In spite of continued concerns over traffic and parking, the Snowflake Town Council granted a special use permit to Margo Parker, who was represented by David Alexander, chief executive officer and founder of White Mountain Academy for Gifted Individuals, to open a private school at the property located at 416 S. Second W. St. at the Nov. 6 meeting.
The initial request was tabled at the Oct. 2 meeting of the council so that more information could be gathered regarding parking and school activities before a decision was made. Town Manager Brian Richards said that he had talked with the applicants regarding the traffic issues presented at the last meeting. “I feel pretty good about it. The streets are wide enough to support the traffic and the time that the school is starting and stopping does not create a lot of traffic.”
Mayor Lynn Johnson raised a concern as he asked the Town Attorney Robert Hall, “Can we run into any foreseeable problems for future development by granting this permit?”
Hall responded, “I think in view of the fact the application has been thoroughly reviewed and vetted, and the staff has sought input from everyone in the neighborhood, that should protect the town against future claims. I think anytime you put larger numbers into an area, there are issues raised and they need to be resolved. With the way the school is proposed to be run and the supervision of the students, I feel those issues have been rationally resolved.”
Councilman Cory Johnson said he had talked with a couple of neighbors who live across the road, who voiced concerns regarding parking and traffic. “We are talking about a school on two acres that has a massive house on it. The concerns are more regarding that intersection,” said Cory Johnson, who also noted that he was pro education and thought the concept was good, but was just concerned about the location.
Alexander noted that the school would be operating from at 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. “We took pictures at 8:30 a.m. and again at 3 p.m., and there was very little traffic on the roads at those times,” said Alexander. “We are starting with a staff of four, so we will not have a lot of traffic from the school at first.”
Vice Mayor Kelly Ballard said, “I have seen the project and talked about the issues of parking. At this time I would like to make a motion to approve the special use permit.”
The motion carried, with Ballard, Lynn Johnson, councilmembers Allison Perkins, Hunter Lewis, Byron Lewis and Greg Brimhall voting for approval. Councilman Cory Johnson voted against.
