Fed up with Saratoga Springs' success in drawing businesses, Eagle Mountain is fighting back.

The city held an economic development summit recently in an attempt to spur landowners to market their land.

"We want them to look at bringing their utilities in so the land is not just sagebrush," said Ifo Pili, management analyst for Eagle Mountain, noting infrastructure and basic land preparation would show potential businesses what the city has to offer.

"What we have zoned commercial it is not nearly enough to support the commercial we need," he said. "We are not going to be able to support the potential of the city without it, and this is the time to do this because the City Council is ready to be aggressive. The city has not gone out before and actively sought out businesses to come here."

Eagle Mountain's difficulty in drawing businesses stems directly from "a city just east of us that is going ape with commercial development," he said, refusing to name Saratoga Springs aloud.

Saratoga Springs has a Smith's grocery store, has announced a Wal-Mart, and a McDonald's has just opened, making it difficult for Eagle Mountain to convince a grocery store, large discount retailer or another fast-food business to come here, he said.

"We could have had a shot at getting a McDonald's in a year or two, but now it is there (in Saratoga Springs) it pushes us further and further back," he told landowners. "We are in a situation where we really need to be competitive with our neighbor, Saratoga Springs."

Officials said they have rented booth space at a major conference of commercial developers in Las Vegas this spring and asked landowners to register tracts of commercially zoned land so the city can try to sell that land at the conference.

"We are going to court the major players," said Levi McPherson, economic development analyst for the city. "We are very serious about bringing business to Eagle Mountain."

Several landowners have responded, filling out applications allowing the city to represent their land, and also approaching the city with preliminary proposals to bring utilities to existing parcels, Pili said.

"If you can have a little faith in the city and take the initiative and put in utilities and plan infrastructure, we can sell it for you," he said.

The city now has more than 20,000 residents and is "growing exponentially" yet has very few businesses, he said.

"Commercial growth is knocking at our door and we think we are at the tipping point where we can see some growth happen," he said. "We want to be economically self-sufficient."

To draw larger businesses, the city is working on a plan to offer property and sales tax incentives, Pili said.

"If we bring in a huge store, that is going to provide thousands of jobs and tax dollars," he said.

The city also wants to draw smaller businesses, including gas stations, manufacturers, and restaurants, he said.

The city now has one gas station, a small Hispanic market and a handful of restaurants.

Caleb Warnock can be reached at 443-3263 or cwarnock@heraldextra.com.

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page D1.