Frustrated by Legacy delays, Davis leaders battle back

The Legacy Parkway has become a touchy topic for the Legislature, with state officials claiming that rising costs of the road can be blamed on opponents.

At least $217 million in additional funds is needed to construct Legacy, said John Njord, director of the Utah Department of Transportation —— and that number could increase by $75 million if opponents file another lawsuit against the proposed 14-mile highway.

Davis County leaders are troubled by the possibility.

"In effect, they're going to kill this highway by delay," said Wilf Sommerkorn, Davis director of economic development. "They'll file a lawsuit again, and judges are not technical people. All you need to do with a judge is raise more doubts."

The Davis County Commission, city mayors and members of the Davis Chamber of Commerce have become increasingly vocal in their support of Legacy — hoping to ward off another lawsuit by advertising their point of view to the public.

During a January public hearing, chamber members passed out orange stickers saying "Build Legacy Now." Signs telling Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson to "go home" were hung on a fence outside the Davis County Fairgrounds, where the hearing was held.

The chamber also has collected more than 400 signatures of support for the road and has created a Web site —— complete with a blog list decrying the Sierra Club and Anderson for their opposition to the project.

"Who is the Sierra Club really concerned about? Is it the citizens of our communities?" writes Sommerkorn, an active blogger on the site.

Davis Commissioner Alan Hansen, also a contributor to the blog site, says debate over Legacy has become increasingly "ridiculous" and harmful to the public.

"They are costing us taxpayers' money, and I think the residents of the state should be outraged," he said. "We need to move forward. Something needs to be done."

Public comment is being accepted on a supplemental study of Legacy recently completed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Comments will be accepted until March 4. For more information, visit www.udot.utah.gov.

Last summer a national taxpayer advocacy group named the Legacy Parkway project the third most-wasteful highway project in the nation.

Taxpayers for Common Sense gave the project the poor ranking for wasting money, harming the environment and hurting local communities, according to a report released by the group.

"The biggest factor we take into account is the cost to federal taxpayers. Legacy is too expensive and does too much harm to the environment and local communities it goes through," the author of the report, Erich Zimmermann, said at the time of its release.