Ivins Planning Commission Aug. 4: Retreat Height Request

The Ivins City Planning Commission met on Tuesday, August 4, 2026, at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers at 85 North Main Street. The City of Ivins has posted minutes for this meeting, and the Planning Commission approved them at its August 18, 2026 meeting. This post sums up what those minutes record. The meeting video, agenda, minutes and every supporting document are on the Ivins Meetings page entry for August 4, 2026.

According to the minutes, the meeting was called to order at 5:30 p.m. with Chair Perry Brown and Commissioners Dave Robinson, Brandon Weight and Pam Gardiol present. Staff attending were City Manager Chuck Gillette, City Attorney Bryan Pack, City Engineer Tom Jorgensen and Deputy City Recorder Sharon Allen. No disclosures were made, and there were no reports, presentations or appointments.

The Retreat Development Agreement: hearing and recommendation

Agenda items: “Public Hearing regarding amendments to The Retreat Development Agreement.” and “Discuss and consider recommendation amending The Retreat Development Agreement.”

The minutes record a representative of the developer describing the request, which applies to the West residential area of The Retreat (southwest of Hamblin Parkway) and not the East Resort side. As recorded in the minutes:

Garages would keep the 20-foot front setback. The request was for a 5-foot encroachment for side turn-in garages and an 8-foot encroachment for front porches, for a 12-foot setback for front porches.
The request was to raise the height limit from 25 feet to 30 feet, except for an area of lots along one edge that the minutes describe as already negotiated to be 25-foot, single-story, flat-roof homes.
The representative stated that pitched roofs would reach about 27’6” to 29’11” at the peak depending on the product, that roughly 20 percent of the roof area would be above 25 feet, and that everything west of Hamblin is non-nightly rental.

The Chair opened the public hearing. The minutes state no one was on Zoom and, hearing no comments, the Chair closed it.

During discussion, commissioners asked about the agreement’s address references, porch design and walkout basements, and Commissioner Robinson raised concerns about raising heights for existing residents of Padre Canyon and asked about a trail along a City-owned ridgeline behind the lots. Chuck Gillette stated the slope there is about 2:1 and that he would be hesitant to add a trail. Bryan Pack suggested creating exhibits identifying which setbacks and heights apply to which lots, and stated the item came to the Commission because it is contrary to City code, so it goes first to the Planning Commission as a recommendation to the City Council.

Outcome: Commissioner Robinson moved to approve the recommendation amending The Retreat Development Agreement, “as amended to show the appropriate exhibits,” seconded by Commissioner Gardiol. The motion carried unanimously, 4-0 (Brown, Robinson, Weight and Gardiol voting aye). Our August 6 City Council post covers the Council’s later decision on this request.

Construction standards: hearing held, recommendation continued

Agenda items: “Public Hearing regarding amendments to the Standard Specifications for Design and Construction for Ivins City.” and “Discuss and consider recommendation of amendments to the Standard Specifications for Design and Construction for Ivins City.”

The minutes record Tom Jorgensen stating that the last major update was in 2010 and that the City is moving to a 2026 edition. The Chair opened the public hearing; the minutes state no one was on Zoom and, hearing no comments, the Chair closed it. Commissioners Gardiol and Robinson stated they had not reviewed text pages added to the packet later.

Outcome: Commissioner Gardiol moved to continue the recommendation, seconded by Commissioner Robinson. The motion carried unanimously, 4-0. Our August 18 Planning Commission post covers the recommendation the Commission made at its next meeting.

McKenna Preliminary Plan approved

Agenda item: “Discuss and consider approval of McKenna Preliminary Plan, located at approximately 165 West and 300 North.” (The agenda title also names the owner/applicant, which is omitted here.)

According to the minutes, Sharon Allen stated the development proposes two additional flag lots behind the main home, and that the Technical Review Committee discussed storm drain discharge, a block wall around the development, meter placement, and shared access and easements, and recommended approval. She stated the applicants waited until the City’s flag lot ordinance change passed before applying.

Outcome: Commissioner Gardiol moved to approve the McKenna Preliminary Plan “based on the findings discussed in the Staff report,” seconded by Commissioner Robinson. The motion carried unanimously, 4-0.

Land Use Map discussion

Agenda item: “Discuss Ivins City Land Use Map.”

This was a discussion item with no vote. According to the minutes:

Chair Brown described a three-phase process discussed at a July 28 joint meeting with the City Council: designing the process and gathering data, holding community forums, then developing and evaluating land use scenarios leading to formal adoption of the map.
The Chair asked to add the City’s open space map, including prospective parks, and the fire risk map to the data list. Chuck Gillette stated the City’s wildland-urban interface (WUI) zone map is where that code would be enforced.
Commissioners asked for population by age group and for information on walkability and where home-based businesses are concentrated. Commissioner Robinson volunteered to help two Councilmembers with questions for existing business owners.
The Chair stated the Commission would wait for more data from staff.

Other business

Agenda item: “Discuss and consider approval of the Ivins City Planning Commission Meeting Minutes for July 14, 2026.” Commissioner Weight moved to approve, seconded by Commissioner Robinson; the motion carried unanimously.

In reports, the minutes record the Chair noting another joint meeting that Thursday at 4 p.m. on alternatives to the annexation proposal, Sharon Allen stating that a preliminary plan named Ember Mesa would come forward in the next couple of meetings, and Chuck Gillette stating staff were working on ordinance changes based on State code. The meeting adjourned on a unanimous vote.

Source documents

This summary reports only what the cited City of Ivins records state. For the authoritative version, check the official City of Ivins records at ivins.granicus.com, ivinsutah.gov and the Utah Public Notice Website, or contact the Ivins City Recorder at 435-628-0606.

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Robert Bolar
REALTOR® and Global Real Estate Advisor, Summit Sotheby's International Realty, Ivins, Utah
801-737-3333 · Robert@OwnUtah.com