Out of control New Year’s party at Karl Malone Training Center

Residents in the 500 East and 200 South neighborhood in Lehi returned to their homes after New Year’s Eve celebrations to find hundreds of cars lining the streets near the Karl Malone Training Center where a New Year’s Eve party was being held. Over 500 teens were attending a party in the building.

Residents were shocked to find cars spilling into the streets of the neighborhood with driveways blocked and cars parked in restricted areas. While parking at the training center is already a problem according to many residents, parking for an event of this size made getting in and out of the neighborhood hazardous.

One resident of the neighborhood said, “We were shocked and upset that so many cars were parked up and down many streets, ours included. We arrived home around 10:30 p.m. with cars lining our street, and for two hours heard screaming and music as if it were daylight.”

Bags of trash collected from the streets from the party
aftermath. | Courtesy Brennan Thompson

According to residents, cars were seen at the Karl Malone Training Center until 3 a.m. and residents awoke to trash strewn about the streets. A nearby resident said when she called the owner to complain, the owner said they expected 500 people in the center for the event. The resident said even with the expected number, it was still too much for a residential neighborhood.

Lehi Police was called with complaints about noise and concerns about the occupancy in the center, as well as a commotion between a large group of juveniles about a block down from the center. Sergeant Call of the Lehi Police Department confirmed the reports and said when police arrived, the youth involved had dispersed.

Multiple thefts occurred within the center and an ambulance was called for a 17-year old girl who attended the party. Sergeant Marshall, who responded to the event, also said there were calls about parking and occupancy. Police arrived at 12:00 a.m. to usher partygoers out of the building due to the crowded occupancy. The building was cleared by 1:00 a.m. “There was definitely more than 500 people in the building, a party with 200 people is still pretty large and that’s a large building, but with the amount of people there, it became hard to move about the space,” Sergeant Marshall said.

The Karl Malone Training Center, originally Club Utah, was approved in 2014 with a conditional use permit contingent on a two-year review and re-approval. The center was re-approved in the April 13, 2017, Planning Commission meeting with the following conditions:

• Cross access easement with the city pool property.
• The facilities would be used only from 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. (changed operating hours of 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.)
• Obtain consent from the property owner to the north to ensure landscaping is not injurious to the livestock.
• Receive public comment after the two-year approval.
• Tournaments not held between Memorial Day and Labor Day.

In the 2014 Planning Commission meeting discussing the approval, previous owner Jared Bishop stated, “We do have camps throughout the year, but this will strictly be a practice facility with courts.”

Public input was heard at the April 13, 2017 Planning Commission Meeting during the re-approval of the center. Owner, Brei Hofeldt addressed some of the conditions stated for the conditional use. She mentioned a contract the center has for singles ward dances held at the center. In the meeting, several residents spoke during the public input portion regarding parking issues. Resident Wade Taylor spoke regarding the safety issues relating to parking, but wasn’t concerned with the dances, saying the noise was mostly contained. Two other neighbors spoke to the lack of safety involved with the parking situation. Solutions were discussed for the parking problems such as red curbs and signage, but current residents feel parking problems still persist today.

Advertisement

Development Code Section 09.060 states the following regulations for a Conditional Use Permit, “3. Provision of parking facilities, including vehicular ingress and egress and the surfacing of parking areas and driveways to specified standards… 6. The mitigation of nuisance factors such as noise, vibrations, smoke…7. The regulation of operating hours for activities affecting normal neighborhood schedules and functions.”

During approval in the 2014 Planning Commission meeting, Kim Struthers mentioned, “Language in the Conditional Use chapter mentions that we can call them back at any time if they are not complying to the conditions.”

The owner was contacted for comment on the New Year’s situation but was unable to be reached.

Area residents are urging Lehi City to revisit the Training Center’s parking issues. One citizen said, “Please, Lehi City, do the right thing and follow through with your promises to your citizens and community.”