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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- The Utah Legislature approved an out-of-court settlement Wednesday that will allow construction of Legacy Parkway to resume in spring after four years of delay.
The 14-mile parkway across Great Salt Lake marshlands will be a restricted road for cars and light trucks, among compromises legislators made to settle the case. It was filed by environmental groups and Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson, who later dropped out.
The parkway will meander and curve to skirt wetlands, instead of taking a straighter path. It will have a 55 mph speed limit instead of 65 mph, and will have noise-reducing pavement, trailheads, pullouts and more landscaping than usual for a highway.
To end litigation, the state also agreed to buy more land for a nature preserve and pay for an environmental study of a light-rail or rapid-bus system for commuters in southern Davis County.
"We've lost this fight. That's where we are now," Rep. Joseph Murray, R-Ogden, said. "I think it's time to pick up the pieces and move on."
Representatives in the Utah House spent nearly two hours debating the settlement before voting 50-21 in favor of it. Senate approval came a little easier -- on a 22-5 vote -- but not before several senators blasted environmental groups for what they called terrorist-like tactics in other land issues across the state, including logging, mining and grazing.
"These groups have figured out that they can influence public policy by suing and using the laws to their advantage," said Sen. Thomas Hatch, R-Panguitch. "I think this sets a terrible precedent."
Legislators reluctantly gave in to avoid what John Njord, executive director of the Utah Department of Transportation, said would be two more years of court delay and another $100 million to build the $685 million parkway.
Opponents were objecting as recently as March to the state's revised environmental impact statement, signaling they would keep the parkway tied up in court. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency planned to release that second assessment within days for public comment.
The original bid to construct four-lane Legacy Parkway was $451 million in 2001, but court-ordered delays and additional environmental studies added more than $200 million that legislative negotiator and Rep. Stuart Adams, R-Layton, said was "wasted."
"This process has left blood of the floor of this body," said Rep. David Clark, R-Washington.
Other legislators argued Utah might be able to build the parkway as fast by going back to the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for approval of the second environmental assessment. Settling the case could set a precedent for future highways, they feared.
"It's going to be a legacy of bad public policy to do it this way," said Rep. Greg Hughes, R-Draper.
In the end, legislators decided that they couldn't afford to wait on Legacy. Many said they didn't want to bet on a favorable outcome in the courts, nor could they prevent construction costs from continuing to rise.
"You can have all the facts on your side and all the law on your side and you can still lose," said Sen. Dave Thomas, R-South Weber, himself a lawyer. "This is the best option we have right now. If we do it now, we can afford it. If we wait, we may be paying three-four-five hundred million dollars ... and maybe we just won't have it."
The Legislature also approved a separate bill banning commercial semitrailer trucks from the parkway, except when nearby Interstate-15 is shut down. The restriction can be lifted by the Utah Highway Patrol in an emergency or for construction on I-15 -- the state plans to widen it between Farmington and North Salt Lake, the stretch of traffic-clogged highway Legacy is supposed to help alleviate.
David Creer, executive director of the Utah Trucking Association, said the settlement means that "minority groups can dictate how we use the highways.
"Banning trucks from a new highway is not a small issue to us," he said.
Other provisions of the Legacy settlement call for a ban on billboards and roadway shoulders using "design techniques such as a narrower paved portion of the shoulder or use of an alternate paving color or surface." The state will conduct a five-year study of the effect of highway noise on wildlife.
The Utah Department of Transportation also agreed to hire a mediator to resolve disputes over future highways.
(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
