Utah County paper-mill project may not happen

ELBERTA, Utah County — Tight-lipped economic-development officials say no decisions have been made on whether a major paper mill will go up near this south Utah County town.

"It's a big if, if it will happen at all," said Eric Allen, project director with Economic Development Corp. of Utah.

"Nothing is firmed up. We're still looking at details," Utah County Commissioner Larry Ellertson said.

The secrecy surrounding the discussions between the property owner, unnamed paper-mill officials, the county and economic-development officials "has almost been like spy games," Ellertson said.

The county commission earlier this year established a new zone near Elberta that would accommodate the paper mill and allow for growth in industrial, commercial, office and residential uses.

An East Coast company, looking for a Western operation near a rail line, natural gas, water and power, wanted everything in place by April, Utah County Planning Commission Chairman Dean Miner said when the potential for the plant was first announced.

The new zone encompasses roughly 50,000 acres in the Goshen Valley. The two largest landowners in that area are The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Utah's school trust lands. However, the new zone is just on farmland owned by the LDS Church.

If the plant is built in Utah County, it could employ as many as 1,200 people, Ellertson said.

But first it would require extensive infrastructure construction, including roads, a power substation and access to the natural-gas line that runs through the area.

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