Pleasant Grove says it will be investing $52 million in roadway funding over the next decade for road repairs and improvements.

The announcement comes after a citizen group has been fighting against a recent city budget amendment that reallocated $600,000 that would have been put into the road fund. That group attempted to put the budget amendment on the ballot through a referendum, but their application to the city was denied. The group is currently appealing that decision.

“Investing in our roads is an investment in the future of Pleasant Grove,” Mayor Guy Fugal said in a press release. “By allocating substantial resources to enhance our transportation infrastructure, we are not only addressing current needs but also laying the groundwork for a more vibrant and connected Pleasant Grove.”

According to a press release from the city, from 2008 to 2017, $7 million was put into road funding, and $10 million was put into road funding from 2018 to 2022. Last year, $11.5 million was invested.

Council member Eric Jensen said in the release, “When I took office, the city was only spending $290,000 on roadway improvements. This quickly became a top priority for the Council as we recognized this level of funding was far from adequate, and now we are allocating historic amounts to roadway funding. This will include work on 105 residential roads in 2024.”

Scott Darrington, the city administrator, said that the city collects funding for roads through the state gas tax, transportation utility fees and a portion of county sales tax, and that is where the $52 million will come from.

Darrington said the city had bonded about $6 million a couple of years ago and that the city spent part of that last year, with the remaining being spent this year.

He also noted that the city had about $2 million from the transportation utility fee that had been unused while a lawsuit against that fee made its way through the courts. In 2023, the Utah Supreme Court upheld the district court’s decision allowing Pleasant Grove to issue such a utility fee.

In order to maintain the city’s roads and make improvements, the city needs to spend about $5.4 million a year, according to a recent city meeting.

Darrington said there is potential for some grants to fund road projects, but only certain projects can qualify, such as grants for “regionally significant” roads through the Mountainland Association of Governments.

“We will continue to pursue those grants as they become available, but they can’t be used for residential streets,” he said. “It’s got to be regionally significant roads in our community.”

Jacob Zonts, one of the residents who was attempting the budget referendum, said he’s still concerned that the city isn’t putting enough into its roads.

“I don’t want the city to kick the can down the road and force my children to have to pay for the choices they’re making today,” he said.

He also wants to see the city do another study on the roads to identify exactly how much is needed for upkeep, adding the mayor and City Council have plans to do so.

Zonts said that the $600,000 that was not allocated to roads this year after the budget was amended would have helped the city reach the minimum funding requirements needed to upkeep the roads.

That budget amendment is what Zonts and other residents were trying to put on the ballot for a vote through a referendum but the city denied their application, saying a budget amendment wasn’t legally referable for a vote.

Zonts says he has filed an appeal with the courts disputing the city’s decision. While he says they’re “confident” their arguments are sufficient, he said there’s a possibility the court finds the case is moot with the fiscal year ending before the November election.

He said if they are unsuccessful with the referendum, they are considering a ballot initiative to require the city to add $600,000 into the road fund next fiscal year.

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