Recreation complex at center of county funds blame game


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Tooele County has been in “cash crisis” mode for the last two years. Now a new controversy is cropping up surrounding how the downward money spiral all began, and the county’s recreation center is in the bull’s-eye.

That’s because taxpayers subsidized the financially flailing Deseret Peak Complex to the tune of more than $2 million a year, and they're bailing it out again.

The county’s money problems started making headlines in 2012 when the Deseret Chemical Depot closed and the county was forced to issue layoffs. In 2013, the County Commission laid off 100 more workers and even closed Deseret Peak for a while.

The rec center, which cost about $20 million to build, also built up a monstrous debt over the years. That was, until county officials called a time out and suspended the complex’s game plan. The facility was bleeding money.

"It was hemorrhaging,” said Tooele County Commissioner Shawn Milne. “This wasn't like a good cut on your forearm. This is somebody … cut a main arterial and it was bleeding out.”

Milne was in office six weeks when reality hit.

“I remember looking up at others in the room, and I said, ‘Oh, my God. We’re bankrupt and we don’t know it,’” Milne said.

Enter Tooele County treasurer Jeremy Walker. Shortly after taking office, he sensed county accounts were going in the hole. In 2012, he fired off a letter to commissioners that outed Deseret Peak Complex for contributing to the financial pickle.


Walker said the complex brought in about $500,000 annually, with losses at about $2.5 million a year; and the costs just kept going up.

Walker said the complex brought in about $500,000 annually, with losses at about $2.5 million a year; and the costs just kept going up.

So, the County Commission made other departments — such as roads, health and the landfill — pay up. By 2012, the Deseret Peak Complex had blown through $6.5 million from other county funds.

To this day, Walker says he has not found any official loan paperwork — no set interest rate or payback schedule. Instead, the complex left other county funds a stack of IOUs.

It was not only bad business practice, the county treasurer said, it violated state financial codes.

"Without getting authorization from the commission, from the commissioners, to make that loan, it does not fall in line with what state code requires,” he said.

Tooele County auditor Mike Jensen is the one to blame, Walker said. But Jensen says it’s not his fault.

“I don’t have authority, by statute, to make any of these loans,” Jensen said. “So these loans are done according to statute by the commission only.”

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He said the commission was aware of the transfers to Deseret Peak, and received a financial information packet every month.

A former commissioner backed him up, telling KSL News “If anybody is to blame, it’s the commissioners.” But another longtime county commissioner told KSL he was not made aware of all the money transfers that were being made to support Deseret Peak.

In yet another twist, there might be an added reason for the blame game: Jensen and Walker are in a tight runoff for county treasurer.

“It’s really unfortunate, at this part in the campaign, that my opponent … went to this measure,” Jensen said.

In the meantime, there’s a new game plan for Deseret Peak. Milne said support staff for the complex has gone from about 24 people to five. Instead of organizing leagues and events, the county leases out the facility and is working to secure corporate sponsors.

He said the issue is something that should have been tackled by county officials years ago.

“They just didn't have their eye on the ball,” Milne said.

Tooele County recently repaid $2 million that Deseret Peak owed the other county funds; it has another $4.5 million to go.

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Debbie Dujanovic

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