Published
Ashton's October planning docket: a 50-foot height question, a Maple Street rezone, and the comprehensive plan
One meeting, three hearings
Ashton’s Planning and Zoning Commission met at 6:00 p.m. on October 15, 2026, at City Hall, 714 Main Street — and the agenda it published (retrieved 21 October 2026) put three public hearings on one night:
| Item | What the agenda says | Type |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Approve minutes from the September 3, 2026 meeting | Action item |
| 2 | Amend Title 17: buildable height in the Highway Commercial district, 35 feet to 50 feet | Public hearing |
| 3 | Zone change at parcel #RPA00130010050: Community Core to Highway Commercial | Public hearing |
| 4 | Amend the comprehensive plan for the City of Ashton | Public hearing |
The commission’s standing rule for anyone who came to speak:
“Each speaker will be allowed a maximum of 3 minutes unless repeat testimony is requested by the P & Z Commission.”
— City of Ashton Planning and Zoning Commission, meeting agenda, October 15, 2026. Retrieved 21 October 2026
The height question: 35 feet becomes 50
The first hearing was a change to the city’s own rulebook. The published notice, in full:
“APPLICATION TO AMEND Title 17 Development Code of the City of Ashton Code to allow the buildable height in Highway Commercial Zoning District to increase from 35 feet to 50 feet.”
— Notice of Public Hearing, City of Ashton, published September 29 and October 6, 2026. Retrieved 21 October 2026
Highway Commercial is the zone that runs along Ashton’s state-highway frontage — the 20 and 47 corridors that carry the town’s through traffic. What the hearing record puts on the table:
- The change itself: a fifteen-foot taller buildable height changes what a commercial building next to the highway can be.
- The city’s own label for it: the file the city posted the notice under is labeled “HCZD Height Code Change COBBLESTONE PH 10-15-26” — the city’s home page, where the label sits, ties the amendment to the Cobblestone phase by name.
- Not over yet: the same amendment returned as an action item on a special-meeting agenda for October 22, 2026, one week after the hearing.
The rezone: one parcel on Maple Street
The second hearing was about a single property:
“APPLICATION TO AMEND the official zoning map to permit the property at 98 Maple Street, Ashton Idaho, owned by Highway 20 Ashton Property LLC, to be changed from Community Core Zoning District to Highway Commercial Zoning District.”
— Notice of Public Hearing, City of Ashton, published September 29 and October 6, 2026. Retrieved 21 October 2026
The agenda carries the same parcel under its number: #RPA00130010050. One owner, one lot, one map change from the downtown-facing Community Core district to the highway-facing one — the same direction of travel as the height amendment above it. For anyone holding land near the state highways, that is the quiet headline of the docket: the commercial spine is being pushed taller and wider, one application at a time.
The comprehensive plan hearing
The third hearing was the big one — the city’s whole land-use vision, in one line:
“TO ADOPT an amended Comprehensive Plan & Future Land Use Map for the City of Ashton, Idaho.”
— Notice of Public Hearing, City of Ashton, published September 29 and October 6, 2026. Retrieved 21 October 2026
This is the adoption step for the draft plan dated August 18, 2026 — the document the city has been circulating since its May 2024 survey. The notice also sets the paper trail for anyone who wanted a say:
- Written comments were accepted at the Ashton City Clerk’s Office, 714 Main Street, “no later than Thursday, October 1, 2026” — two weeks before the hearing.
- Anything later had to be presented at the hearing itself.
- Publication: all three notices were “Published September 29, 2026 and October 6, 2026”, each signed by City Clerk Cathy Stegelmeier.
Who is running the desk
While all this moves, the commission’s administration is in transition. The city’s own Planning and Zoning page posts this notice at the top:
“Fremont County Planning and Building is assisting with P&Z Administration for the City of Ashton until a new admin is hired.”
— City of Ashton website, Planning and Zoning page. Retrieved 21 October 2026
The hiring is real and open — the city’s posted job opening reads “The City of Ashton will be accepting applications for the position of City Planning and Zoning Administrator until the position is filled”, and notes “This is a part-time or contract position.” Until that desk is staffed, county staff at St. Anthony are the working end of the city’s planning paperwork — which is why a call to the city office, (208) 652-3987, is the first step in finding out where any file sits today. The city’s code itself is a separate document entirely; this site walks the city book here, and the city’s building permit form here.
How the outcome becomes public
Here is the part to be plain about: as of October 21, 2026, the results of the October 15 hearings are not in the posted record. The minutes library on the city’s Planning and Zoning page runs through June 18, 2026. The October 15 agenda’s first item was approving minutes from a September 3, 2026 meeting — minutes that are not yet in that library either. What is posted is the October 22 special-meeting agenda, which lists the height amendment as an action item. The sequence to watch is simple:
- Minutes post to the Planning and Zoning page.
- Ordinances amend the city code.
- The zoning map changes only by ordinance.
Until one of those appears, every outcome on this page is “noticed,” not decided.
Follow a docket item like a builder
- Watch the city’s home page Notices block and its Planning and Zoning page — agendas, notices, and minutes all post there as PDFs (checked 21 October 2026).
- For anything on a future docket, get written comments to the City Clerk’s Office, 714 Main Street, before the published deadline — the October notices set theirs two weeks before the hearing.
- At the hearing, plan for three minutes of testimony unless the commission asks for more.
- Ask the clerk, (208) 652-3987, where adoption of the comprehensive plan and the Title 17 amendment stand before you rely on either.
- And when a docket item touches land you are buying, bring it to us early: (208) 656-1516.
A three-hearing night in a town of one square mile is a busy week — and each item on it, height, map, and plan, is the kind of change that decides what gets built next to the lot you are pricing.
Common questions
What did Ashton's planning and zoning commission hear on October 15, 2026?
Three public hearings in one meeting: a Title 17 amendment raising buildable height in the Highway Commercial district from 35 feet to 50 feet, a zone change for parcel #RPA00130010050 at 98 Maple Street from Community Core to Highway Commercial, and adoption of the amended comprehensive plan and future land use map.
What is the 35-to-50-foot height change in Ashton?
A proposed amendment to the city's Title 17 development code that would allow buildable height in the Highway Commercial Zoning District to increase from 35 feet to 50 feet. It was heard October 15, 2026, and the same amendment appears as an action item on a special meeting agenda dated October 22, 2026.
Who owns 98 Maple Street in Ashton?
The published rezone notice names the owner as Highway 20 Ashton Property LLC, seeking a change from the Community Core Zoning District to the Highway Commercial Zoning District. The agenda lists the parcel as #RPA00130010050.
Who runs Ashton planning and zoning right now?
Fremont County Planning and Building is assisting with planning and zoning administration for the City of Ashton until a new administrator is hired - the city has posted a part-time or contract Planning and Zoning Administrator position open until filled. The city office is 714 Main Street, (208) 652-3987.
How can the public speak at an Ashton P&Z hearing?
Each speaker is allowed a maximum of 3 minutes unless repeat testimony is requested by the commission. Written comments are accepted if received at the City Clerk's Office by the published deadline - the October notices set October 1, 2026, two weeks before the hearing.
Did the October 15 hearings pass? I am buying land the new height rule would affect.
The posted record does not say, so do not price the lot against the 50-foot height yet. As of October 21, 2026, the minutes library on the city's Planning and Zoning page runs only through June 18, 2026, and the September 3 minutes awaited approval on the October 15 agenda. The height amendment returning on an October 22 special-meeting agenda is the latest document in the file - confirm adoption with the city clerk, (208) 652-3987, before relying on it in an offer.