Mayors devise a plan for Jordan asset split

A plan outlining how to divide the assets and liabilities of the Jordan School District when it splits next year has been devised by the mayors of the cities within the district, but they say details will not be released until the east and west transition teams have a chance to review it.

The mayors are also trying to build a consensus on how best to make the plan public. The mayors agree, though, that the transition teams should see the information before it goes public, said Cottonwood Heights Mayor Kelvyn Cullimore.

West transition team chairman Ralph Haws agrees. "To announce the plan to the public before we review it is inappropriate," he said.

The mayors could decide as early as today on an announcement procedure that would be put in place later this week, Cullimore said.

Leaders of both transition teams say they are open to hearing the mayors' plan.

"We're just kind of in a wait-and-see mode," said east transition team chairman Steve Newton.

Getting a full transition team together to hear the mayors' plan may prove to be tricky.

Several members of the west transition team are out of town this week. The team's next regular meeting is set for Aug. 13.

The east transition team has tentatively slated an emergency meeting for Wednesday in case the team needs to discuss timely issues. The team's regular meeting is planned for Monday.

Cullimore will not reveal information from the plan but says neither side will be completely happy with it. "This is truly a compromise," he said. "It gets us focused on the positive and puts the negative behind."

The ultimate decision of how to divide Jordan's assets and liabilities lies with the transition teams and school boards, however.

"They (the mayors) have no legal authority," Haws said. "All they can do is make a recommendation."

The transition teams are under legal mandate to each choose an arbitrator by Sept. 1. There is still leeway, however, for the teams to come up with a plan and use it even after arbitrators have been selected.

Last November, east-side residents voted to leave Jordan district and form their own school district. Since then, the two sides have been unable to agree on how to split the assets and liabilities.

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E-mail: astewart@desnews.com

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