Provo's long-awaited plan to overhaul the aging Provo Towne Centre inched forward Wednesday, as the Planning Commission backed key land-use changes that would clear the way for a huge mixed-use project. The commission, however, tapped the brakes on the detailed design, and residents at the on-site mobile home park are watching every move.
Planning Commission Moves Rezoning Forward, Hits Pause On Design
According to Provo City, the Planning Commission voted to recommend a General Plan map amendment and a zone map change to the Interim Transit-Oriented Development (ITOD) zone. Commissioners then voted 6-2 to continue the concept plan instead of approving it, after staff and commission members flagged infrastructure and design concerns.
They directed the developer to come back with a more detailed proposal that lines up with a pending rewrite of the ITOD code. The same packet notes that the Provo Municipal Council is scheduled to take up the legislative rezoning and General Plan requests on April 14.
What The $500 Million Makeover Would Do
Brixton Capital and local partner PEG Companies laid out a vision to remake roughly 23 acres in and around Provo Towne Centre. The concept would keep big-box anchors like Target, Cinemark, and J.C. Penney in place while gutting the mall's indoor rotunda and turning it into an outdoor plaza with new public space.
North of the existing center, the plan calls for five residential buildings with roughly 1,300 apartments and 83 townhomes, according to the Daily Herald. Developer Justin Long told commissioners he is contemplating roughly a $500 million investment and said the team has been working on the concept for years.
Neighbors Fear Displacement And A Tight Timeline
Residents of the adjacent Shady Acres mobile-home park told planners they are worried about losing some of Provo's more affordable housing and pressed officials on whether any displacement would happen in a matter of months or stretch into years.
FOX13 reported that neighbors voiced those concerns during public comment, and that developers said construction would roll out in phases, with some early work possibly starting six to twelve months after the project wins approvals.
Under state law, owners of a mobile home park must give tenants at least nine months of written notice before a change in land use forces them to move. That requirement is laid out in the Utah Code §57-16-18.
What Comes Next For City Leaders And Developers
The Planning Commission's recommendations on the General Plan and zoning now head to the Provo Municipal Council on April 14. Council members will decide whether to rezone the site to ITOD, a step that would allow the concept to move forward into more detailed review.
City staff have raised questions about sewer capacity, roadway impacts and whether the proposed housing blocks genuinely function as a walkable extension of nearby retail and transit. Developers are expected to address those issues when they return to the commission, according to Provo City.
The commission kept the concept plan open, so staff, neighbors and the developer can keep refining the details before any final sign-off.
Brixton has pointed to last year's Target opening at the site as a sign of momentum and has said publicly that it has studied the property's long-term potential. The company presents the project as a multi-year, multi-phase effort that would add jobs and new retail while layering in housing.
More public hearings and at least one City Council vote still stand between the concept and a green light, and residents are poised to keep pushing for clearer commitments on affordability and relocation assistance as the debate continues.
