Sandy using Salt Lake funds?

The mayor of Sandy is proposing to purchase land for a Real Salt Lake soccer stadium and build a parking garage with $20 million in taxpayer money originally earmarked only for the parking garage at the South Towne Exposition Center.

The stadium will be in Sandy, according to two people familiar with the team's plans but who do not want to be named, and the $20 million for land and a parking garage shared by the Expo Center and stadium likely swayed Real owners to choose Sandy over Salt Lake City or Murray.

Team officials have refused to confirm or deny Sandy as the stadium site but are scheduled to announce their choice today at a 3 p.m. news conference.

The proposed 20-acre site on the northwest corner of 9400 South and State Street has enough room for both the parking structure and stadium, Sandy Mayor Tom Dolan said.

The $20 million comes from the Legislature, which gave it to Salt Lake County for expanded parking at the Expo Center. Sandy must request the money from the county before building, but Dolan said sharing the garage on stadium land would contribute public funding to the estimated $60 million venue.

Real Salt Lake officials have said previously they want approximately one-half of the stadium cost to come from public funding.

"If you were able to take the $20 million, buy the property across the street and build the parking that you need, that would satisfy the parking at the Expo Center and take care of the public investment at the stadium," Dolan said. "The land would be available and the parking would be available."

But Dolan's plan has Salt Lake leaders furious because they say the capital city contributed $8 million to the larger fund from which the $20 million was drawn. City Council Chairman Dale Lambert said he never would have supported the $8 million contribution had he known Sandy would use the parking garage to bolster its bid for the stadium.

"If they're going to use Salt Palace expansion money to purchase land for the soccer stadium, I just think that's wrong and is contrary to the representations that were made to us and the deal that was made by Salt Lake City," Lambert said. "I suppose our only recourse is to outline the facts so that the public is well aware of what happened."