In a unanimous decision, the South Jordan City Council voted to annex the approximately 2,285 acres of land east of U-111 that was brought forth in a petition by Kennecott Utah Copper LLC on Tuesday, March 21. Annexation is the process of bringing land located in the unincorporated county into the boundaries of a city, which facilitates long-range planning of municipal services, utilities and infrastructure,” according to the Rio Tinto/Kennecott website.

In a “significant” move by city officials to extend its borders, the annexed land is intended for a master planned community patterned closely to the master planned community of Daybreak.

Though many years out from building, a memorandum of understanding, or MOU, was put forth by Kennecott/Rio Tinto. The MOU is a precursor or “guardrail”  that will eventually lead to a master plan in the annexed area. The following points were touched upon repeatedly during the meeting such as approximately 25% open space, 5 units per acre density and a park.

The meeting was opened for the public to ask questions or make comments about the land annexation. There were three members of the public who stood to voice concerns. 

Bob Paxton, a resident on the east end of South Jordan stood and asked, “Where is the water coming from?”

Sam Bishop, a Daybreak resident, asked for more clarity in who is to oversee what services for the future master community, citing that Daybreak has public services that often supersede that of the city’s public service and vice versa, the example given was snow removal.

Carol Sancho asked for clarification of how the land will be evaluated for contamination as well as raised concern over the rise in traffic to the area west of Mountain View Corridor.

The answers to these concerns, as well as some voiced by the city council are to be addressed in the coming months with an open house slated for sometime this fall.

 The representatives from Rio Tino/ Kennecott, Josh Brown and Wayne Bradshaw, spoke of the tremendous partnership they have with the city given their history together. Both parties agreed to learn from lessons of the past and to collaborate to the utmost.

Mayor Dawn Ramsey remarked on the decision with the following:

“After thoughtful consideration for the future of the City of South Jordan, and with input from our residents, professional planning staff and community partners, our City Council and I are pleased to approve Rio Tinto Kennecott’s petition for annexation. As we prepare for growth, we remain firmly committed to smart planning, advanced infrastructure, efficient transportation corridors, water conservation, outdoor recreation and economic development opportunities.”

The audio to the meeting can be found by visiting www.sjc.utah.gov/DocumentCenter/View/3711/City-Council-Meeting-of-03-21-2023-.

For more information, visit kennecottlands.com/faqs.λ