PROVO — A group of residents hoping to stop the conversion of a golf course into a housing development have sued Provo city because they say public hearings regarding the property were not adequately advertised.
In April the City Council voted to allow 157 homes to be built on what was then the Seven Peaks Golf Course. The council had turned down numerous development proposals for the property for years.
A group of 31 residents recently filed a lawsuit in 4th District Court in Provo, contending many residents were not properly notified of public hearings on the development plan.
The lawsuit says residents living within 500 feet of the Seven Peaks property were not mailed letters regarding the April hearing, legal ads about the hearing were not specific enough, and hearing notices were either not posted on the Seven Peaks property, not large enough or not left up long enough.
Scott Ferrin, who lives near the property, thinks the council may have voted differently if more of his neighbors were aware of the meeting.
He said the council ignored promises made decades ago to keep the land open space.
The council voted 6-1 approving the proposal to build single family homes on 59 acres. The developer offered to turn 40 acres above the property into a park as part of the deal.
For many residents living near the property, that was not enough. Ferrin and others say their neighborhood is overrun with college students who live in housing that was designed for families and think the area should be preserved as a park.
Neighborhood activist Bonnie Callis, who was one of the residents who filed the lawsuit, thinks the council should revisit the issue.
If that did happen, Councilman Mark Hathaway, who voted in favor of the development, said he is not sure how the council would vote.
"I think (the April vote) was a wise decision," Hathaway said. "Over half the property is green space, and the rest is single family housing. Maintaining green space and increasing single family housing is a goal of the council and the administration."
City Attorney David Dixon said he can not comment on the lawsuit because he hasn't seen it.
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