Provo leaders will start reviewing this week an ambitious and controversial plan for a 20,000-seat music venue in Provo Canyon — a proposal launched by some of Utah’s most famous entertainers, the Osmonds.

David Osmond, son of the late Alan Osmond of the famous singing brothers, announced in May that he and his uncle Donny Osmond will spearhead development of the Vesper Amphitheater at the site of an old mining facility at 6622 N. Highway 189, across from Canyon View and Mount Timpanogos parks.

The proposed venue’s seating capacity would put Vesper Amphitheater on a level with Salt Lake City’s Delta Center and Sandy’s America First Field, or a bit smaller than Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre in West Valley City.

The development would contain a state-of-the-art music venue, hotel villas, restaurants, retail spaces and up to 8,000 parking spaces, according to a concept plan included in a development proposal Vesper is making to Provo.

David Osmond told reporters in May that the project was “deeply personal” to him, offering “a chance to reimagine this area, to restore it and preserve it to create something for future generations to come and experience this together.”

Provo’s Planning Commission wasn’t convinced. After a June 24 public meeting that lasted five hours, where commissioners heard from Vesper representative Bryan Bayles and from the public, the panel voted 5-2 against Vesper’s request for a zoning change and approval of the concept plan.

Commissioners who voted down the request said the project was still in its early stages, was too big, and raised concerns about traffic and congestion. They suggested cutting the number of parking spaces in half.

Bringing so much traffic into the canyon and turning that much land into parking spaces “just feels wrong,” Commissioner Joel Temple said.

The commissioners also questioned whether the amphitheater should be given exemptions to height requirements, which the proposal said were needed to house theatrical rigging and other sightline elements.

The Vesper proposal and the commission’s denial recommendation are being forwarded to the Provo City Council, which will start considering the development plan Tuesday. According to the city’s website, the earliest the council would vote on the proposal is Aug. 25, but such a vote may not happen until September.

Whenever the vote happens, the council should expect to hear from residents opposed to the venue.

As of Friday, a petition on Change.org has garnered more than 5,400 signatures in protest of the amphitheater’s construction.

The petition’s authors cite location, traffic, congestion and safety in the canyon as some of the reasons for their protest. The petition also says the project brings up environmental concerns and could have a significant “impact on the land, river, air and noise pollution.”

City leaders in neighboring Orem added their two cents to the discussion. In a signed letter to Provo, Orem leaders said they had a strong desire to collaborate on the project but raised similar concerns from residents — including traffic congestion, noise pollution, parking availability and impact on nearby parks. The letter noted that the current transportation structure in the area already faces “significant strain” and is susceptible to traffic backups stretching miles up the canyon.

The Orem City Council and Orem’s mayor didn’t dismiss the project entirely, but in their letter made it clear they hope to see more studies and data about the Vesper Amphitheater.

“To fully evaluate the scope and potential impacts of this development, comprehensive traffic, parking, noise, economic and environmental analyses will be essential,” the Orem leaders wrote in the letter.

David Osmond has said he views the Vesper project as a “restoration” of the land, transforming a gravel pit into a music venue for the community.

“The goal is not to overwhelm the canyon,” he said when he announced the project in May “but to transform it from an existing gravel pit into something more beautiful, more usable, a one-of-a-kind year-round entertainment destination with both an indoor and outdoor capacity.”

The mining site is owned by the Provo Canyon Mining Co. and makes up 26 acres of the proposed 100-acre Vesper development. According to the development proposal, Vesper seeks to acquire two adjacent parcels currently owned by the city.

Note to readers • Dylan Eubank is a Report for America corps member covering faith in Utah County for The Salt Lake Tribune. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep him writing stories.