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KAYSVILLE — Homeowners, neighbors and city leaders in Kaysville have a message for the Utah Department of Transportation: "Go west."
To accommodate projected population growth, UDOT is planning to build the West Davis Corridor, an expansion of Legacy Highway that could affect homeowners near Shepherd Lane.
About 250 people joined Kaysville Mayor Steve Hiatt at a rally Thursday evening in opposition of a possible route that would destroy 10 homes in the community and, they say, bring traffic near children.
On the table are two options that UDOT is considering. One route would start on Shepherd Lane and cut through this neighborhood. The other route would begin near Glovers Lane in Farmington, and head farther west. Both routes would affect homes, but homeowners near Shepherd Lane believe the choice is obvious.
"If this route is chosen there are 300 homes … that are all going to be within a third to half mile of the road," said Dave Austin, one of the rally's organizers.
Austin told those attending the rally that when major roads are built to close to so many homes, leukemia and autism rates increase and property values decrease.
"That doesn't happen on the Glovers route. I admit there is impact, but if you look at the way the road is drawn, it skirts all of the neighborhoods, it goes on the outside, and a fair amount further."
Farmington residents have held previous rallies against the the more western route that would start in their city.
UDOT is currently conducting an environmental study to evaluate the proposed routes, but a decision isn't expected until later this year.
"No decision has been made," UDOT spokesman Vic Saunders said. "I just think they are trying to voice their opinion on what they think might happen and what they would like to happen."
Homeowners at the rally also argued that the proposed route through Shepherd Lane is too close to I-15 and, if built there, it wouldn't actually serve as an alternate route.
Meanwhile, Austin claimed that it would cost $34 million more than the one through Glovers Lane, partly because the FrontRunner tracks would have to be moved. He did concede, however, that the route through Glovers Lane would destroy 10 more acres of wetland.
Contributing: Mike Anderson
Email:jfinley@desnews.com
