WEST JORDAN — The West Jordan City Council voted Tuesday night to place the possibility of a West Jordan school district on the November ballot.
The vote passed by a 4-3 margin with heavy opposition from council members Melissa Johnson, Lyle Summers and Mike Kellermeyer.
Those opposed to the issue being placed on the ballot emphasized that they didn't want to quash the voter's right to decide, but they wanted West Jordan residents to have all the information possible.
"My reason for not supporting this motion is that it is too soon, and we don't have enough information," Johnson said.
Kellermeyer voiced the same concern, as well as saying he believed the feasibility study the city funded was flawed.
"I think it's going to cost us a lot more than we think," he said.
Several council members felt they were stuck because of the decision made in the special legislative session last week, as well as the multimillion-dollar Jordan School District bond.
Kellermeyer, Summers and Johnson wanted to wait at least a year in order to gather more information, talk with the Jordan School District and see what happens if the east bench splits from the Jordan School District.
Council member Kathy Hilton said if West Jordan created its own school district, the city would be in a positive position concerning education.
"This is a good thing for us as a city because if we control those answers (of education) nobody else will control them for us," Hilton said. "Our citizens are intelligent people; they're going to figure things out. We're never going to have all the answers until somebody splits and goes through it."
Mayor David Newton initially said he was upset about the special session and felt West Jordan needed to make some decisions about the future of education.
"The end result was that the east side got everything they needed to move forward," he said. "I feel that there is very little chance that this will not succeed on the east side."
He added: "I feel we can do a better job than the (Jordan) district,." he added.
Council member Councilmember Kim Rolfe said he trusted the residents of West Jordan to make a good decision.
The City Council can provide both a pro-and-con argument for the school district, but it cannot cross the line into advocacy. Newton will write the argument in favor of the district, and Johnson will write against it for a voter information pamphlet.
E-mail: csmith@desnews.com