budget, taxes, & Solara Annexation to Include Development agreements & Nightly Rental rules
by lynda williams
Speaker Sherry Jensen at the Toquerville Memorial Day Commemoration Program
I must say that Toquerville City Council meetings are becoming marathons! This May 20 meeting was another long one at 3.5 hours. I have learned to bring a chair cushion. Good advice for everyone.
City Council is no joke. Lots of hours and hard work for these folks. I appreciate their service! I know they all sincerely want what is best for Toquerville. Let’s help them. Get informed, get involved, let your voice matter as Toquerville is laying the ground work for all that is coming. You have 3 minutes at each meeting to express your thoughts. In addition, this council has allowed comments during the meeting relative to the topic being discussed.
City Council Reports
Councilman Todd Sands reported on the fire district and mosquitos. His comments begin here.
Hurricane Fire District
Todd learned that the district is planning on using bonds to build the new fire stations that will soon be needed. There are plans to build new fire stations at:
Sand Hollow
Firelight
Virgin
Hurricane
Hurricane Valley Fire District is implementing a plan to reduce property taxes following the introduction of a new sales tax that went into effect in April of 2026.
Currently, the fire district is aiming for a 50% reduction in the property tax increase that was enacted last year. The initial reduction is being smoothed out over a 6 month period to allow the district to assess actual revenue generated by the new sales tax. The goal for next year is to reduce the remaining 50% of the previous year’s property tax increase with further reductions pending an evaluation of the total sales tax revenue collected.
Mosquito Abatement
That department has seen a significant increase in mosquito activity compared to last year. A total of 3,251 mosquitos have been collected so far this year, compared to 96 at the same time last year. Service calls for mosquito issues have risen from 2 to 36. Residents are encouraged to call for service if they are experiencing issues as mosquito control is funded by property taxes. Additionally, the district is conducting educational outreach in public schools to inform students about mosquito reduction efforts.
I mentioned last year about this time that I lived in Las Vegas for over 50 Years and we never had one problem with mosquitos. Two or three years ago Las Vegas all of a sudden was over run by the vicious and aggressive Aedes Aegypti mosquito. Now it plagues Las Vegas year round.
Last year, our mosquito abatement presenter said they had identified the Aedes Aegypti mosquito in Washington County which had never been found here before.
Washington County Sheriff presentation
An update was provided regarding collaboration between the Sheriff’s office and Toquerville City. His comments begin here.
At the last council meeting, a resident questioned why the sheriff’s office needed extra funding for a drug task force and why it wasn’t covered with the funding they already received. The sheriff who requested the extra funding from local cities resigned after allegations of misconduct. This new presentation was likely in response to the comment which asked why the additional funding was needed. Thank you to the Mayor and council for this quick response.
While the officer presenting the need didn’t directly answer the question, he said there are occasional drug issues in Toquerville.
Unrelated to the drug task force, the Washington County Sheriff’s Office has been maintaining a minimum of 2 hours of designated and contracted time during every shift- which has been adequate in monitoring properties and addressing issues. Traffic enforcement has been focused on the new parkway.
Public Forum
Kathy Bence referenced city attorney Bruce Jenkin’s comments about county water policy changes. Would annexing the Solara property provide water-related harm or benefit to Toquerville?
She said there are still many unknowns regarding both the liabilities and the benefits of annexation. In fact, would Nancy Pelosi’s famous line would apply here: that perhaps we should annex it “so we can find out what’s in it”?
She also voiced concern that if the Mayor maintains sole authority to appoint or remove planning commission members, it will impinge on independent thought and potentially discourage members from questioning the Mayor.
David Esquer requested financial clarity. He asked what the city stands to gain or lose if the 200 acre annexation and subsequent development does or does not proceed. He inquired if city staff is actively calculating the potential infrastructure costs associated with the decision to help guide the council’s vote.
He said, “The Sunriver Firelight, Indigo and Meridian developments will have 1997 homes on 617 acres in total. Solara, on the other hand, will have 1500 home on 200 acres. Solara will have 75% of the ENTIRE Sunriver development in 200 acres. Again, Firelight in total - 1997 homes on 617 acres, Solara - 1500 homes on 200 acres.
I understand this build is already approved by the County Commission and will be built regardless of annexation by Toquerville. But, how does this development square with the County Commission’s recent decision to allow affordable housing in unincorporated areas…”
Public Hearing
1. During the Public Hearing for fiscal year 2026-27 Tentative Budget, Ben Billingsley outlined four key adjustments intended to be incorporated into the final budget.
Toquerville Parkway fund: the city is increasing the budget for this project to account for a number of pending change orders, utilizing remaining UDOT funding to cover these costs without requiring a future budget amendment.
Westfield Park: the budget for this project will be increased due to higher than anticipated rollover expenses moving into the new fiscal year.
Building permits: Projections for the number of building permits from the Indigo development have been reduced. The anticipated start date for these permits has shifted from July to December.
Department adjustments: because of the reduction in revenue from building permits, the city is planning to reduce certain direct costs associated with inspections and implement other departmental adjustments to maintain fiscal alignment. The discussion begins here.
Related to this, the compensation schedule is linked here.
Business Items
I’m reporting on the business items that seem most important to me but not all of them so you don’t get bored and stop reading.
