, not the "minor arterial" the draft mislabeled, and the presenter said "35 mph on Golden Eagle is totally wrong." Finally, Wright challenged the underlying growth data, asking whether the regional MAG/WFRC model captured Saratoga's roughly 18,000-unit, roughly 56-units-per-acre entitlement, observing that "MAG is always behind."
16.A — Third Amendment to FY25-26 Budget (Kimberly Ruesch)
This public hearing on the third amendment to the current-year budget drew no public comment and passed 3-2. As noted in Decisions, however, the two "no" votes were partly the result of a mix-up rather than genuine opposition.
17.B / 17.C — Property Tax Impact & FY26-27 Interim Budget + Certified Tax Rate
The marquee debate of the night. Reading the impact schedule aloud, Mayor Gray laid out the numbers: the proposed increase would generate an additional $6,958,141, moving from the current rate of 0.000534 and current revenue of $2,839,998 to a proposed $9,798,139 — a 218% increase. On a $500,000 home, that works out to an added $320.58 per year, or about $26 a month, and the affected budget is the Sheriff contract.
Staff and council framed the increase as long overdue. The city has not raised property taxes in roughly 15 years and has been subsidizing public safety with sales tax "on the backs of our existing employees," even as the public-safety bill has grown to about $8 million against roughly $2.8 million collected. The city's deputy ratio stands at 1:2,200, the worst in the county, and the plan would add one sergeant and six deputies at about $1.25 million; how to spend the remaining roughly $5.6 million was described as the live question.
Members emphasized that Eagle Mountain is the second-lowest-taxed city in Utah County — "only … lower than us is Cedar Fort." Residents raised concerns during the debate: one resident's misplaced fear of a "$1,500/month" hit was corrected in real time (the 218% figure applies only to the city's portion of the bill), another called for a written annual tax-review policy, and the council committed to revisit and potentially decrease the rate once data-center revenue arrives.
18.A — Concept Plans Code 16.15 (Brandon Larsen)
This code change moves utility, water, and road-connectivity review earlier in the development process and requires applicants to submit a concept street layout showing connections within 500 feet. The controversial piece was a provision to generally end concept plans at the Planning Commission rather than sending them on to the council. Wood warned that this would recreate the "surprise" problem that concept plans were originally meant to solve, and Clark argued that the process gets abused to "wear us down," recalling that with "Parkway Fields… it was eight times of not hearing 'no.'" The council kept the change but added a noticing requirement so that it is informed whenever a concept plan is headed to the Planning Commission.
19.A — Legislative Priorities
Two items came up. A seasonal-sign ordinance will go to the Planning Commission the following week. On the question of a standardized poured-concrete perimeter fence, the council favored using custom molds that the city itself owns, with an Eagle Mountain logo panel inserted every fourth or fifth panel — modeled on Harriman's approach.
20/21 — Liaison reports & Audit Committee
The audit committee reported a Fraud Risk Assessment in which the city scored 355 out of 375, rated "very low risk." An off-agenda idea also surfaced here: an Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) overlay zone that would position Eagle Mountain as a first-mover "backbone" for vertiports — the landing pads such aircraft would use. A councilmember demanded noise-impact data before proceeding, while Ben countered that AAM craft are electric and produce roughly 1/140th the sound of a helicopter. No action was taken.
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Notable moments
- Youth council governance complaint. Lexi Jackson of the Eagle Mountain Youth City Council delivered a pointed complaint, alleging that the youth council's purpose is "being bypassed." She said parade decisions had been "made entirely without our vote," described a "radio dance" run as an adult advisor's "personal project," and charged that advisors "abandoned us at the dance early," creating "a severe liability." She asked that a councilmember and the city attorney attend the youth mayor elections — a request that landed ironically, since the council was at that very meeting amending the youth-council code (2.45).
- American Legion MOU. Commander Rudy Chavez of American Legion Post 111 submitted a draft MOU during public comment, requesting a city liaison and a small amount of discretionary funding.
- A dozen residents on the Silverlake road. Roughly a dozen residents spoke in favor of the Silverlake-road improvements, all citing safety. Among them was Alex Christensen, whose son was hit crossing Pony Express on a moped and broke his arm; others described PTA near-miss video counts and pleaded for a four-way stop at Brookhaven.
- Rumor dispelled. A councilmember moved to dispel a circulating rumor about who was holding up the road project, directly refuting emails that blamed a specific member: "There isn't anybody up here that has said that."
- Patriotic reflections. In a run of reflections ahead of the Fourth of July, members touched on free speech (Franklin), the story that John Adams and Jefferson "both died July 4, 1826," and the bell from Little House on the Prairie.
- Fireworks testimony. Fireworks drew emotional testimony: a resident with 19 equines pleaded for a ban, and the council explained that the fireworks map is locked in by early-May state deadlines and cannot be changed now; the Governor's Stage 1 fire restriction order was read aloud.
- New parks manager. The city introduced its new parks manager, Kyle Markstrom, recruited from Washington State.
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About this transcript
The transcription mis-heard several names and terms. "Hewish" is Councilmember Zac Huish; "Stephen Lemons" is Steven Lehmitz; "Hails/Hells/hills engineering" all refer to the single firm Hails Engineering; "Cory B ride" is likely Cory Wride Park; "DebtBook" was rendered "debit book"; "physical year" means fiscal year; "Kobe/Colby Curtis" is Colby Curtis; and "218%" was sometimes rendered as "218 dollars."
The main limitation is knowing who is speaking, because the audio was not split by speaker. Identities have since been checked against the council roster: the councilmembers are Melissa Clark, Brett Wright, Craig Whiting, Rich Wood, and Zac Huish. One point that had caused confusion is now resolved: the "Zach" who recused himself during the Sage Valley discussion is Councilmember Zac Huish (it is his neighborhood), a different person from the staff member Zac Hilton (parks/rec) who appears elsewhere. Even so, many work-session speakers who did not trigger a roll call could only be identified as "a councilmember."
Two audio problems are worth flagging. On the consent-agenda vote, only four names were transcribed, with Huish's response missing — likely a dropped word rather than an abstention. And the closed session appears as 49 hallucinated repeats of "We'll go to closed session," a silence artifact that should be stripped in the pipeline; Ryan Wallace of MHTN was inaudible, and from the 7:00 PM policy session onward the audio is transcribed nearly one word per line, which breaks up phrases.