UBET
Utahns
for Better Transportation
c/o
FRIENDS of Great Salt Lake
PO
Box 2655
Salt
Lake City, Utah 84110-2655
Dear
Friend, April
4, 2003
As
you know, the proposed Legacy Parkway was sent back to the drawing boards last
September for a new set of environmental studies to determine the best
combination and timing of transportation improvements in south Davis County,
and to determine the impact of proposed new roads on wildlife.
A Public Open House will be
held Thursday April 17, 2003, 4 to 8pm, at Woods Cross High School, to provide
the public an opportunity to give input on the scope of these studies.
Legacy Parkway Review
· On September 16, 2002 a panel of three judges from the 10th
Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously that the Final Environmental Impact
Statement was inadequate on significant issues and that the Corps of Engineers
had acted in an “arbitrary and capricious” manner in approving the permit to
fill wetlands to build the Legacy Parkway.
· On December 4, 2002 UBET and Sierra Club met with UDOT,
Federal Highways and the Corps to request early and ongoing involvement of the
public including UBET and its experts in the development of a Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS).
· In January 2003 UBET hired Robert Cervero, a
world-renowned planner and expert on the effects of integrating transit system
development with supportive land use development patterns. He will serve as an
advisor to UBET as we engage in the SEIS development. Put his name in
google.com on the internet and you will get to his website that shows his
impressive experience.
· In February 2003 UBET, the Sierra Club and Rocky Anderson
met with Rep. Stuart Adams and other Davis County elected officials to discuss
the possibility of engaging in mutually binding arbitration instead of going to
court if there were disputes at the end of the SEIS process. More importantly
we agreed to seek an alternative dispute resolution process up front, that
would formally engage the public, including UBET and it experts, in the SEIS
development process.
IMPORTANT
PUBLIC MEETING · YOUR PARTICPATION IS NEEDED
Thursday April
17, 2003 · 4 to 8 pm · Woods Cross High · 600 West 2200 South
I-15 2600
South, Woods Cross, Exit #318 · High School is northeast of
interchange
The
range and depth of issues to be addressed in the SEIS is the subject of this
meeting. The requirements for the SEIS include two main tasks: 1) addressing
the issues UBET prevailed upon in court, and 2) updating all information and
reconsideration of prior decisions where new information is significant
regarding the most effective, least damaging, long range transportation
solutions. The issues UBET prevailed on include:
· Sequencing - FEIS failed to consider alternative
sequencing of transportation investments
· Integration - FEIS failed to consider integration
of Legacy Parkway and transit development.
· Road Alignment and Configuration - FEIS
eliminated other possible practicable routes
· Wildlife Impacts - FEIS failed to consider impacts to wildlife beyond 1000’ from
the highway
Plan to attend this
important meeting. This is one of the key opportunities the public will have to weigh in
on what the SEIS will include. There will also an opportunity to mail in written
comments. For more info see www.utahnsforbettertransporation.org
or email or call us with any questions or suggestions.
Yours
for healthy wetlands and a balanced transportation system,
Lynn
de Freitas for UBET Roger
Borgenicht for UBET
President,
Friends of Great Salt Lake Chair,
Future Moves Coalition
(801)
582-1496 ldefreitas@earthlink.net (801) 355-7085
future@xmission.com
