Land deal will prevent development

After years of uncertainty over the future of a chunk of land near the mouth of Emigration Canyon, Salt Lake County and open-space advocates are getting closer to their goal of holding onto the land and keeping it undeveloped.

They're just a few hundred thousand dollars away.

The 190-acre piece of land is owned by developer MSI Co., but in a news release this past week, Utah Open Lands, a conservation group that has preserved thousands of acres throughout the state, including the Hidden Hollow area in Sugar House, announced that it has reached a deal with the company to buy it.

Justin Barney, property administrator for MSI Co., said the agreement is a bargain price for Utah Open Lands, with part of the land being transferred as a gift.

According to the news release, Utah Open Lands has received "a tremendous grant" from Salt Lake County — up to $400,000, Utah Open Lands director Wendy Fisher said.

The news release says the group still needs to raise at least $350,000 — and as much as $750,000 if its application for a grant from the state's LeRay McAllister fund is denied — and it is turning to the public for help. If the money isn't raised within 60 days, the deal will expire. Donations can be made at www.utahopenlands.org.

The land's fate has been in question for several years. In fall 2003, former county Mayor Nancy Workman considered trading the land for a 7-acre piece of open space the county owned near Crestwood Park (7485 S. 1700 East) near the bottom of Little Cottonwood Canyon.

But that idea was scrapped because of the outcry from residents in a high-end subdivision near that land.

The Emigration Canyon land includes an area known as Perkins Flat — a meadow below the gated Emigration Place development, south of Emigration Canyon Road and about a half-mile from Ruth's Diner. It is believed by some to have been one of the last camps used by Mormon pioneers before they entered the Salt Lake Valley.

Only an estimated 27 or 28 acres of the land is developable. Jeff Daugherty, director of the county's Planning and Development Services Division, said it is zoned mostly for residential use, with a small chunk zoned for community commercial use like a convenience store or restaurant.

The rest of the land is on the canyon's slope and faces a number of issues typical of hillside property, including a high water table and stream setbacks.

Daugherty said the owners have submitted a number of development ideas over the years, but the county has repeatedly sent them back to work on a host of health and safety issues.

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E-mail: dsmeath@desnews.com