This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2008, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A group of Ogden Valley residents plan to plead with lawmakers this morning to reverse a 2007 law that would allow Powder Mountain ski resort to become Powder Mountain Town.
Armed with petitions signed by 517 opponents, they'll argue that the new law should be retroactive to Jan. 1.
Though the Legislature appears ready to reverse the law that made it easy for county residents or developers to incorporate small towns - the Senate already passed its version - it has shown little stomach for kicking the effective date back to Jan. 1.
Powder Mountain's owners filed a petition in January to incorporate the 6,000 acres of their resort that are in Weber County and another 11,300 acres that belong to other property owners. Several other property owners also signed the petition to incorporate.
Meanwhile, the owner of Wolf Creek Resort filed a petition to opt out of the new town.
The developers want to build golf courses, luxury homes, hotels and shops on the mountain. They moved to incorporate after becoming frustrated with the county's land-development process.
The Weber County Planning Commission in December attached a number of stiff requirements - such as a second access road - to its endorsement of Powder's rezoning request.
The ski resort had to include neighbors in their town's boundaries or they would not have had the minimum of 100 residents required by last session's legislation for forming a town.
"Everybody in the valley is upset with this," said Jim Halay, whose own home would be part of the new town. "These people are just doing an end run. It's a loophole law."
Powder Mountain spokesman Lisa Davis said, "We have been operating very out in the open under an existing law."
Alan McEwan, Weber County clerk-auditor, said the County Commission has little choice but to accept the incorporation as long as the petitioners meet all the criteria - and it appears they have.
The House Political Subdivisions Committee today will take up SB25 and HB164, both of which would reverse last session's legislation that made it easy for county residents - or developers - to incorporate small towns. The meeting is at 8 a.m. in room C450 at the Capitol.