Utah...Mining Company builds new city

[samsonyuen]

From: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/oquirrh_bench
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Utah Mining Company Building a New City
By PAUL FOY, AP Business Writer Fri Apr 7, 1:06 PM ET
SOUTH JORDAN, Utah - It's a plan for development that will take more than 50 years from start to finish, on the largest piece of privately owned land next to a U.S. metropolis for an expected half-million residents.

This megasuburb, twice the size of San Francisco, will be the work of Kennecott Land, the real-estate sister company of Kennecott Utah Copper Corp.

Kennecott Utah Copper Corp. is a subsidiary of London-based Rio Tinto, a mining multinational and avowed convert to environmentalism, which decided to make a showcase out of its surplus Utah lands instead of just selling them off for cookie-cutter subdivisions.

Home builders were skeptical when the Salt Lake valley's biggest landowner laid out the plan for a 20-mile string of densely packed, "walkable" communities framing the rural west side of Salt Lake County. The communities would be laid out along a planned highway and light-rail lines connecting to Salt Lake City.

Mining executives pitched the idea to some 50 builders. "A lot of them rolled their eyes and walked away," said Keith L. Morey, manager for Kennecott's flagship Daybreak project, where just seven builders were chosen to help build the first town of 14,000 homes.

"It was a mixture of excitement and fear," Brad Wilson, president and chief executive of Destination Homes, said of his decision to sign on with Kennecott Land to help build Daybreak.

"We didn't know if this was something people would wrap their arms around. It's so different — the tiny lots and alley-loaded garages. It was a risk, but at the end of the day we felt they knew what they were doing," Wilson said.

Kennecott's whole plan calls for 162,800 houses in neighborhoods mixing the wealthy and wage earners in shared communities of gardens, pocket parks and surrounding open space.

The so-called West Bench development — the string of communities along the base of a mountain range — differs from other planned communities by emphasizing connections to a larger metropolis.

"It's part of a vision for how the whole region grows," said lead planner Peter Calthorpe, a Berkeley, Calif., consultant who designed the trendy redevelopment of Denver's old Stapleton Airport, which is about the same size as Kennecott's Daybreak community.

Kennecott Land is developing the rolling foothills of its 144 square miles of land, which ranks as the largest piece of land anywhere in the United States that's under the control of a single, private owner and next to a major metropolis.

Single ownership of the land "gives incredible control over development and the execution of the plan," said Gary Hunt, a retired executive for Irvine Co., which developed one of the country's first master-planned communities, in California's Orange County, starting in the 1960s. "In other parts of the country you don't have that kind of opportunity."

At Daybreak's information pavilion, manager Barbara Breen greets prospective buyers at a glass building with commanding views of the Wasatch and Oquirrh (OH-kuhr) mountains that frame the Salt Lake valley.

"We went on this incredible siege last summer, selling 40 houses a week, so we ran out," she said. More than 800 houses have been sold so far, half of them still under construction.

Daybreak was not without its environmental problems, a legacy of a century of digging at nearby Bingham Mine, which is expected to keep operating until at least 2018.

A small part of Daybreak was built over ponds that collected mining runoff — along with heavy metals — from 1936 to 1965. Kennecott Land scooped up 3 million square yards of contaminated soil and carried it back near the mine.

Some buyers bluntly ask whether Daybreak would "glow in the dark or something," said Peter F. McMahon, president of Kennecott Land. He argued the Daybreak cleanup exceeded Environmental Protection Agency standards.

"It's cleaner than a bunch of other parts of the valley," he said.

Kennecott Utah Copper is building a pair of reverse-osmosis filter plants to clean tainted groundwater over the next 40 years, while providing fresh tap water for the southwest part of the Salt Lake valley. It dug other wells 300 feet deep to provide ground-source heating and cooling for a new elementary school and community center and contributed $400,000 to kick-start an environmental study of extending a light-rail line from downtown Salt Lake City to Daybreak.

"It's a new business for Rio Tinto. Some people said, "What are you doing this for?'" McMahon said, pointing out that Kennecott Land acquired more land than it will ever need for mining. "We have land in an area with strong demographics and a strong economy. All that growth is heading that way."

"Sustainable" development is a term McMahon and other Kennecott Land executives often use to describe their venture. Daybreak, for example, will contain all of its own runoff, using it for irrigation for native grasses and 40 species of trees, said Greg L. Rasmussen, an engineer and Kennecott Land's director of land development.

At Daybreak, every house will be within a five minute's walk of a park on 37 miles of interconnecting trails, some lined with channel streams. It will be just as easy to walk or bicycle to grocery and other shops and restaurants in the village core.

Kennecott Land banned the use of aluminum siding and fake cobblestone facades in favor of natural materials and insisted on rambling front porches for most houses.

"My wife always wanted a front porch," said Craig Douglass, a 56-year-old software quality analyst for 3M Co., who moved from a nearby subdivision, where he found his half-acre yard too large to maintain.

At Daybreak, the couple bought a $273,000, 1,650-square-foot house with "a nice small yard, and we're looking forward to all the amenities" that will include a sailing lake, he said.

"The idea is these homes will appreciate in value because of their quality and the amenities of the neighborhood," said Wilson, the builder who has taken 200 orders so far and can't finish the houses fast enough for his buyers.

