Boundary solutions offered

DRAPER — The SunCrest development atop Traverse Ridge straddles the Utah County and Salt Lake County boundary, dividing neighborhoods and even homes in its path.

"It's kind of split in half on top of the hill. Residents up here would prefer to see the whole SunCrest development in one county or the other," said Susan Selim, whose mailbox currently resides in Salt Lake County while the rest of her home claims residency in Utah County.

A new proposal drafted by leaders from both counties aims to put at least 30 of those schizophrenic households under a specific county's purview, ending a series of obstacles for many residents — including tax notices from both counties, voting dilemmas and confusion as to which school district children should attend.

The triangular patch of land in Selim's front yard, for example, costs the family about $8 a year in Salt Lake County taxes while the rest of the lot's taxes go to Utah County.

The proposed boundary shift will be on display during a public hearing today at 4:30 p.m. at the Salt Lake County Government Building at 2001 S. State St.

Although the proposed boundary puts Selim's lot entirely in Utah County, it still dissects the SunCrest development, running down the center of streets and moving a handful of homes from one county into the other. The proposed boundary runs north along Deer Ridge Drive, straight along Walnut Grove Drive and Vista Ridge, then north along Traverse Ridge Road.

For residents like Selim, that boundary means the neighbors directly across the street from her home on Vista Ridge will be in a different voting precinct, will attend different schools and will rely on Salt Lake County emergency services.

"There's still the whole issue of a sense of community," Selim said. "The county line will still go down our street."

But Utah County Public Works Director Clyde Naylor said the move is about as good as it is going to get for now. State law only allows county leaders to move a boundary 1,000 feet, and that small wiggle room simply isn't enough to fix the county conundrum, he said.

"When Draper developed up on Traverse Ridge, they developed without regard to the county line," he said. "So they ended up with the county line running right through houses. This is just an effort to get the county along lot lines."