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Serving Sun Valley, Ketchum, Hailey, Bellevue and Carey
May 31, 2023
Sweetwater’s “Block 2” expansion plan is set to add 137 units, while the forthcoming “Block 3” and “Block 5” buildouts should add some 200 additional units to the north and south.
Sweetwater’s “Block 2” expansion plan is set to add 137 units, while the forthcoming “Block 3” and “Block 5” buildouts should add some 200 additional units to the north and south.
The Hailey City Council on May 8 approved a final plat agreement from Utah-based developer Kilgore Properties for the first phase of a long-planned 137-unit expansion of Sweetwater subdivision in Hailey’s Woodside neighborhood.
A total of 57 residential units—five ten-unit condominium buildings and seven live-work units —and an amenity building with a clubhouse and a pool are currently under construction between Shenandoah Drive and state Highway 75 as part of the first phase of the “Block 2” buildout.
The seven 1,650-square-foot, live-work units bounded by Countryside Boulevard are mostly complete, while construction on the amenity building has not yet begun, according to City Planner Cece Osborn.
Preliminary plat approval gives a developer the ability to build roads, sewer lines and other infrastructure on a lot or lots, whereas a final plat means the developer can actually sell the lots.
The first and second phases of “Block 2” received preliminary-plat approval in the summer of 2020, followed by design-review approval in the summer of 2022.
Momentum Development Group previously planned to build just 23 units in the first phase. But in light of the valley’s housing shortage—and facing pressure from the Hailey City Council—the developer reconfigured the block to include seven live-work units and five 10-unit condominium buildings, rather than the traditional three-plex townhouse units, to more than double the grand total to 57 units.
Project representative Matt Watson, representing Sweetwater Communities, told the council on May 8 that he was “looking forward to moving ahead with the sale of the live-work units.”
The 1,270-square feet-condominium units are also listed as “accepting reservations” on Stephanie Reed Real Estate.
Councilman Juan Martinez asked Watson about the projected sale price of the live-work units, which Watson said would be priced “in the upper 900s.”
Mayor Martha Burke’s response was simple: “Yikes.”
Councilwoman Heidi Husbands asked Watson if the developer was considering any “affordable live-work units” in the next phase to “keep workers, doctors and schoolteachers here.”
“Obviously, $975,000 for a work-live unit is beyond most people’s [budget] if they are working Monday through Friday. I know the condos start at $600,000, which is a pretty steep price as well,” she said.
The second phase of the expansion is expected to bring an additional 80 residential units to the Sweetwater neighborhood divided between eight ten-unit condominium buildings. It will also add a 0.14-acre children’s outdoor play area next to the amenity building, according to the city.
“I think we are probably a year and a half away from starting on that phase,” Watson told the council. “As far as the affordable housing component of our development, I believe that’s already been met.”
Once the second leg of the “Block 2” buildout is complete—leaving the Sweetwater unit count at 137 units—subsequent “Block 3” and “Block 5” expansions should add some 200 additional units to the north and south, according to the developer. 
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