Salt Lake School District has negotiated a lease on 15 acres of property owned by Mt. Olivet Cemetery so East High School can have a football field - and possibly an international-quality track.
The district spent almost a year working with the cemetery owners to develop a mutually agreeable lease. The district will pay $1.5 million in a lump sum for a 70-year lease.The property is bounded by 500 South and 800 South, 1300 East and Guardsman's Way. The cemetery, which has been in use since the late 1800s, will not expand into that section for 80 to 100 years.
The lease will provide East a field to replace its current football area, which will be the site of a replacement building. The old East building will be razed when the new one is complete. The school is being replaced as one element of the district's seismic retrofit program.
The new building should be ready for occupancy in time for the 1995-96 school year. Construction will begin next week on the football field, which should be ready for the season next year.
The cemetery site also may be suitable for an international-class track, said a spokeswoman.