Open space advocates are making a final push to raise enough money to preserve 190 acres in Emigration Canyon.

But the effort, led by Utah Open Lands, is still $330,000 short as a Sept. 19 deadline looms. That figure also assumes the group will get a $400,000 grant from the state's conservation fund that is not yet guaranteed.

"It's slow. Slower than it can be to get this done," said Wendy Fisher, executive director of Utah Open Lands.

Fisher rallied community members Thursday at a neighborhood meeting to pony up contributions to buy the land and get a conservation easement. The parcel includes the Perkins Flat meadow, which sits about 2 to 3 miles inside the mouth of the canyon.

"It's not a lot of money for what we're doing here tonight," Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon said. "We need to make a decision: Are we going to save this land or see them develop it?"

Fisher has whittled the $1.4 million purchase price down by securing a $400,000 grant from Salt Lake County, a $250,000 anonymous donation and $20,000 from community members.

A new offer by the Willard L. Eccles Foundation to match any community donations up to $25,000 has Fisher out campaigning to get residents to chip in for the cause. Another foundation has also offered an additional $25,000 if community members are able to raise $50,000.

"We don't want to let this challenge go by the wayside," Fisher said. "Any contribution people can make will go a long way to protect this space."

Twelve-year-old Steven Brems made the first donation at the community drive Thursday, putting in $59 he earned while manning a lemonade stand for two days.

"Perkins Flat is so cool, and it would be horrible if we put something on it," he said.

Those community donations are key, Fisher said.

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