In April, Draper City purchased 10.87 acres of property located at 12695 S. 1700 East from the Canyons School District (CSD). The district no longer needed the property for a school in that area because growth is predominantly on the west side. The city was considering creating a cemetery on five acres and selling the other five to recoup their investment.

The city paid $5.6 million for the property and the real estate agreement between the city and the CSD states that any profits the city gains from reselling the property will be split with the school district. Less than four months later, the city has put all 10 acres up for sale, leaving a site for a new cemetery uncertain.

“I recognize the need (for a cemetery), it’s an integral part of the culture, but I’m not 100% sure it’s a business we should be in. We need to pay for police, fire, all the stuff the living want. We have no money in our budget to create and operate a new cemetery. If a cemetery doesn’t pencil, I don’t think the city council is going to get hurt on the land if they have to sell it,” Draper Mayor Troy Walker said at the time the city purchased the land from the CSD.

State law states cities get first right of refusal to purchase surplus land from school districts for community purposes. “When the school district came to the city and offered it for sale…the city wanted to control the zoning. We thought we’d purchase it, rezone it for half acre lots, and then sell it. The council wasn’t unanimous on the cemetery. They were undecided because they kept getting mixed responses from the community. Some people didn’t think the city should be in the business of doing a cemetery, and we wondered if it was going to be possible to sell the plots and do the whole thing. They (the council) thought ‘let’s put out a Request For Proposals’ (RFP)…and developers can put a cemetery there if they wish, or just homes,” said Assistant City Manager Kellie Challburg.

Since an RFP is a bidding process rather than a traditional real estate listing with an asking price, it's anybody’s guess what the purchase price might be, and an RFP doesn’t let potential buyers know what others are bidding. It’s also anybody’s guess as to whether the buyer/developer will want to include a cemetery or not in the plan they submit to the city. “We’re looking for the best proposal that may include a cemetery or it may just be something we sell off and realize the profit,” Walker said. Recently, the council has indicated that if a cemetery does come to fruition at the site, it would likely be privately run. RFPs for the property are due to the city Aug. 30.

One thing about the sale of the property is for certain. Per the original agreement with CSD, “Anything over purchase price we will split with them,” Challburg said.