PROVO -- Concerned residents packed the Provo Municipal Council Chambers on Thursday night to ask questions and offer suggestions for keeping a proposed quarry out of Rock Canyon.

Richard Davis of Springdell has applied for a conditional-use permit to extract rock from an 84-acre area at the mouth of Rock Canyon. His agent, John Park, has claimed impact to the popular recreational area would be minimal, but consensus among neighbors says otherwise.

Sid Sandberg, Rock Canyon neighborhood chairman, said if the city approves the permit, neighbors' welfare could be "irreplaceably affected."

"It's not a small enterprise," he said of the proposed quarry. "It is a massive enterprise."

Application process

Davis's application will be reviewed by the city's Community Development Office for compliance with city code, which includes requirements that the quarry not compromise neighbors' "health, safety or general welfare." The office will then forward it to the Planning Commission for a final decision, but the commission must hold a public hearing first.

Brent Wilde, the city's assistant Community Development director, said the soonest the office could forward it to the commission would be late May.

"It may take longer to go through all of the information that's coming in," he said.

The city has expressed an interest in preserving the canyon, but Mayor Lewis Billings said the application must be treated as any other. He said Davis "will be allowed to go through the normal rules." But he offered suggestions for those interested in fighting the proposal, including collaborating with Red Slab LLC, an entity set up by Sen. John Valentine, R-Orem, and Phil Lowry, a Provo lawyer, to acquire the land and quell extraction attempts.

"What can the public do? The public can participate in the public hearing before the Planning Commission," Billings said. "Those who want to preserve Rock Canyon may also want to consider working with Red Slab."

Billings and members of the council were criticized for not appearing at a neighborhood meeting Saturday about the issue. The city's out-of-house counsel Jody Burnett said he asked them not to because the city is currently involved in a lawsuit with Davis over ownership of the property.

Ownership question

The ownership history of the land is complicated. Davis and Richard Sperry each purchased a 50-percent interest in the land in 1998. Sperry later sold half his interest, or a quarter of the total, to a third party. Davis challenged the transfer in a lawsuit that is ongoing.

Meanwhile, Sperry transferred his remaining 25 percent to Red Slab. It in turn granted a conservation easement to the city, intending that no mining could take place on his portion. But since the property is undivided, it's unclear whether Davis can proceed with the application without Red Slab's consent.

In a preliminary response to Davis's application, the city said it would need certification that Red Slab also approved of the extraction before anything could proceed. Burnett said the city is waiting for Davis's response before commenting on exactly how the convoluted ownership question would, in reality, affect the likelihood of Davis being granted a permit.

He said that in general, real-estate law dictates that one owner of an undivided property can't do "anything that would be contrary to the desires of the other owners."

Bait-and-switch?

Some residents suspect that Davis is simply causing a stir in hopes of forcing the city or another entity into purchasing or trading his land for something more lucrative.

"Do you feel that this is somewhat of a guise for him to ask for this permit to try to negotiate a sale, and what he really is aiming at is trying to get the best price for the sale?" resident Jordan Tanner asked city officials.

Valentine responded, saying nobody could guess Davis's intentions. Based on Davis's behavior over the years, Valentine said he was convinced he's "legitimately interested" in extracting rock.

He said he continues to negotiate with Davis to find a solution for both parties.

"We make an offer, he makes another offer back, and that's where we are right now," Valentine said. "He does have property rights, and if we can acquire those rights by trade, by buying them ... we feel like those are the ways that we can adequately resolve the interests in Rock Canyon."

Other residents raised questions of environmental impact, the use of as many as 12 trucks a day to move the rock through city roads, the possibility of seeking protection for established climbing trails through trail easements, and the realistic demand for decorative rock in a sluggish economy.

Wilde encouraged residents with concerns or ideas to e-mail him personally at bwilde@provo.utah.gov.

• Ace Stryker can be reached at astryker@heraldextra.com.