The Other Side Village has garnered significant media attention this week for our tiny home village project located at 1880 West Indiana Ave (800 S). Here are a few key updates:
1. The project has been delayed by a combination of regulatory issues and site challenges, not because of a lack of urgency. the media often portrays these as problematic, but they are simply part of challenging development projects.
- As part of our agreement with the State of Utah's Department of Environmental Quality to ensure we have a clean site for residential use, we have had to go through many extra steps that most developments don't have to go through, such as extensive testing and approvals, including removing over 80,000 cubic yards of unsuitable structural fill material.
- Lew Swain, who developed properties for 4 decades across Utah for Boyer company, said this is the most challenging site he has ever worked on.
2. We have been providing interim supportive housing for the last year at our Village Prep School for people experiencing chronic homelessness coming off the streets or out of shelters.
- We provide immediate housing while people work on their physical and mental health, job training, social skills, and stability. We also teach a peer accountability model that keeps the community drug-free, crime-free, safe, and beautiful.
-We are in the final permitting stage of building our new future Prep School at 630 E 100 S. We purchased a former LDS decommissioned chapel, which is now being remodeled and expanded to provide programming space for 52 residential units for people coming off the streets or out of shelters.
3. 30+ homes will be built and ready to install as soon as foundations are in place. A total of 430 homes will be built for phases 1 through 3.
4. The site is NOT on a landfill. We have done extensive testing and it is a very clean site. The dirt we are bringing on the site is exceptionally clean, exceeding requirements for most residential projects in the valley.
5. It is correct to say the project is delayed and we have not met our projections.
- We underestimated the regulatory and permitting process timeline with the City and the State.
- We underestimated the site complexities, which were compounded by the very wet winter.
6. We feel that all the major unknowns are behind us and have more confidence in our forecasts.
- There will be a lot of activity over the next 6 months, with lots of visible progress happening.
- Sewer lines are all installed, water and storm water lines are currently being put in place. We should start on roads and foundations at the beginning of fall.
- We are doing everything we can to have people in homes before the end of the year.
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