Comments about ‘Letter: Opinions on Provo MTC building need to be heard’

In a free society, a private owner of property should be able to do whatever he wants with the land without hearing the opinion of his neighbors or the local government. That is, of course, unless the activities on that property will violate the rights of his neighbors. I seriously doubt that the teaching that goes on at at the MTC is causing harm to any of the MTC's neighbors. And if the highrise blocks out the sun a little earlier in the day than it used to, well, that cannot objectively constitute harm to the neighbors.

Of course we don't live in a free society. We live in a mixed society that is slipping more and more towards fascism where, though property is owned privately in name, the government dictates what you can do with it.

Provo seems particularly fond of the fascist model where in recent years they told private home owners they couldn't rent their own property as they see fit as it would not be family-friendly. I'm not sure how freedom turns out to be non-family-friendly but the notion sure has a lot of momentum these days.

The LDS Church should be considerate about what they do to those residents. Especially if it was originally promised/understood that the MTC would never exceed 4 stories.

Intimidating opposing views is inexcusable. We don't live in Afghanistan so the church's handling of this is bad... A potential PR disaster.

Honestly, in my humble MORMON (RM) opinion, why not move the MTC away from BYU and residential areas? From girlfriends writing on the sidewalk before going to school to issues with residents. Move the MTC away from Provo. Move it out to the west side of Utah Lake where they can expand, build indoor fields, and not have to deal with the mess that being right next to BYU and residential areas have.

The farther away the MTC is away from society, the better it is for the missionaries. Less homesickness if you're not living right across the street from the Provo Temple or 5 mins away from BYU's Football Stadium.

In an environment where "sustaining the Brethren" is in fact a requirement for church membership, temple admission and church employment (for example, working at BYU), of COURSE the threat of church discipline and/or being fired from one's job is subtly implied when, in Sacrament Meeting, local members are asked to manifest, by the uplifted hand, their "support of the Brethren" in SPECIFIC regard to this 9-story building. In my opinion, it is an abuse of authority. (Ironically, abuse of authority is sharply condemned in the church's own scripture, Doctrine and Covenants, Section 121.)

And I'd like to know by what authority the "invitation" to "support the Brethren" in this particular regard was issued in the first place. There is a legitimate question whether it carried with it the proper authority in the first place. I am fairly confident that an isolated Seventy and an isolated Apostle do not have the inherent authority to issue such a request, that this type of thing is the exclusive purview of the First Presidency. Yet, I'm not seeing a signature or paper trail, or even a "verbal relay," leading up to the First Presidency in this particular matter.

The MTC quandry is a perfect exemaple of city residents who don't do "due diligence". At some point, the zoning in Provo was affirmed by the city council to be able to accomodate 4 stories or more buildings.

Did any of the residents who are NOW protesting attend the city council meetings where the zoning was changed?

Stuff like this happens all the time. Once the building permit is issued, its too late to get the zoning changed. It doesn't matter whether the bldg. is for the Lds church, or for a safe haven for martians; the property owner has the right to develop the property in line with current zoning laws.

Next time, pay MORE ATTENTION to what your city officials are doing when they change zoning ordinances!

A man is known by his word. If the promise was made, respect it.

Your 9 story example looks like a 4 story building.

No permit has been issued. No zoning change has been enacted. The neighbors are way out front on this one. The neighbors are asking for the opportunity to have their voice in a public meeting about the proposed building. This is not about growth - The MTC will tear down five buildings and replace the same space with one nine story building. Where will the employees park? How will emergency vehicles access the building? What about the promises upon which neighbors have relied since 1978? Are there no alternatives to a nine story that can be discussed? What are the future plans? Instead of discussion, to date, there has only been a "Thank you for your comments" and an "Invitation." And yes, the picture is a four story building, not the proposed nine story.

I really hate to drag religion into this public forum, but I would like to point out that D&C Section 26 states that the Church acts with the common consent of its members. Our petition makes it clear that the Church does not have this consent. This alone should be enough to send BYU back to the drawing board.

There's also the issue of private property and whether property owners should be restricted from doing what they want with their own land. But, again, I would point out that the Provo residents who oppose this building are, for the most part, members of the LDS church which means that they *are* the property owners, not the nameless bureaucrats at BYU who refuse to show their faces and discuss this civilly with their fellow church members who oppose the project.

Pres. Gordon B Hinckley recently stated that the financial information of our church "belongs to those that made the contribution". What more needs to be said?

If you agree, please have look up our online petition at change.org (it's called no-9-story-building-2) and consider signing it.

Thanks.