Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- Farmington plans to sell city-owned land for a townhome development, potentially raising $10 million for a new fire station.
- City Manager Brigham Mellor says the sale would be a way of avoiding a property tax hike to pay for the new firehouse.
- The Boyer Company has a preliminary agreement with the city to acquire the land and handle the development.
FARMINGTON — Plans are in the works to turn a long-vacant plot of city-owned land in northern Farmington into a townhome development, which could generate $10 million to build a new fire station.
The Boyer Company, a Salt Lake City-based developer, and the city of Farmington have reached a purchase agreement on the 16-acre parcel that sits between U.S. 89 and Main Street south of where the roadways meet. Still, it's not yet a done deal pending approval by city officials of a master plan and development agreement outlining project details, tentatively to be finalized in coming months.
But City Manager Brigham Mellor sees sale of the land by the city and use of the earnings to build a new fire department as a way of avoiding a tax hike.
"If we don't liquidate this asset, then the other alternative is to raise taxes, and the council is less inclined to do that because we had to raise taxes the last two seasons," he said. That is, without the $10 million or so from the sale of the land to help pay for the new fire department, needed as the city grows, the City Council would face the specter of increasing property taxes to cover the cost of the planned $13 million facility on the west side of Farmington.
The Farmington City Council on Jan. 21 unanimously approved the preliminary terms of the purchase agreement. But the final terms and sale price will bear on details of the specific proposal that The Boyer Company puts forward in the coming weeks and months. There's still wiggle room for either side to back out of the project.

Years ago, Mellor said, the land in question housed Utah State University facilities, which have since moved to Kaysville. More recently, the property, which partially surrounds a Zions Bank branch, has been used by the city for storage and to dump debris. Now, Boyer, which has residential, commercial, industrial and other developments all around Utah, proposes a townhome development, most likely with 140 to 200 units.
Mellor said the zoning, which allows for townhome development, would stay as is. The specific number of units will depend on the plans that come from Boyer, subject to review and approval by city officials. The more proposed units, the higher the sales price.
City officials sought qualifications and ideas for development of the land from developers, received numerous proposals and settled on Boyer. The preliminary plans envision a 2-acre park on the property.
The new fire department, Farmington's second, is to be built in an area under development on an expanse northwest of Station Park. Some $3 billion in commercial and residential development is envisioned in that area over the long term.
