Rocky, North Salt Lake clash over foothill land
Mayor wants 'open space'; owner wants no meddling
But Anderson's jabs weren't the only ones delivered at the rally. North Salt Lake leaders, including Mayor Kay Briggs, showed up to lob their own barbs at Salt Lake City's outspoken mayor.
Anderson is trying to condemn roughly 12 acres of a 100-acre parcel on a bench that North Salt Lake owns but falls within Salt Lake boundaries. Of the 100 acres, 80 are within Salt Lake City's boundaries.
Condemning the land essentially invokes eminent domain and would force the dispute before a judge, who would set the value of the land that Salt Lake City then would try to purchase. Anderson wants Salt Lake City to preserve the area as open space but still allow North Salt Lake to retain decades-old water rights.
It is unclear what would happen to the land not included in Anderson's petition, which was to be filed in 3rd District Court. It also is unclear what money Salt Lake City would use to pay for the space if a judge ruled in its favor.
"Stewardship of this land does not mean taking publicly owned land and selling it to the highest bidder, thus forever denying the public the opportunity to experience it in its natural state," Anderson said. "Protecting and caring for this land means leaving it as pristine open space, and that is what we intend to do."
"It's my back yard, and I'll tell you one thing — we will do our best to preserve it," Briggs said. "We won't turn it into what they have turned (the Avenues) into. That's our promise. Our promise is open space. We will deal with it, and we will justifiably make it beautiful."
Money from selling land on the bench above the two cities — estimated between $4.5 million and $6 million — would pad North Salt Lake's coffers for a fire station, a connection to the Jordan River Parkway trail, and a golf course bond debt.
"We'd like to be able to raise a little money," said Len Arave, a planner for North Salt Lake who attended Wednesday's rally. "I think if you go to our meetings, you'll find almost entirely everyone is for open space. But there's the practicality of life. If you want to be able to do these things for the city, you're got to be able to raise a little bit."
Of the 100 acres on the hill, North Salt Lake wants 20 for houses and 10 for a cemetery. The rest, it says, would remain developed open space with trails and a park. The city has already applied for funds through the state's LeRay McAllister Fund to help pay for preservation.
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