Kennecott is selling lots to builders but can't control home prices, which are rising with demand and range from less than $200,000 to more than $800,000, depending on a menu of options the builders offer.

Wilson said Kennecott Land's first town is not only unique to Utah but the country. He's toured many planned communities in other states but adds, "I don't know anyone who has done it as well as Kennecott."

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On the Net:

Daybreak: http://daybreakutah.com

Kennecott Land Co. http://www.kennecottland.com

[bob rulz]

Yay, I'm glad somebody posted something about this!

It sucks that it didn't get any responses though.

I find Kennecott Land's whole development plans fascinating. Daybreak is just the beginning and I'm already fascinated by it.

However, Daybreak still falls into some of the traps of modern urban sprawl; houses crammed together, absolutely no trees anywhere; giant garages in the fronts of the houses; little variety in the houses. However, when I went down there to take a look at it there was quite a bit more variety than in a lot of other new urban sprawl areas (for example, pretty much every house in Draper, Herriman, and Riverton looks the same...).

[Audiomuse]

Amazing!

[xzmattzx]

Originally Posted by bob rulz

However, Daybreak still falls into some of the traps of modern urban sprawl; houses crammed together, absolutely no trees anywhere; giant garages in the fronts of the houses; little variety in the houses. However, when I went down there to take a look at it there was quite a bit more variety than in a lot of other new urban sprawl areas (for example, pretty much every house in Draper, Herriman, and Riverton looks the same...).

it will take time for the place to develop a personality. but isn't that the case with any place built? every place is going to look duller if there aren't any trees around, even in a city. and rowhouses in cities along the east coast look almost exactly the same. these places will begin to acquire a personality as the residents interact in their community and leave their marks on their homes.

[bob rulz]

Originally Posted by xzmattzx

it will take time for the place to develop a personality. but isn't that the case with any place built? every place is going to look duller if there aren't any trees around, even in a city. and rowhouses in cities along the east coast look almost exactly the same. these places will begin to acquire a personality as the residents interact in their community and leave their marks on their homes.

Perhaps, but this is miles and miles of houses that look exactly the same and are crammed right next to each other. Eventually they will develop a personality, but...I don't know, all of the houses look the same, there's hardly any yards, the garages take up half the house, and more than half of the houses are 2 stories. I've seen pictures of old neighborhoods back when they were new, and they were still better than these new places are.

Either way, the Daybreak Community is better than any of the other new communities I've seen out there. I can give these places time to develop personalities, but still, they're only a bit better. I actually saw a NEW red brick house in Daybreak! That's something you never see over here anymore...

[lovecharlie]

I just googled daybreak Utah, it probably doesn't give me the best views of the community, but It looked like something out of a 50's tv series all that was missing was the picket white fences, is that good or bad I dont know, either way however they have no excuses if it doesn't work out, surely by now planners know what works and what doesn't.

[bay_area]

Went there about a month ago. its pretty nice actually-all things considered I think its as good as could have been expected. They went to tremendous lengths to be sustainable.

[Xusein]

All I can say...Damn...

[Orlando Villas FL]

"Daybreak is a master-planned community designed using a traditional neighborhood development model (TND) which means that all homes within the community are within a five-minute walk or bike ride of a major amenity such as a park, the lake, or a shopping area, reducing resident's dependence on automobile travel and providing the opportunity for a healthier lifestyle.

Daybreak was ranked as the 6th Best Selling Master Planned Community in the Nation for 2009.

The 65-acre man-made Oquirrh Lake retains stormwater and supplies reserve irrigation water while providing habitat to over 59 species of birds and game fish."

image hosted on flickr

Early Fall at Oquirrh Lake by Photo Dean, on Flickr

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Enjoying a Daybreak Summer by Photo Dean, on Flickr

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Family Lake Fun by Photo Dean, on Flickr

[Orlando Villas FL]

image hosted on flickr

Colorful House by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

Early Fall on the Lake by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

Yellow Daybreak House by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

Bridge Light by Photo Dean, on Flickr

[Orlando Villas FL]

image hosted on flickr

Spring Storm Over Oquirrh Lake by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

House and Stream by Photo Dean, on Flickr

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Bell on the Pier by Photo Dean, on Flickr

[Orlando Villas FL]

image hosted on flickr

Daybreak Community Center by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

The Glass House by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

Daybreak Bridge by Photo Dean, on Flickr

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BYU vs. UofU Houses by Photo Dean, on Flickr

[desertpunk]

Excellent!

We broke ground just recently on the first houses for Mesa Del Sol which will have 100,000 people here in Albuquerque. This fine example should hopefully be emulated by the developer, Forest City Covington.

[Orlando Villas FL]

image hosted on flickr

Welcome to Daybreak by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

Lake View from Pride Hill by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

Daybreak House by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

Blue Gazebo House by Photo Dean, on Flickr

[Orlando Villas FL]

image hosted on flickr

Temple at the end of the Street by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

Summer Morning House by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

Yellow Foursquare House by Photo Dean, on Flickr

[Orlando Villas FL]

image hosted on flickr
image hosted on flickr

Colorful New Houses by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

Green Bungalow and Waterfall by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

Yellow House by Photo Dean, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

New Blue Bungalow House by Photo Dean, on Flickr

[Chadoh25]

Wow, very nice!