Nordic Village

Public Benefit

SUBSTANTIAL PUBLIC BENEFITS

The rezone will allow the development to move forward with development plans that will provide the following substantial Public Benefits:

  • The process requires the development of a complete Master Plan for the Rezone area. This will provide the public with the vision for the resort and adjacent properties and ensure public input is provided as part of the rezone approval process that would otherwise not be available under the current zoning approval process and development applications. Substantial agency review of the project is required as part of the rezone application. The Master Plan includes implementing important public trail links to and thru the resort as identified on the Open Space and Trails Plan.
  • The rezone allows the development to further cluster development areas, preserving more open spaces through the rezone’s flexibility and its permitted uses, building heights, and overall design flexibility.
  • Establishes Design Guidelines and Sustainability practices within the rezone application far superior to current zone development requirements minimizing the overall impact of the community.
  • Establishes traffic mitigation practices with the rezone application reducing the overall traffic impacts to the existing transportation system and existing community that far exceed current zone requirements

Changes to the General Area Since the Adoption of the General Plan

The Nordic Valley ski resort area is recognized as a recreation/resort area with potential for further development to support and enhance the existing recreational components within the resort, providing a viable long-term project. Since the adoption of the General Plan, the applicants have come together to create a unique destination community with a vision for a diverse mountain village and associated mountain neighborhoods that would provide economic stability for the existing resort while also providing substantial expansion and diversity of this amenity. The County General Plan supports and promotes appropriate resort facilities as a significant element within the County. Nordic
Valley is also a village center, ideal for responsible, well-balanced, and sustainable resort development.
The proposal conforms to the Ogden Valley General Plan by “preserving the Valley’s rural character” in the following ways:

  • A goal of Weber County is to protect the valley’s sense of openness and rural character. (Page 7 of the Ogden Valley
    General Plan.)
    • The proposed location of the structures is away from steep or unstable slopes.
    • The proposed location is not along a “prominent ridgeline.”
    • The proposed location is outside of the “Important Wildlife Habitat Areas.”
    • The proposed location meets the adopted requirements about stream corridors, wetlands, and shorelines.
  • The Ogden Valley community desires sustainable and thriving local businesses in Ogden Valley. Ogden Valley capitalizes on recreational tourism to support its economic base. New commercial development should be focused in and near existing commercial areas and resorts. New commercial development should be designed to be compatible with the rural character of Ogden Valley. (page 29 of the Ogden Valley General Plan).
  • The Ogden Valley General Plan Recreation Element identifies the Nordic Valley Resort’s development potential and the “need for a variety of progressive resort developments” in the Ogden Valley. The recommended policies throughout the Recreation Element are to “encourage quality resort and recreation development,”support nodal development as opposed to sprawl development to “protect as much open space as possible” and “encourage existing resorts to expand to generate economic benefits for Weber County as well as to pull densities from other parts of the Ogden Valley into the expanded resort. The result would be development concentrated in the expanded resorts with other
    areas left permanently undeveloped across Ogden Valley.” (See pages 40-44, 61-67, 115-118, 152-160 of the Ogden Valley General Plan Recreation Element Oct 2005).

PROMOTE HEALTH, SAFETY AND WELFARE TO WEBER COUNTY

The Master Plan proposed in this rezone document for the Nordic Valley Village promotes Weber County residents’ health, safety, and welfare by creating a family-centered distinct year-round resort. This variety will provide stability and long-term benefits to Weber County and the Ogden Valley while also preserving significant open space within the project.

The project will provide long-term economic benefits as outlined in the Benefits Analysis, ensuring the County and its residents are not negatively impacted fiscally. The Master Plan includes important trails and ski in-ski out connections between neighborhoods.

Traffic mitigation plans will be implemented to minimize all new development impacts to existing and future roadways, providing safe, appropriate access while mitigating those impacts to existing and future neighborhoods in the Valley.

The development areas within the project were designed with respect to the land attributes preserving sensitive lands and stream corridors, and avoiding sky lining. The importance of economic, environmental, community and aesthetic benefits was taken into consideration to ensure a quality development that benefits the owners, Weber County, and the community.

As outlined in Chapter 35 of the Weber County code (35-3), the project meets the approval criteria as follows:

A. The proposed Resort can be developed in a manner that will not substantially degrade natural/ecological resources
or Ogden Valley Sensitive Lands Overlay Zone in Chapter 104-28, Ogden Valley Lands Overlay Zone, or the Weber County Zoning Ordinance.

• The Geologic Areas as outlined in Chapter 108-14 of the Weber County Code.

The Wildlife Habitat exhibit shows that the Nordic Valley Village project is outside the critical wildlife habitat area. No
development is proposed within this vital wildlife habitat area. While there is a stream corridor within the project area, the primary potential impact site includes access to the chalets off Viking Drive. The Road exists, and all effects have previously been mitigated as this roadway serves as the existing access to the existing lift. No other stream corridors exist within proximity to any proposed development area within the rezone Master Plan.

Nordic Valley’s proposal is located within proximity of the 2.5-mile Scenic Roads Buffer. All design standards are meant to mitigate any potentially harmful impact that could be visible from Highway 162. Mitigation measures will be defined within these exhibits.

B. A professional study has provided substantial evidence that the proposed Nordic Valley Ski Resort is viable and
contributes to the surrounding community’s economic wellbeing. A cost-benefit analysis summary is provided on pages 29 and 30. This study was conducted by Lewis Young Robertson & Burningham, Inc out of Salt Lake City, Utah, and is attached as Exhibit A. Highlights of the Cost-Benefit Analysis are as follows:

Economic Impact

The total economic impacts of the Nordic Valley Village project are anticipated to increase over the next 25 years continually. The addition of condominiums, hotels, townhomes, chalets, cabins, commercial and educational retreats, expanded and new recreational amenities, and joint ventures will help the Nordic Valley Village advances. After full build-out, ongoing economic impacts are projected to provide continued positive effects as follows:

  • Based on the development assumptions utilized, the proposed development produces a net taxable value to Weber County of $555.48 million of new assessed value.
  • Direct jobs created by the development are projected at 538 at full build-out.
  • Direct labor income is projected at $6.406 million annually