After a long legal battle, 4800 North in Provo opened Wednesday morning with fanfare, speeches and other revelry.

As a part of the celebration, the mascots from Brigham Young University, Provo High School and Timpview High School all made appearances.

"It was a good community celebration," said Wayne Parker, Provo's chief administrative officer.

The new asphalt will connect Canyon Road and University Avenue at 4800 North/Foothill Drive.

The city expects that this new connector will make it easier for residents in the areas above Canyon Road to make it to arterial routes. It is anticipated that many people will use the connector to get from their homes to Orem Center Street and then to Interstate 15.

Wayne Parker of Provo city said that the road will be used by an estimated 6,000 cars per day and as many as 14,000 cars per day by the year 2020.

"This segment of Foothill Drive and 4800 North will serve motorists well by enhancing traffic flows, making traffic more efficient and providing important access to commercial areas for residents in the northeast part of Provo," said Provo Mayor Lewis Billings.

Provo city officials have wanted the connector since the early 1970s. However, it wasn't until the 1990s that serious property rights acquisition began, and even then it would be another decade before real development would begin.

In 2002, negotiations between the city and the Johnson family, who owned the two-acre parcel needed for the roadway, broke down. At the time, the city had offered $289,000 for the property. On Aug. 1, 2006, the appraised value went up to $900,000.

There is no word yet as to how much it will cost the city for the parcel that the road was built on.

Parker said that the final price has not yet been determined.

After the 2002 negotiations broke down, city leaders began to explore eminent domain options to acquire the land.

In October 2002, 4th District Court awarded immediate occupancy to Provo city as part of their eminent domain action. So the city went to work. Construction began on retaining walls and structural fill.

Then disaster struck for the city.

As it turns out the Johnson's sheep-farming property wasn't actually in Provo -- it was in unincorporated Utah County.

The Johnsons appealed the 4th District Court's ruling on the issue with the Utah Supreme Court.

In 2004, the high court ruled the city could not condemn properties outside its boundaries.

But Utah County stepped up to the plate and began eminent domain action on behalf of Provo city.

In March 2006, the Legislature voted to allow cities to condemn property outside their boundaries for public purposes.

In May 2006, the Supreme Court sent down its ruling on the second challenge -- this time against Utah County. In the end, the county won out, and Provo was going to get its road.

In fall 2006, final construction began on the connector, and this spring Geneva Rock began finishing work on the road, including paving and striping.

"This is an important day for Provo," said Billings. "We applaud the work of all involved in making this connector a reality."

Attempts to contact Dayle Jeffs, attorney for the Johnson family, were unsuccessful Wednesday.

Nathan Johnson can be reached at 344-2543 or at njohnson@heraldextra.com.

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page A1.