Jordan District split fans flames of east/west bias

Cutting across Salt Lake County is an invisible line dividing east from west.

It's a political, social and cultural chasm that arguably has gotten better over the years. But a split across the east and west ends of Utah's largest school district exposed a geographic divide, one that has fanned the seemingly dying flames of a decades-old bias.

According to a Deseret News/KSL-TV poll conducted earlier this year by Dan Jones and Associates, 82 percent of Salt Lake County residents said they believe the east side gets preferential treatment over those residing west of I-15.

The poll involved the Canyons School District splitting from the Jordan District. Of those surveyed, 75 percent said the split was unfair to Jordan students, and 71 percent said it was unfair to Jordan taxpayers. Thirty-six percent of the respondents in the March poll had children or grandchildren in the Jordan School District, while 14 percent had kids in the Canyons School District.

"I think the school district is a clear indication that there's still some of that west/east mentality, and in this case, the west side was not dealt with favorably," said Lynn Crane, who served as mayor of Herriman during the school district split.

Crane led a lawsuit protesting the east-side-only vote over forming a new district and splitting from Jordan School District. The suit declared the November 2007 vote unconstitutional, as west-side residents were excluded from voting on the issue.

An appeals court, though, upheld the creation of the Canyons School District. And in July 2009, the Canyons District was officially created, comprising Cottonwood Heights, Sandy, Midvale, Alta and Draper.

It left the Jordan District with increasing enrollment from the growing communities of Herriman, Riverton, Bluffdale, South Jordan, West Jordan and the Copperton township. The Jordan District also lost the east side's high tax base.

Now, the Jordan District faces a $29.1 million budget deficit. The district was forced to lay off 190 employees in May after residents balked at the idea of another property tax increase.

While Crane said he believes public officials have worked hard to play fair and remove any east versus west perceptions, the split "dramatically emphasized that all of that has not disappeared."