Open space under fire

Avenues and Capitol Hill residents have always had a love-hate relationship with their neighbors to the north.

They like commuter dollars but don't always appreciate the traffic and pollution headaches that accompany those bucks.

Right now, however, Avenues and Capitol Hill open space advocates have nothing but love for North Salt Lake residents — since they need their northern neighbors to come through if 80 acres of pristine foothill open space in Salt Lake City is to be preserved.

North Salt Lake residents have likely become the last hope for saving that land above Capitol Hill and the Avenues from developers seeking to put trophy homes on a portion of that property.

"Right now it is most important that North Salt Lake residents try to convince their City Council and mayor that it's important to preserve," Lisa Romney, the city's administrative assistant for environmental relations, said.

It's a treasured tract of land for Avenues and Capitol Hill residents since many hikers and joggers frequent the virgin space, which is also used by wildlife like deer, coyotes and birds.

The land is flat, with dry grass that sweeps toward an open view of the Great Salt Lake. A dirt path twists to the south, leading toward the Salt Lake Valley and Ensign Peak. It's a defacto portion of the Bonneville Shoreline trail — which has been paved in portions of North Salt Lake.

While the land is owned by North Salt Lake it is within Salt Lake City's borders and is zoned as open space — a zoning designation that prohibits North Salt Lake from putting housing on the property. North Salt Lake, however, is actively trying to wrest the land from Salt Lake City's control.

Officials from both cities, along with open space groups have talked in the past about putting a conservation easement on the 80 acres or having North Salt Lake sell the land to Salt Lake City, which could put it into permanent conservation.

However, those talks have struggled with open space groups saying the land is worth about $1 million and North Salt Lake leaders claiming the land could be worth anywhere from $3.5 million to $10 million.

With sale and easement talks failing District 3 Councilman Eric Jergensen and Romney maintain North Salt Lake residents need to pressure on their elected officials not to develop the space.

"The citizens of North Salt Lake need to do the best they can do to talk to their elected officials," Jergensen said. "There needs to be significant pressure from the residents of North Salt Lake."