From Deseret News archives:
Draper to discuss Corner Canyon
One plan for area calls for putting in a reservoir
That plan, developed by citizens and city staff members who made up the Corner Canyon Planning Committee, recommends hiking, biking and cross-country skiing as permitted uses for the land — but would prohibit off-road vehicles, camping and swimming.
But could a 14-acre, 100-foot-high reservoir be part of that South Mountain open space? That idea got a strong thumbs-down from the planning committee, but Draper Irrigation Co. owns the rights to develop a water storage facility on a flat basin in the canyon's northern end.
As it stands, the master plan does not include a reservoir, and Draper Irrigation has yet to bring a formal proposal to the City Council. That possibility, however, brought numerous residents and canyon activists to a public hearing two weeks ago.
"I applaud the city for its efforts to preserve this area as a refuge from the hustle and bustle of city life," Lisa Smith, executive director of Save Our Canyons, said during the hearing. "This area will continue to face threats and pressure as the valley population continues to swell.
"I urge you to approve the plan as it stands."
The reservoir would contain 150 million gallons of water runoff in a 200-foot-long dam and would fluctuate with seasons. Overall, residents at the meeting were against it.
"This reservoir is going to take up a lot of room," Stevi Udy said. "If we've gone this long without it, why would we put it in now?"
When Draper officially bought the land from various water companies in October 2005 for $13.7 million to preserve the land from future home developers, Draper Irrigation Co. held reserved rights on the property. Those rights included the use of 14 acres for water tanks.
But city leaders and company officials disagree on how the idea for water tanks morphed into a large dam.
"This reservoir, if it happens, would be some of the most valuable water we have because we could use it in July and August," said Dave Gardner, development manager for Draper Irrigation. "We felt that putting a fishery in here would mitigate, so that it was something that would be very attractive to the city."
As for selling the property to Draper, Gardner said whether or not the company did the right thing "weighs heavily on my shoulders."
Company director Noel Enniss agreed.
"We could have made $35 million by developing it," he said. "We felt it was not worth the effort we had to go through. So it was sold to Draper for $13.5 million."
