Petition drive kicks off over stadium funds

Under the moniker "Get Real Utah," five Utah residents are leading a petition drive to let voters decide whether public dollars should fund a soccer stadium in Sandy.

The petition organizers, four from Salt Lake City and one from Park City, filed a referendum request with the Lieutenant Governor's Office Monday, the last day a referendum application could be filed against actions made by the state during the 2007 legislative session.

Brad Swedlund, 50, who is leading the charge, believes the government abused its powers when state leaders pushed through a plan to give Real Salt Lake $35 million in hotel-tax dollars for land and parking at the stadium site.

That money comes from Salt Lake County's cut of taxes — funding that Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon had denied days earlier, calling it a risky investment.

"The county government did a good job throughout considering the issue," Swedlund said. "Obviously, the Legislature isn't paying attention to their own mantra of local government, local control."

Swedlund describes himself as an "average Joe" who was frustrated that a deal was quickly pushed through the legislative bodies last month at the request of Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.

The other four referendum applicants are Robyn Riley, Douglas Kitt, Jerry Septon and Cara Solimeno. The five are co-workers, and their decision to file stemmed from water-cooler talk about the stadium politics, Swedlund said.

However, the group has a big task ahead. Per state law, they must collect 91,996 signatures of voters who participated in the last gubernatorial election. Those signatures must be collected statewide from at least 15 counties by April 9.

"We have a huge hurdle to overcome in getting the signatures. In essence, that means close to 100,000 signatures," Swedlund said, since some who sign may not be valid. "We don't have big money backing us, we're just ordinary people."

The measure directing the $35 million to the stadium project will not take effect until April 30, which is days after the April 24 deadline when the state reports whether enough signatures have been gathered for a referendum.

Statewide referendums have never passed in Utah. However, this year there are two pending applications, including Swedlund's. The other is being pushed by public-school advocates who want to shoot down the state's new voucher program for private schools.

According to two Deseret Morning News/KSL-TV polls, the majority of the Utah voters supported Corroon's decision and believed the Legislature should not give the soccer team public money. But the deal had bipartisan support from both the House and Senate in February.