Given the history of animosity between this unincorporated Salt Lake County community and its peripheral neighbor, the city of Sandy, this is an unusual request.
Residents in a southeast corner of White City say they want their neighborhood to become part of Sandy - as soon as possible."I've heard so much negative publicity, but everybody I have personally talked to is for Sandy," said Mark Huyboom, who has lived on Larkspur Drive near 10600 South and 1300 East for seven years.
"There are a lot of people who want to be in Sandy, but every time somebody speaks up they get hushed up. I've been to those (White City Community) Council meetings and if you say one word about being annexed into Sandy, they explode."
Huyboom has canvassed part of his neighborhood, a relatively new section of White City just south of Dimple Dell Regional Park including the eastern portion of Larkspur Drive, Columbine Way, Violet Drive, 1245 East and 10510 South. He has about 40 signatures on a petition asking Sandy to annex the area.
Huyboom's motivation? He fears his property taxes would increase if White City incorporates and said he and other residents have become disenchanted with White City's leaders because their water rates increased following the White City Water Improvement District's purchase of the White City Water Company.
"And the thing is, White City is a mess," he said. "There's crime in White City, drug deals, a lot of stuff. . . . Nothing is maintained. I think Sandy's regulations are really good and (being in the city) would bring up the values of our property and make it a nicer area."
As soon as he has the required majority of landowners' signatures on the petition, Huyboom plans to turn it into the city.
"I do not have and the (Sandy City) Council has not had in the past few years a policy of aggressively annexing, but we would welcome any part of the community that wants to be part of (Sandy)," Mayor Tom Dolan said.
Normally, a petition is all the city would need to hold public hearings and formally consider annexation of the neighborhood. But until Salt Lake County makes a determination on the validity of White City's second incorporation attempt this year, Huyboom and his neighbors must wait.
Salt Lake County Attorney Doug Short said all incorporation petitions are on hold while the county studies the ramifications of a recent Utah Supreme Court opinion that said the state's incorporation statute is flawed and inoperable. The Legislature is expected to rework the law, but White City's latest incorporation drive may be doomed anyway. Short said the petition appears to have problems similar to one filed and rejected by the county earlier this year that sought to incorporate White City and parts of the Granite area together.
"It includes within its area portions of incorporated Sandy, meaning Dimple Dell Park, which violates the state statute which requires it to be contiguous," Short said Thursday of the current White City petition. "If for any reason the county determines that it will not proceed with the White City petition, then Sandy may proceed to consider any annexation petition presented to them by residents."
Paulina Flint, a member of the White City Council, said Short lives in Sandy, has argued in court on the city's behalf in previous cases and therefore should not be the one to make a decision on White City's petition.
"If he makes a decision (against White City), he might find himself in a major lawsuit," Flint said. "He is seriously discriminating against our community and has been for months."
Marla Ashley, another council member, said residents need more information before they can decide for themselves whether incorporation makes sense. They would get all the facts, she said, if the county would accept the White City petition and allow the incorporation process to move forward.
Kathy Leatherwood, who lives near Huyboom, is looking at the big picture. Because she believes the incorporation effort will fail, Leatherwood favors broadening the annexation effort to include all of White City.
"If we were a part of Sandy, we would have a say in the government," she said. "Right now we're totally surrounded by Sandy and we have no say."