The Sanpete County Commission has approved a six-month moratorium on the establishment of mobile-home parks within the county.
The moratorium was recommended by Mark Anderson, chairman of the county Planning Commission. The action is subject to legal review before becoming effective.Anderson said the issue must be resolved. "There are numerous families in Sanpete County that can't afford a $70,000 home."
The issue came into focus recently when it became known that two local entrepreneurs were tentatively planning mobile-home parks in Mt. Pleasant and Manti.
The projected Manti development, on a 10-acre tract with four acres within the city limits, has aroused wide opposition, including a petition with about 200 signatures. The opponents to the proposed park claim it would cause a depreciation in property values, be occupied by an isolated group and would not be a good neighbor.
Businessman Lewis Miller, who proposed to develop the park on the 10-acre tract he owns, has not applied for the required permits. He said the park would be built in accordance with all codes and other requirements, would be properly operated and would help fill a need for low-cost housing.
The park proposed for Mt. Pleasant would be located with the city limits and is still very much in the tentative stage, according to city officials.
The six-month moratorium will put these proposed projects on hold.
In the meantime, the commission intends to review the whole subject of mobile-home parks, even though Sanpete County already has a policy and a set of regulations that seem to cover the whole area. While some residents want no more parks allowed, others see an urgent need for them.
"It's largely become an issue because of growth," one commissioner said. "And we have to deal with it."
The review will include making a housing inventory, examining population projections, gathering information from industries and agencies and sounding out public opinion.