Although many still use the area as a thoroughfare to get into downtown Salt Lake City, a use Sullivan later said the church encourages and does not intend to prohibit, it is no longer dedicated to any public purpose.

"If you go onto the plaza, you would know that you are in a religious enclave," he said.

While that might be technically true, the ACLU maintains that the plaza, in a prime downtown location connecting the city's commercial district to residential and governmental districts, continues to operate as a public forum. Further, that function was understood when the city and church entered into its agreement, Lopez said.

"All they did was change the title, and they did it in a way, a very cute way," to ensure that it continued to operate as a public forum, he said.

Lopez argued the city got what it wanted — continued public use of the plaza sidewalks. And the church got what it wanted — the right to restrict speech and behavior on the property.

"Is there any doubt in your mind that this case is about protecting the interest of the church from dissenting points of view?" Lopez asked.

Seizing on those allegations of collusion between the church and the city, Lucero directly asked attorneys for both about the intent behind the settlement agreement.

Is there an agreement, express or implied, secret or otherwise, by which the city has some kind of understanding with the LDS Church that they will not close the sidewalks? the judge asked.

The city, Allred said, "categorically denies" the existence of any such agreement.

Aside from that exchange, the court did not spend much time Wednesday on the ACLU's claims that the city improperly entered into the deal simply to please the LDS Church or that Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson, who initially came out strongly against selling the easement, caved to political pressure.

The city has continued to cite the secular benefits it gained from the agreement, namely the 2.1 acres of land near the Sorenson Multi-Cultural Center and some $5 million in private donations to construct a community center on the property.

Wednesday, under questioning by Judge Mary Beck Briscoe, Sullivan dismissed ACLU allegations of a "sham transaction." The transaction can't be a sham as long as the secular purposes are not a sham, he said.

After the hearing, Lopez acknowledged that the ACLU has a high burden to meet in order to succeed on appeal. Ultimately, he said, the court will have to determine that the Main Street Plaza continues to act as public property.

Still, he said, "I think the people of Salt Lake City know why this deal occurred, and I think they understand why the city was so willing to bend over backwards to meet the demands of the LDS Church."

The appeals court took the matter under advisement. It did not indicate when it would issue a ruling in the case.

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E-mail: awelling@desnews.com