Kaysville City desires to encourage a diverse and healthy business profile. They would also like to implement the City Center and Downtown vision identified in the 2022 General Plan to ensure that development and redevelopment occur in a manner consistent with resident desires. They also want to maintain and attract businesses and uses which create and enhance walkable mixed-use places which are desirable as a destination. 

The city has made extensive efforts the past few years to plan for redevelopment of the City Center area, which includes 200 North between 100 West and I-15 and Main Street from the north boundary through the historic downtown area. Feeling that such uses detract from the vision of mixed-use and people-centered destination, Staff was asked to look at implementing an ordinance which would prevent the City Center area from becoming oversaturated by uses which only serve vehicles. 

An item originally came to the Planning Commission in March with a draft ordinance that would restrict additional car washes within proximity of existing or permitted car washes. The draft concept pushed forward after a flux of tunnel car washes, all within blocks of each other, were proposed or permitted in the City Center area. 

As initial discussion on changes in the City Center area took place; during that meeting, Commissioners expressed a desire to look at limiting a variety of uses which only serve vehicles, instead of focusing on one use such as carwashes. The Planning Commission implemented a pending ordinance restriction during the meeting and continued the item to a further date. The Commission directed staff to expand the proposed restrictions to better support the 2022 General Plan City Center concept.

A revised draft of the ordinance, which would eliminate uses which are singularly focused on vehicles, was presented at the July 13, 2023, Planning Commission meeting. A public hearing was held at that meeting and discussion on the expanded draft ordinance. During the public hearing, one comment was received from a representative of Quick Quack car wash. While the commentator was supportive of the ordinance change, they asked for an exemption from the non-conforming use section of the City’s ordinance. Their request would allow for The Good Spray car wash to demolish the existing facility and construct a tunnel wash over two adjacent parcels. 

After a lengthy discussion, the Planning Commission voted 5-0 to send a recommendation for approval of the draft ordinance to the City Council. They also recommended the Redevelopment Agency consider implementing a Community Reinvestment Area and funding to speed up the land use change and to assist property owners in the area to comply with the proposed ordinance change.

The City Council recently reviewed updated proposed regulations to align better with the Planning Commission direction and the vision set forth in the recently adopted 2022 General Plan. After lengthy debate and discussion, and finding that limiting uses which are similarly focused on vehicles along major corridors of 200 North between I-15 and 100 East and Main Street between the city’s northern border and 100 South as being a critical first step in identified placemaking goals and objectives, the City Council voted unanimously in approval of the ordinance at its Aug. 3, 2023 meeting.