EAGLE MOUNTAIN -- Without much ado, all seven Eagle Mountain council members voted to adopt a resolution supporting the Utah Crossing Inc. bridge project at Tuesday's City Council meeting.

Cities officially supporting the project now include Orem, American Fork, Lehi, Vineyard and Mapleton.

Leon Harward of Utah Crossing Inc. gave a presentation to the city Tuesday afternoon with the support of State Rep. Kenneth Sumsion, R-American Fork. Utah Crossing Inc. will seek government approval in the next year to build a $600 million privately funded toll bridge across the lake.

David Lifferth, council member and city representative for the Utah Lake Commission, thanked Sumsion.

"He lives in American Fork. The crossing will not impact him, but he has worked very hard on this," he said.

Details of the resolution, which was drafted by Lifferth, changed from its original version. Lifferth said the council members wanted the wording in the resolution to be stronger.

"Our council members wanted it to state that we are supportive of any public-private partnerships, as long as they are environmentally friendly, viable solutions to our transportation needs."

He added that he did not support the original causeway idea.

"That would change the physical, chemical make-up of the lake," Lifferth said. "Utah Crossing is proposing a beautiful bridge compatible with the environment that will not impact the wetlands around the lake."

He said the amount of the toll has not been specified, but it may be compatible with one gallon of gas, taking inflation into account and the three to four years that the crossing would take to construct.

"It must be financially viable from a consumer's standpoint," he added.

Sumsion, who has been interested in a crossing for four years, said demographic projections show more than one million people could move to the west side of Utah County over the next 30-50 years.

The current drive from Orem to Eagle Mountain takes 35-40 minutes. Sumsion said that a new road directly across the lake and over, or through parts of the mountain, would reduce the commute to 10 minutes.

"The reason Eagle Mountain is so supportive is they understand that the bridge is the first leg of a road that will need to cross the mountain," Sumsion said. "This bridge isn't just for Saratoga Springs. It's even more for Eagle Mountain when you get that second leg built."

A new road over the mountain would be as steep as the Traverse Ridge road in north Utah County, but tunnels would allow drivers to maintain their speed.

"Eagle Mountain City is always looking for new transportation corridors," Eagle Mountain Mayor Heather Jackson said. "We understand the need for a lake crossing, and we appreciate Utah Crossings Inc. for their initiative and support this proposal."

Saratoga Springs council members were more apprehensive about endorsing the project on Sept. 29.

They didn't decide on an official position at their council meeting because of their concerns of consequences of possible bankruptcy as a private project and the environmental impact on Utah Lake.

Saratoga Councilman Cecil Tuley called it a "bridge to nowhere," because the plan didn't have connections to major roads at either end. Under the current plan, it would extend from 800 North in Orem to a destination just north of Pelican Point at the less populated end of Saratoga Springs.

The Utah Lake Commission will take comments about the bridge at its Oct. 29 meeting. The Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands is taking public comment on the proposal through Oct. 31.

Comments on the project can be submitted at www.ffsl.utah.gov/sovlands/utahlake/bridgecrossing.php. Further information on the bridge is also available at www.UtahCrossing.com.

A copy of the adopted resolution was posted on the Eagle Mountain City Web site at eaglemountaincity.org.

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