Washington County Enterprise-Leader
Farmington Gets New Subdivision
For the first time in more than 10 years, single family houses are under construction in a new subdivision in Farmington.
The final plat for Saddlebrook Subdivision was approved by the Farmington Planning Commission in December 2009, but subdivision plans have remained dormant since then.
In September, Riggins Construction pulled 37 permits to build new houses in the section of the subdivision closest to Clyde Carnes Road, according to building official Rick Bramall. While the property is in Farmington city limits, it lies in Prairie Grove School District.
Part of the lots are owned by Riggins Construction and others are owned by Washington County Property Owners Improvement District #14.
According to plans at City Hall,
the final plat shows 129 lots in the subdivision. The lots are about 1/4 acre in size.
The building permits acquired by Riggins Construction show seven different house plans that range from 1,487 square feet in heated space to 1,690 square feet. The brick houses will have three bedrooms and two bathrooms and will have a back porch.
Twin Falls subdivision is the last one under construction in Farmington. Owner Keith Marrs said construction on infrastructure for Twin Falls started in 2004 and was finished in 2006.
The subdivision has 138 lots and only two lots are still available for sale. Houses have been constructed on most of the lots.
Marrs said Farmington’s problem for housing growth has been a lack of inventory.
“There are only 27 houses for sale in Farmington,” Marrs said, but added he believes Farmington is “set to bust” if it has a product to sell.
Two other subdivisions have been approved for Farmington.
The Planning Commission approved the preliminary plat for a subdivision called Windgate Subdivision on Rheas Mill Road. According to the preliminary plat, the subdivision will have 27 lots that range in size from .24 acre to a corner lot with .47 acre.
Houses are supposed to have a minimum of 2,000 square feet, according to the engineer for the project, Geoffrey Bates of Bates & Associates.
The third subdivision is called Farmington Heights and is located on Sellers Road. The Commission approved the preliminary plat earlier this year and it calls for 125 lots on 38.86 acres, with lots ranging in size from .25 acre to .29 acre.
When infrastructure is finished for Wingate and Farmington Heights, developers will have to return to the Planning Commission for final plat approval. Building permits cannot be issued until the final plat has been approved.
Saddlebrook Subdivision is part of the community sewer system owned by Washington County Property Owners Improvement District #5. This system also serves Valley View Estates subdivision.
Jerry Kopke, the receiver with the property owners group, said the lift station for Saddlebrook Subdivision needed about $30,000 in repairs. Riggins Construction is paying the costs for the repairs and the improvement district is making the repairs.
According to planning records, the new building permits for Saddlebrook brought in $312,000 in building permit fees for the city of Farmington. City records also showed that labor and materials for the new houses in Saddlebrook range from a low of $213,000 to a high of $272,000.