SALT LAKE CITY — Some residents in the Fairpark neighborhood of Salt Lake City are worried about the impact of a recent zoning change. The area in question is a parcel of land along 800 West, between 300 North and Simondi Avenue.
There are concerns about how quickly the process happened, and what the new development could look like.
“I'm really upset,” said Dan Stewart, who went around his neighborhood collecting signatures for a petition.
"Residents here are proposing that the RMF [residential multi-family] vote be canceled,” Stewart read from the petition. “We propose that NeighborWorks re-evaluate this project and work with long-term residents of what we want to build in our community."
NeighborWorks, a non-profit developer, was approved to rezone the lot next to Stewart's home as medium-density housing. The approval of the "Simondi Ave. and 300 North Rezone" took place at a Salt Lake City Council meeting on March 26.
"They asked for input, they made a ruling that they would delay until they hear our input, and then they snuck it through without giving us an invitation, without giving us a hearing," Stewart said. "And then they went up, they said: 'Let's give them medium density over here.' All our neighbors on the street are against it."
Salt Lake City Councilman Alejandro Puy, who represents District 2, said there is a growing need for affordable housing units on the west side.
"Many of our kids and grandkids want to stay here, but they cannot afford with one or two or three jobs," he said.
He added that the planning process for this project is still ongoing and is not a done deal.
"Ultimately, we're going to see what they propose. They still need to come back to the city with those plans and see if they fit,” Puy said.
Stewart said he feels like it’s going too quickly.
"There’s been no study, the values of our houses, the peace and privacy, stacking people next to us," he said.
Now, he plans to take matters into his own hands by trying to revert the city's decision.
"My alternative now is an appeal," he said.
But Puy stresses that residents have a chance to share their voices about what they hope to see in the neighborhood.
"They still have a chance to shape up this project. This is not done yet. Neighbors can still have an input on how they want the neighborhoods to change," Puy said. "Neighborhoods change over time — it is expected.”
The Rose Park Brown Berets, a local activist group, shared a statement opposing the re-zoning:
“The Rose Park Brown Berets are in support of the Simondi Avenue residents of keeping the empty properties as Single Family Residential. For NeighborWorks to change the zoning and not consider the residents' voices, shows that they aren’t sticking to their mission of community preservation and collaboration. If they could not preserve these homes, at the least they should have asked the residents what they would want this property to be. Most people can't afford the new housing developments after changing the zoning. The rezoning will put these residents at risk by increasing property values and cost of living, including property taxes and rents, and they have expressed their fear of being pushed out. NeighborWorks has refused to show the residents a design and have not shared the affordability rate. If they go off of Area Medium Income as many developers have, this will not be truly affordable for working class families. If NeighborWorks continues with this plan, they aren’t different from these money hungry developers that are aligning with the North Temple Master plan, Fair Park Master Plan, and the Power District that will displace many West Side residents for the sake of accommodating to more affluent people coming in from out of state. They are turning into an organization that we West Side residents can no longer trust.”
FOX 13 News reached out to NeighborWorks for a comment, but they have not responded.
