Lehi City News
Holbrook Farms neighborhood expresses concern over possible transit plans
Nichole Coombs | Lehi Free Press
Members of Lehi’s Holbrook Farms neighborhood (located north of Primary Children’s Medical Center and between the Jordan River and Redwood Road) are feeling the pinch as the city looks at various long-term mass transit traffic flow plans.
“The mass transit plans are important to our city,” said council member Emily Lockhart. “Developers and city planners use these plans because once that transportation plan gets approved, development will react to the plan. The traffic issues happening in the northwest side of Lehi have been studied for over a decade. What’s happened recently is just a new piece of the puzzle.”
The issue being discussed is the addition of an east-west on-and off-ramp from I-15 to Lehi. As Lehi grows, the impact of moving traffic from one side of the valley to the other increases. Continuing population growth in Eagle Mountain and Saratoga Springs, and increasing traffic flow through Lehi to reach I-15, also exacerbate the problem.
During a Lehi City Council work session on July 13, 2026, city engineers discussed two potential locations for the ramp. Option one adds a ramp on the north side of Camp Williams. In a statement, the city engineers said, “This option is not supported by Camp Williams, and it faces significant jurisdictional challenges.”
Council member James Harrison explained why.
“The engineering department talked to Camp Williams, and it’s my understanding they did not support option one because it goes through their property. They preferred option two because they are moving their entrance to 2700 North, so it would be more convenient and not touch as much of their property.”
Option number two puts the ramp at 2700 North, next to the Holbrook Farms neighborhood. There was another option called the Freeway to Freeway (F2F), which would add a ramp from I-15 to the Mountain View Corridor, but UDOT estimates the cost of that ramp at over $3 billion. The cost alone makes the F2F option unrealistic.
“Engineers have been studying the need for more access for years,” said Harrison. “So based on that data, over the next two or three decades we know that most of the roads in Lehi will fail [to support traffic needs]. Even with some of the complex projects like the flex lanes on Pioneer and the 2100 North freeway-to-freeway connection, we know our east-west connectors will fail. We aren’t looking at making a decision today; we are looking at 10 to 20 years down the road.”
But in order to look into the future, city leaders must update the Master Traffic Plan. Those possible updates are what the Lehi City engineers have been studying. They gather data, assess needs, and propose possible solutions for the city council to vote on. The engineers do not decide how to adjust the master plan.
Jeremy Baker, who lives in Holbrook Farms, is frustrated with the options presented. He says his neighborhood wasn’t built to support a freeway ramp, and he wants the city engineers to find another way.
“We have lived here for five years, and we love it,” said Baker. “It’s a quiet community. We just opened up a new park.”
Baker says the neighborhood is ideal for families because there are no east or north connections into or out of the neighborhood, so traffic is light, allowing families and children to walk, ride bikes, and move about freely.
“I feel like this design is helping the city rather than actually helping the local area,” said Baker. “A great example is the Clubhouse Drive extension that was actually removed from Lehi City’s plans after a lot of pushback.”
Neighbors have spoken out about the Holbrook Farms option, saying it will change the neighborhood.
“We are a community that interacts,” said Doris Hinton. “Putting a busy road there doesn’t make sense. We have kids who use those roads to get to school. If the traffic increases, they won’t be safe walking.”
Neighbors quickly responded to the study, sending emails and calling Lehi City Council members. A change.org petition was also started, which currently has over 250 signatures.
“I understand why residents are concerned,” said council member Heather Newall. “However, there is no upcoming council meeting where decisions between options 1 or 2 [will be made]. The council was not asked to select a route or approve a road through Holbrook Farms. The concepts shown were examples of some possibilities around Camp Williams. They were not a final list or choices.”
Holbrook residents say they understand that, but timing is everything.
“The stronger the response is,” said Baker. “And how early we make our responses known, the more likely that things won’t go in that direction.”
In its statement, the Lehi City engineering department said, “Throughout this process, city engineers are carefully analyzing each option by considering traffic operations, safety, speed, access, environmental factors, and the potential impacts on existing and future neighborhoods.”
They concluded by saying, “Feedback has been documented and will be included as part of the ongoing traffic modeling and evaluation process. Public input is an important part of developing the Transportation Master Plan, and we appreciate the residents taking the time to share their perspective.”
