Had he known years ago what he knows now, Noell Nelson might have gone to law school, become an attorney and carried an umbrella to work every single day.
If only the 73-year-old mayor of Bluffdale could have foreseen that it would so suddenly and relentlessly rain lawsuits over his beloved city in the year 2000."I've never seen a city this size have so many lawsuits at one time," said Bluffdale City Attorney Kevin Watkins, who has represented three other cities during his eight-year career.
Indeed, Nelson could wind up spending almost as much time in court as he does at City Hall: the rural city he presides over is currently battling six lawsuits.
Like many storms, the one that eventually dumped on this city of fewer than 4,300 people began rather harmlessly last year as a light drizzle. Anderson Development sought to have 75 acres of its land changed to a high-density residential zone.
When the City Council denied the request, Anderson Development slapped Bluffdale with its first lawsuit last spring, citing the state's affordable housing laws that require the city to rezone some of its land to create at least 376 moderate-income housing units by 2005.
As part of that struggle, Anderson Development would hit Bluffdale with two other related lawsuits and still another filing could be converted into a lawsuit within the next three months. None of the lawsuits have been adjudicated.
Things would become far more overwhelming. A former Bluffdale city councilman was criminally charged by Bluffdale's city prosecutor for allegedly violating 34 building permit laws. Irate, the councilman filed suit, naming Bluffdale as one of the defendants.
The building inspector who cited the former councilman says he was eventually forced from his part-time job, so he filed a lawsuit. A developer objects to the way the city's impact fees are calculated followed by another lawsuit. That same developer also tagged Bluffdale city engineer Shane Jones with a lawsuit over the matter.
The multitude of legal battles, Nelson says, are paralyzing city government. He and the City Council expected to spend much of their time discussing how to improve parks and trails in Bluffdale or how to fund an outdoor arena for horse shows.
Slim chance.
Says Nelson: "We can't get nothing else done. It just really ties you up."
Time is not the only commodity that has been strained by the lawsuits -- money has also.
Realizing its legal woes, the City Council had allotted $35,000 out of its $1.2 million annual budget for attorney fees -- highest in its history. But it's only four months into the new year, and that budget is almost depleted. Nelson says the city soon will have to tap into its "rainy day" funds to cover the legal fees.
"It's taking our money," Nelson said.
He notes the city's insurance companies are paying for some of the attorney fees but says that will only result in higher premiums for the city in the future. If things continue to get out of hand, the city's residents could see a tax increase to cover the lawsuits.
"I hope not," Nelson said. "We'll have to see how far it goes."
But exactly what makes Bluffdale, once mostly farm land, such a prime, vulnerable target for this wave of lawsuits?
Nelson tried to explain the developer's lawsuits saying they filed suit because "they can't get what they want" and believes it's more a case of "bad luck" than bad city ordinances.
Watkins notes that Bluffdale is one of the few areas left along the fast-developing Wasatch Front where there is still plenty of room to build and grow, making it attractive to investors and developers.
Many of the city councilmen are inexperienced in dealing with these ambitious proposals because they've never had to deal with them before.
Simply reflecting the overwhelming position of their residents, most, if not all of Bluffdale's City Council, has been reluctant to embrace that growth.
If no other good comes from fighting the lawsuits, Nelson and his political mates are getting a crash course on land-use laws that may learn them a lesson about how to craft ordinances in the future.
"We all have our lawbooks," he said. "Now we've got them at our bedside and everything else."