Sandy homeowners could pay about $58 more per year in property taxes if voters approve a $30 million general obligation bond the City Council placed on the Nov. 3 ballot Wednesday, Aug. 12.

The bond would fund the purchase and redevelopment of the shuttered Crescent View Middle School at 11150 Vista Way, a 17-acre site the city wants to transform into a community center, arts spaces, a stage, a food truck plaza and expanded parkland.

Getting there took two failed votes and a recess.

Council Member Marci Houseman, who represents District 4, initially moved to put the $30 million option before voters. That motion failed 3-4. A second vote on a $21 million alternative also failed 3-4. The council took a brief break, then returned. Council Member Brooke Christensen, who had favored the $21 million option minutes earlier, moved to reconsider Houseman's original motion. The council approved it 6-1, according to Building Salt Lake.

The identity of the lone dissenting vote was not reported.

Correction: Our Aug. 11 report stated the bond amount was $17 million. The council's final vote Wednesday approved the $30 million option.

What the money would buy

The council weighed three options before the vote:

• $30 million (approved): Full redevelopment into what the city calls a community-focused destination, with a community center, arts programming, recreation facilities, trail connections and a food truck plaza. Cost to the average Sandy homeowner: roughly $58 per year, or $1,152 over the bond's 20-year term.
• $21 million: Partial residential development with single-family homes on part of the site, plus a community center in the existing school building.
• $17 million: Keep the site largely as-is and convert the school into a community center. Cost: about $34 per year.

A divided council

Houseman said the majority of her District 4 constituents preferred the full $30 million bond option. Council Members Aaron Dekeyzer, Alison Stroud and Christensen all initially preferred the $21 million option, with Dekeyzer calling it more fiscally responsible.

Council Member Brooke D'Sousa opposed the purchase entirely but acknowledged the deadline had arrived. "The train had effectively left the station," she said at the meeting.

Wednesday was the last day the council could act and still meet the state's timeline for a November ballot question.

Mayor Monica Zoltanski had supported the $21 million option in a letter to the council presented at the Aug. 4 meeting. In a July blog post on the city's website, she described the 17-acre parcel, which sits adjacent to Crescent Park and connects to TRAX and the Porter Rockwell Trail, as potentially the last opportunity in a generation to preserve land of that size for future public use.

Public support and what's next

A city survey drew nearly 1,000 responses, with 60 percent strongly supporting the purchase. Canyons School District had received an offer from a private developer before giving Sandy the first right to buy.

A public hearing on the bond is scheduled for Sept. 22. Sandy voters will make the final call on Nov. 3.