A plan to rezone and ultimately develop land in Ballpark is progressing.
A proposal to rezone nearly three acres to make way for a new development, dubbed Mansell Manor, appeared to receive a warm welcome from the Salt Lake City Council during a brief hearing Tuesday.
The Mansell Manor proposal seeks to rezone three parcels of land from MU-11 and RMF-35 to MU-8. The rezone would ultimately lead to the development of the land, which used to be the headquarters of the Housing Authority of Salt Lake City (HASLC), a Building Salt Lake advertiser. The parcels are located at 1726 Jefferson St. and 1750 Jefferson Circle.
Mansell Manor would be built near the HASLC’s former office, which was located at 1776 S. West Temple. HASLC signed a rent-to-own agreement to occupy the historic Oquirrh School on 400 East last summer. Just after signing that lease, the HASLC filed its request to consolidate a number of parcels and rezone the land for future development.
Initially, the housing authority requested the land be zoned MU-5, which carries a maximum height of 55 feet. However, during the proposal’s screening before the Salt Lake City Planning Commission, the body recommended more height and bumped the rezone proposal up to MU-8.
Council Member Erika Carlsen, who represents the Ballpark neighborhood, asked city staff Tuesday why the commission wanted more height.
Cassie Younger, a senior planner for Salt Lake City, said the commission pointed to the nearby MU-11 zoning to the north and agreed that the MU-8 zone would be a more appropriate step between the more dense zone to single family homes nearby. The land directly to the south of the parcels is also already zoned as MU-8. Younger added that the HASLC has no issue with the change to MU-8, though the new build likely wouldn’t utilize the maximum height.
The parcels that could be rezoned for the Mansell Manor project, highlighted in red. Image via Salt Lake City
Though the plans have changed since last year, the housing authority would still be able to build between 160-200 housing units, according to city staff. That unit count would include one-, two- and three-bedroom units.
During their vote in January, the planning commission also attached a handful of conditions to the proposal. One condition says at least 15% of the units will be rented or sold to people earning at or below 80% AMI.
One of the parcels currently zoned RMF-35 is home to 20 two-bedroom units, known as Jefferson Circle, and the units would be torn down as part of the redevelopment. City code requires the landlord, in this case the HASLC, to relocate tenants and pay for certain fees. Code also requires similar units be built in their place, which in this case would be at least 20 two-bedroom units that would be offered to the tenants at a similar price. One of the planning commission’s recommendations included that the 20 units can not have a rent increase of more than 3% per year for 20 years.
Council members offered few questions following a presentation from city staff. Considering the proposal would seek to replace low-density, HASLC-owned housing with dozens of new units, as well as offer housing for displaced tenants, it’s likely the rezone will be approved by the council.
Council Member Victoria Petro asked if those 20 two-bedroom units would count toward the 15% of units offered at 80% AMI. Younger said those units would be separate and would not be lumped into the affordable unit count.
The council seemed satisfied with Younger’s presentation, as they moved on to the next topic after just a few clarifying questions. It’s not certain when the city council could take a vote on the rezone proposal, though a tentative vote could take place as early as next month.
Mansell Manor would be one of the numerous projects the housing authority has planned in the coming years. The HASLC has ongoing projects in Sugar House and the Granary District, as well as numerous other projects planned in Ballpark, Central City and along the North Temple corridor.
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