Hansen and Arce-Laretta wonder about ulterior motives for that stance. There is no reason why the land can't all be preserved, they say. "Why is this beneficial, why do they feel like they need to do this," asked Arce-Laretta.

Wood and Briggs deny any personal benefit if the land is developed.

"There's nobody standing to gain from it personally," Wood said. "You've got elected officials that have the good of the city at heart. They're not going to do anything detrimental to the city as a whole."

Added Briggs: "I think that that's probably some of the most prime real estate in all of Utah. It's closer to Salt Lake City than Sandy or West Valley and it doesn't eat up farmland."

Salt Lake City leaders and residents maintain the land is a geologic antiquity (a claim backed up by University of Utah professors) and should not be touched. The land is the former shoreline of ancient Lake Bonneville and offers spectacularly pristine views of the Great Salt Lake valley.

Even paving the dirt pathway on the land would ruin it, many Capitol Hill and Avenues residents maintain.

The land might not be in Salt Lake City's boarders for long.

North Salt Lake has filed a "petition for disconnect" which, if approved, would remove the land from Salt Lake City's boarders. The land would then become part of Salt Lake County paving the way for North Salt Lake to annex the land into their city.

"You can't annex a piece of property if it's in another city," explained Salt Lake City attorney Lynn Pace.

The Salt Lake City Council will hold a public hearing on North Salt Lake's petition for disconnect Tuesday at 7 p.m. Earlier this year the Salt Lake City Council denied North Salt Lake's request for a boundary adjustment, which would've also shifted the land into North Salt Lake.

If the Salt Lake City Council denies the petition for disconnect, North Salt Lake could take the issue to court — an eventuality most are expecting.

"It just keeps proceeding until we get to court," said Helen Peters, a member of Anderson's Open Space Advisory Board.

Still, most involved agree North Salt Lake holds the best legal cards. Salt Lake City is unable to effectively provide services to the area because there are no roads leading from Utah's Capitol to the 80-acre meadow. Instead it is North Salt Lake that has easier access to the land and can provide services to it.

If the issue ever came before a court, many think a judge would rule the land should be ceded to North Salt Lake since they are in better position to provide services there.

With little bargaining leverage of their own city residents now hope their North Salt Lake counterparts will succeed at putting enough political pressure on elected officials to keep the land as natural open space.

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Discussing a dispute

The Salt Lake City Council will hold a public hearing on the disputed 80 acres Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the City-County Building, 451 S. State. The public can comment on North Salt Lake's petition to disconnect the 80 acres from Salt Lake City, a move that will pave the way for the land to be annexed into North Salt Lake.

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E-mail: bsnyder@desnews.com