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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- Sorenson Real Estate claims it has no knowledge of a temple planned for Bluffdale and claims it never told Bluffdale officials the temple was in their community.
"No Sorenson representative ever discussed or identified any temple site to Bluffdale officials," company spokesman David Parkinson said late Wednesday.
The company's response came the day The Salt Lake Tribune reported that a former Bluffdale mayor, a former councilman and a city planning commissioner said they had been told by developers that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was planning a temple for Bluffdale's southwest foothills.
The three sources, former Mayor Wayne Mortimer, former Councilman Morris Clark and planning commission member Jeff Daugherty, maintained Wednesday that the temple was planned for Bluffdale.
"Everything reported is correct," Mortimer said. "I'm not backing down. ... Morris and I were both there. We pushed (Sorenson Development) and they said this is where the temple is."
"The sources are reliable," said Daugherty, who also is director of planning and development services for Salt Lake County. "It's the worst-kept secret in Bluffdale."
Mortimer and Clark left office earlier this month after losing re-election bids.
The new mayor, Claudia Anderson, said Wednesday, "We do not know where the temple is going to be."
The church has not released information on plans for its fifth temple in Salt Lake County. Church President Gordon B. Hinckley announced in October that the temple would be built, but he did not disclose its location.
A church statement Wednesday said only that announcements of new temples are made only by the church's First Presidency.
The Bluffdale land is undeveloped. It has been used for sheep pasture, and is now part of a lawsuit in which developers seek to have it de-annexed from the city.
Sorenson Real Estate and Development Associates have been involved in disputes with residents and city officials over housing density for years. The developers want to build segments with up to 18 units per acre, while some in Bluffdale want only one-acre lots.
If their de-annexation effort is successful, the property could become part of Herriman or unincorporated Salt Lake County.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
