Both sides in a Mapleton land dispute agreed on one thing after leaving federal court late last week; the judge wants the case mediated.

Landowner Dr. Wendell Gibby and Mapleton city officials spent Friday morning in front of U.S. District Judge Dee Benson, arguing the city's motion to dismiss a 10-count civil rights lawsuit Gibby filed in July. Benson listened, and he chided, then said he'd have a decision in 60 days.

In the meantime, he expects the parties to sit down with each other and try to use mediation to reach a resolution before the 60 days is up. The suggestion is one both sides say they are eager to follow.

"We've always been interested in trying to settle this case," said Andrew Morse, Mapleton's attorney.

Gibby maintained that he's always been interested in mediation but that the city hadn't reciprocated.

"In a way, I felt it was a win for reason and a win for sanity for the judge to say, 'look, go try to work this out,' " he said.

The ongoing dispute concerns 20 acres of land on the Mapleton bench. Gibby owns it and wants to develop it without a trail running down the middle of it. City leaders say the trail is a public thoroughfare and necessary for any emergency that may take place on the mountain. The two parties have been in and out of courtrooms for years on criminal charges, requests for condemnation and now this lawsuit, in which Gibby alleges the city violated his constitutional rights in relation to the land.

The legal wrangling is now down to two cases -- the city's request for eminent domain and access to a public thoroughfare and the federal lawsuit. It basically comes down to the same thing.

"One battle is enough," Morse said; the city wants the federal lawsuit dismissed because the real question will be decided in state court. The federal court's proceedings parallels what's happening in state court.

"You can't sue prosecutors for prosecuting you," he said.

But Gibby contends that you can sue for someone trying to take over your property unreasonably, and that's what the city is trying to do. He's made offers to sell it -- $8 million, which the city, with an annual budget of about $2.5 million, declined. Plus, he said he's spent about $350,000 in legal fees defending the property.

"There are no real winners," Gibby said. "But the property is worth $20, $25 million. You can't simply let someone aggravate your right of property."

U.S. District Judge David Sam will mediate the case. Morse said they have until June 15 to mediate, at which point Benson will make his decision. Mediation is not a binding agreement; if either of the two sides is unhappy with a proposed resolution they can opt not to accept it.

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page D1.