1. Statement that Toquerville is considering levying a property tax rate for Fiscal year 2026-27 that exceeds the certified tax rate
This would generate approximately $98,000.00 in additional ad volarem tax revenue, an approximate increase of 33.8% for the purpose of funding legal expenses, pavement preservation and the General Fund department operations. If the city proceeds with the proposed tax rate increase, the City will provide notice of and conduct a public hearing at which members of the public will have an opportunity to comment on the proposed tax rate increase. The statement begins here.
(There was no discussion)
3. Zone Change
A zone change from Agricultural A-1 District to Agricultural A-0.5. Application submitted by All Star Excavating, LLC. This was approved.
4&5. Solara Pre-Annexation & Development Agreement
The council consolidated deliberation on these items.
Following significant discussion regarding density, impact fees, and nightly rental standards, the council approved the Pre-Annexation agreement and the associated development agreement with specific conditions. The agreement before the changes can be seen here and here. The discussion began here.
6. Nightly Rental Ordinance
An amendment to city code to allow nightly rental caps to be governed by specific development agreements when authorized by the city. It was approved. The discussion began here.
Notes:This amendment is to facilitate the annexation of the Solara project to allow them the percent of nightly rentals they say they must have in order to meet their budget
Council Comments
The council identified two primary hiccups regarding the development agreement and annexation that required concessions from Solara.
Impact Fee Credits: Council expressed a strong desire to remove “Exhibit E” which outlined impact fee credits.
Instead the council proposed that any future system reimbursements be determined on a case by case basis ensuring each improvement is reviewed to see if it meets the city’s specific requirements.
Nightly Rentals: Council requested a reduction in the number of nightly rentals allowed in the development. While the developer initially discussed higher figures the council proposed capping the rentals at 100 units noting this brings it close to the 6% limit typically granted to other developers or existing nightly rentals owners.
Solara is planning to build 1500 residential units on it’s 200 acre site. There was some talk by council to cluster all the nightly rentals for the Solara project in one area.
Solara Comments
A Solara representative explained that his company entered into deal agreements over the last 3 years based on a specific set of assumptions with the county. He noted that if the development agreement does not stand as currently written (concerning impact fees and nightly rentals) the company would face an enormous effort to renegotiate with their customers. They are at their bare bones minimum now. If the development agreement cannot be accepted as it stands he would prefer the city vote down both the annexation and the development agreement. They will continue to work with the county. He also suggested the city might consider annexation in a year or two.
Mayor Catlin Response
The Mayor responded by emphasizing his duty is to protect the city and it’s citizens. He stated that he is not willing to bear a financial burden without potential benefit for the city, noting that the city had been “beat up” by developers in the past.
Despite this the Mayor proposed a path forward to attempt to reach a consensus. He suggested that council approve the pre-annexation agreement with the exclusion of Exhibit D, the development agreement, to move the process forward without being immediately bound by the specific disputed terms. Regarding the development agreement itself, the Mayor suggested moving to a phase of active negotiations to determine if the city and the developers could find a middle ground that protects the city’s interests while remaining viable for the project.
He encouraged the developer to take the city’s counter proposals, such as adjusting impact fees and nightly rental caps back to their investors to see if they could reach an agreement that would work for both parties.
(He wants this! I see some compromises in our future. In the meantime, Solara said they don’t have the time, money, or inclination to keep messing with Toquerville.)
9. Discussion and possible action on an ordinance amending and restating Toquerville City code regarding improvement completion assurance requirements and warranty obligations.
The changes are intended to align the city with state code regarding bonding requirements for developers.
10. An ordinance imposing a local sales and use tax.
The council discussed information from a recent meeting where the state is signaling that cities and counties should fully utilize available tax levers - such as the local option tax - before requesting state funds for road projects.
City staff reminded the council that this tax was included in the city’s Strategic Plan and tentative budget. It is projected to generate approximately $30,000.00 in revenue which is specifically earmarked to fund the city’s pavement preservation program.
It was noted that this tax applies to the broader area, allowing the city to collect revenue from people outside of it’s resident population rather than relying solely on property taxes. Council moved to approve the ordinance. The discussion began here.
11. Planning Commission Removal Ordinance.
This discussion centered on the Mayor’s desire to establish a formal removal process. The council and the city attorney discussed how recent changes in state statute now requires specific “causes” for the removal of commission members such as ethic violations or interfering with land use decisions.
The attorney advised that while the city must include specific mandatory causes for removal, they could also include additional local reasons, such as violating the commission’s own policies and procedures.
City Council moved to deny the current version of the ordinance and send it back to Planning Commission for further drafting and refinement to incorporate these new statutory requirements and specific removal causes. The discussion began here.
Work Items
1. Discussion on joining the Zion Regional Collaborative
Council Woman Jenny Chamberlain reported: She met with an organization called Zion Regional Collaboration. This is an organization consisting of various agencies and cities impacted by Zion National Park.
Purpose: serves as a forum for agencies to share updates on local projects, such as potential regional trail networks, and provides a space to discuss economic development and planning.
Potential benefits: Participation could provide access to individuals who review grants and offer expert advice for the city’s grant applications.
There is a cost to belong. It would cost Toquerville $2324.50 a year. Attending quarterly meetings is possible without financial contribution. Should Toquerville join?
This was put on hold.
2. Discussion on tree height and maintenance.
Tabled for later.
Calendar of Events
Summer community clean up - Saturday and Sunday, June 6-7 at Center Street Park, Westfield Park, TRE Park & Toquerville Heights.
Movies in the park -Friday, June 12 at Center Street Park.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED for Ash Creek Stream bank clean-up organizing Saturday, June 13 at Center Street Park. 8:00 am.