Lost Creek Browns Canyon project proceeds in Summit County after state denial

The Utah Office of the Lieutenant Governor informed developers that it “could not accept the feasibility request because of the statewide two-request limit for the calendar year,” after receiving a preliminary municipality filing for Lost Creek on Jan. 1, 2026 and releasing its determination via GRAMA on Feb. 5, 2026. The determination letter, as reported, does not address whether a Lost Creek municipality would be feasible or appropriate.

State filings identify the applicants as GRR–Lost Creek, LLC and E B R Management, LLC with Christopher P. Gamvroulas, president of Ivory Development, listed as the primary contact and sponsor. Park Record coverage names Ivory Homes and Garff-Rogers Ranch among parties tied to the Browns Canyon proposal and reports Gamvroulas has said the company hopes to work with Summit County rather than pursue incorporation.

The project’s metrics diverge sharply across public records. The state feasibility filing described roughly 490.53 acres and a unit table totaling 510 units, including 255 nightly rental units. Summit County GRAMA records and a county community plan density analysis instead list 407.5 acres and a housing range of 2,285 to 3,002 units. Park Record separately projects about 642 full-time residents after final phase construction. The county and state records do not explain the discrepancies in acreage or unit counts.

Summit County records also show a county-track pathway to create a Lost Creek Community Zone, or LCCZ, via a proposed development code amendment and community plan that would proceed through the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission and then to the Summit County Council by development agreement. Draft LCCZ ordinance provisions in the county materials specify that any rezoned area must be within 1 mile of Lost Creek Road and include at least 100 acres, and that a development agreement must guarantee at least 10% open space and at least 10% affordable housing.

The draft defines “affordable” as housing costing 30% or less of household income at 80% of the Summit County area median income. Park Record and county staff cited by local outlets indicate the county has received an application proposing the LCCZ code amendment, but Park Record reported the application had not yet been made public at the time of reporting.

Legal context cited in local coverage notes that Utah statute limits the lieutenant governor’s office to accepting two preliminary municipality feasibility requests per calendar year and provides eligibility criteria tied to private ownership and population thresholds; local reporting also referenced a 2025 filing by Dakota Pacific Real Estate for a Park City Tech preliminary municipality as recent precedent. The lieutenant governor’s determination did not identify the two earlier 2026 requests that triggered the cap.

Next steps on the Browns Canyon proposal are now squarely in Summit County’s land-use process: county documents show the LCCZ proposal is slated for public review by the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission before the Summit County Council considers a development agreement. Outstanding items for local officials and developers to resolve include reconciling the conflicting acreage and unit counts between state and county filings and publishing the county application materials and draft development agreement for public review.