Orem council expands neighborhood-meeting notice rules 4-2 and approves University Parkway rezone
June 23, 2026, 3:00 p.m. · 56 North State Street, Orem
The council approved, 4-2 among council members, longer and wider notice for developers' neighborhood meetings, and approved the C-2 rezone of 355 West University Parkway on consent. It also allowed barber shops and tattoo services in the M2 zone, 4-2, and recreation centers in the PD-5 zone for Fun City, and adopted the CDBG plan, year-end budget amendments and the Redevelopment Agency and lighting district budgets. Council Member Jeff Lambson was appointed Mayor Pro Tem. The work session in the minutes lists only an agenda review.
From the approved minutes. Updated October 14, 2026.
Decisions at a glance
Agenda, item by item
Item 5 · Presentation
Building a Better Orem employee scholarships
Discussed
Deputy City Manager Keri Rugg reported that the employee scholarship program, begun in 2021, has awarded 41 scholarships, and 17 past recipients have since been promoted. Twelve city employees received 2026-27 awards.
Item 6 · Public safety
School Resource Officer unit overview
Discussed
Police Sgts. Neil Skogard and Mike Locke described the unit that covers 20 schools using the national Triad model. They said the unit's building-marker grid system for faster emergency response was adopted as a statewide requirement after a November 2024 presentation to the Legislature, and that it received a 2024 National Association of School Resource Officers Model Agency Award, a first in Utah.
Item 8.1 · Appointment
Consent: Mayor Pro Tem appointment
Approved · 6-0
The council appointed Council Member Jeff Lambson as Mayor Pro Tem as part of the consent calendar.
Item 8.2 · City code
Consent: flood damage prevention ordinance (Chapter 10)
Approved · 6-0
The council amended Chapter 10 of the city code on flood damage prevention, the update needed to keep Orem in the National Flood Insurance Program after revised federal flood maps. It passed on the consent calendar.
Item 8.3 · Zoning
Consent: rezone of 355 West University Parkway from R8 to C-2 with development agreement
Approved · 6-0
With the development agreement now ready, the council approved the rezone of the University Parkway property from R8 single-family residential to C-2 commercial together with an agreement limiting certain uses. The item had been continued from May 26 and passed on the consent calendar.
Item 9.1 · Budget
Community Development Block Grant 2026-27 action plan update
Approved · 6-0
Community and Sustainability Officer Bradley Day said the public comment period (May 23 to June 22) and the June 11 hearing had closed with no public comments. The council adopted the updated annual action plan, authorizing the mayor to sign the HUD application documents and approving the CDBG budget.
- GrantAmount not given
Item 9.2 · City code
Public hearing: longer notice and larger radius for neighborhood meetings before Planning Commission
Approved · 4-2
Planning Director Jared Hall presented changes to rules for developer-run neighborhood meetings: no meetings on the same night as a council or Planning Commission meeting; notice radius up from 500 to 1,000 feet for site plans next to residential zones and to 2,000 feet for any zone change; mailing at least 21 days ahead instead of 7; and standard notice templates with maps and plans, plus rosters and minutes. Hall estimated a typical mailing would grow from about 165 notices to 320 or more. Council Member Quinn Mecham worried a 'concept changes' clause could create an endless loop of meetings, and City Attorney Steve Earl advised against vague wording. Council Member LaNae Millett asked that notices name the actual landowner and developer and raised notifying renters, which state law does not require; Hall said a renter-notice method would take months. Council Member Jenn Gale said she wanted mailing-cost data before voting, while Millett said $500 to $2,000 in added cost is small against multi-million-dollar projects; Community Development Director Gary McGinn offered to compare costs on recent projects. Mayor Karen McCandless said she was ready to approve but would support waiting. No one spoke at the hearing. The ordinance passed 4-2 among council members.
