A proposed multi-use commercial building for Long Range Shooters of Utah at 200 North and Main Street in Alpine hit another delay on Tuesday, July 14, when the City Council voted 3-1 to table the site plan over a parking configuration that doesn't match city code.

The project is a small retail gun shop, warehouse, office, content-filming space, and one-bedroom apartment in Alpine's Gateway/Historic District. It must now complete a formal parking exception review and a swept path analysis before it can return to the Planning Commission for a supplemental recommendation.

As we reported July 28, it was the second time the council had tabled the application.

The parking stall that stalled the project

The dispute centered on stall number 1, a 90-degree parking space adjacent to the building's garage with a one-way aisle. Council member Jessica Smuin argued the configuration doesn't match any of the six parking diagrams approved in Alpine Development Code Section 3.24.020, since the only 90-degree diagram in code requires a two-way aisle.

"We still have uncertainties. Why not just send it back so they can come with a proper design?" council member Andrew Young said at the July 14 meeting.

City Attorney Hyrum Bosserman acknowledged that Utah law requires ambiguity in land use code to be interpreted in favor of the applicant, but said a reasonable reading of the code's six diagrams could support requiring a formal exception process.

Council member Chrissy Hannemann cast the lone dissenting vote, arguing the council had dealt with 90 percent of the project's criteria and should limit the scope and move forward. Sarah Blackwell, Andrew Young, and Jessica Smuin voted to table. Brent Rummler was excused.

What the applicant must do next

Applicant Bryce Bergen presented two revised parking layouts at the meeting: a 60-degree angled stall design with one-way traffic flow, which staff recommended as the most code-compliant option, and an updated 90-degree layout with one stall removed.

Neither satisfied the council majority.

Bergen must now seek a formal parking lot exception under Section 3.24.030 and complete a swept path analysis under Section 3.07.080.3. City Engineer Jason Judd said the swept path work, to be contracted to Horrocks Engineers, would take about 15 minutes to complete. City Administrator Shane Sorensen estimated the cost at roughly $50.

Once both items are finished, the application goes back to the Planning Commission before returning to the council for final approval.

Background

The Alpine Planning Commission voted 5-2 on June 16 to recommend approval with conditions, according to commission minutes. The applicant, Rick Christensen, currently sells firearms from his home and described anticipated traffic as about a dozen customers per month. No shooting range is proposed.

City Planner Caden Lyon reported at the July 14 meeting that the updated site plan meets code for the Business Commercial Zone and Gateway/Historic Zone, the building footprint was reduced to allow more parking, the site meets the 20 percent landscaping requirement, and exterior materials were updated to include brick, wood, and other materials compliant with Gateway/Historic Design Guidelines.

Staff raises approved

At the same meeting, the council unanimously approved (4-0, Rummler excused) a staff compensation package effective July 1: a 2 percent cost-of-living adjustment for all employees, a 2 percent equity allocation at management discretion, and a 1 percent performance bonus upon completion of an annual review.

The council also approved executive officer compensation under Ordinance 2026-13 for City Administrator Shane Sorensen and Assistant City Administrator Caden Lyon, including COLA, merit components, and a one-time 1.3 percent bonus for URS Tier II employees, effective September 1.

The official minutes were published Wednesday, July 29. The July 28 council agenda listed the Long Range Shooters site plan as an action item, indicating the project returned to council two weeks after the tabling.