Goodbye Granite? Sandy may annex neighborhood

(Salt Lake Tribune) It soon could be goodbye Granite and hello Sandy for an eastside neighborhood that has found itself at the epicenter of a debate over the long-term preservation and protection of its unincorporated community.

The Sandy City Council leaned Tuesday toward annexing a 13-acre neighborhood along Bell Canyon Road, despite arguments that the move would nearly split Granite in two before voters can decide whether the community should be able to protect its borders in perpetuity as an unincorporated township.

Although the council put off a formal vote until next week, a majority of council members expressed interest in bringing the subdivision into the city's fold.

"People do have the right of self determination," Councilman Chris McCandless said. "These people have said they want to be part of Sandy and we will welcome them with open arms."

Salt Lake County already has filed a protest letter with the boundary commission, arguing that Sandy cannot annex the neighborhood without a formal petition. And that petition, the county continues, now is prohibited by state law as Granite prepares for a 2010 November election to decide its fate.

Right or wrong, the annexation has inflamed the eastside community at the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon. On the one side, residents are pushing toward Sandy for better police protection, lower taxes and a government they see as more responsive.

Original Article