- Notice radius: 500 → 1,000 feet (site plans adjacent to residential); up to 2,000 feet for zone changes
- Mailing deadline: postmarked 21 days before meeting (was 7 days)
Item 9.3 · City code
Public hearing: allow barber and beauty shops and tattoo and body piercing in M2 manufacturing zone
Approved · 4-2
The council amended Appendix A of the city code to make beauty and barber shops and tattoo and body piercing permitted uses in the M2 zone. Hall said the request came from a business owner with a warehouse building who wanted three interior stations, two for hair and one for tattooing; the Planning Commission recommended approval 7-0. Under city rules tattooing is allowed only as an accessory to a barber or beauty shop and under 15 percent of revenue, and the city has no numerical cap on tattoo shops. Council Member LaNae Millett asked about approving the barber use without the tattoo use. No one spoke at the hearing. Council Members Crystal Muhlestein and Millett voted no.
- Planning Commission: recommended approval 7-0
Item 9.4 · Zoning
Public hearing: allow general recreation centers in PD-5 zone (Fun City)
Approved · 6-0
The council added general recreation centers as a permitted use in the PD-5 zone along University Parkway. The request came from Fun City, which plans to occupy the former Joann Fabrics space with gym, trampoline, ball pit, arcade and party areas that did not fit existing categories. The Planning Commission recommended approval 7-0 on May 6, and no architecture, landscaping or parking requirements change. Council Member Quinn Mecham said neighboring businesses welcome it. Council Member LaNae Millett questioned adjusting rigid planned-development zones one use at a time, and City Manager Brenn Bybee suggested a joint council and Planning Commission session on commercial zoning. No one spoke at the hearing.
- Applicant: Fun City
- Planning Commission: recommended approval 7-0 on May 6, 2026
Item 9.5 · Budget
Public hearing: fiscal year 2025-26 budget amendments
Approved · 6-0
Chief Financial Officer Brandon Nelson presented year-end amendments across twelve accounts, including grants and donations for emergency preparedness, in-car police cameras and a trail master plan; a lease-purchase financing agreement with JP Morgan Chase for a new fire engine; road surplus funds to finish moving street lighting from Rocky Mountain Power to city ownership; and solid waste reserves to cover a contract shortfall after the council froze garbage rates. Nelson said spending stayed within budget but revenue would not be final until the late-August audit. Police Chief BJ Robinson said a state grant for internet crimes against children investigations has fallen from $25,000 to about $16,000 over a decade, and Council Member LaNae Millett urged lobbying the Legislature for more. No one spoke at the hearing.
- PurchaseAmount not given to JP Morgan Chase
- Grant$16,000
Item RDA · Budget
Redevelopment Agency fiscal year 2026-27 budget
Approved · 6-0
Sitting as the Redevelopment Agency, the council approved the agency's 2026-27 budget after a public hearing with no comments. Nelson said the only active area is the University Place Community Development Area, where 90 percent of property tax growth is refunded to developer Woodbury Corporation to repay infrastructure debt, 5 percent goes to the city as an administrative fee and 5 percent is reserved for future infrastructure.
- PaymentAmount not given to Woodbury Corporation
Item SSLD · Taxes and fees
Special Service Lighting District fiscal year 2026-27 budget
Approved · 6-0
Sitting as the lighting district board, the council adopted the district's budget after a hearing with no comments. The monthly residential street lighting fee rises from $3.28 to $3.36, with businesses paying the same rate annually at license renewal. The district funds power costs, holiday lighting and an energy-savings lease for LED streetlights with about eight years left, and is finishing the transfer of streetlights from Rocky Mountain Power.
- FeeAmount not given
What residents said
Short-term rentalsNeighborhood meeting notice distance and costTattoo shops in industrial zoneRenter notification
Two residents, Elona Shelley and Craig Walker, spoke in favor of regulated short-term rentals. Shelley said well-managed large rentals let her family gather and that on-site management keeps neighborhoods calm; Walker said his family of six used one during a home remodel and asked for balanced rules that keep such options available.