The proposed 421-unit Sweetwater project in southern Hailey was given a big boost Monday when members of the city's Planning and Zoning Commission voted to approve the design of a majority of the development's various building types.
The P&Z's approval basically covered the strictly residential components of the project, Hailey Planning Director Kathy Grotto said Tuesday. These building types include townhomes, condominiums and one- and two-unit buildings the developers call carriage houses, Grotto said.
Commissioners also approved the designs for a 5,200-square-foot park-amenity building that is to be built on a 1.6-acre public park near the center of the development, she said.
The commissioners will complete their design review process for the project's remaining building types sometime in October, Grotto said. These include a series of live-work buildings as well as a single mixed-use structure, she said.
The mixed-use building, which has been proposed for the intersection of Countryside Boulevard and Shenandoah Drive, would house several retail businesses that have yet to be named.
The Sweetwater project is proposed for a 20-acre patch of vacant land located between state Highway 75 on the west and Woodside Boulevard on the east. It would straddle both sides of Countryside Boulevard.
The project is the largest housing development ever proposed in the city of Hailey. Developers of the project envision its mix of various housing types being affordable to the Wood River Valley's working families.
Despite Monday's design review approval for the residential components of the development, construction on the project won't begin until the Hailey City Council has approved a planned unit development (PUD) application for the development. Approval of the PUD request could occur during the council's next meeting on Monday, Aug. 14, Grotto said.
