NORTH SALT LAKE, Utah -- People who live near the North Salt Lake landslide could be seeing some big changes in their neighborhood very soon, as the city says several parties have come together with a plan to improve the stability of the hillside.
The area impacted by the landslide last August has been an eyesore and a concern for people living nearby, especially when the ground gets wet. Some are afraid the earth could move again
But if the North Salt Lake City Council signs off on a proposed plan, this area will undergo big changes very soon.
“As much as recovering from a disaster can be a win-win for everybody, I would say that this is the best that we could hope for,” North Salt Lake City Manager Barry Edwards said.
Edwards said there is a plan to secure the scarred hillside.
“The cost to do this is estimated to be two million dollars,” he said.
Last summer, on August 5, soil, sand, and rocks slipped from a steep slope, destroying one home and damaging a tennis club.
Many neighbors nearby have been uneasy ever since, but if the city council signs off on a plan in a special session Friday night, work will begin on a solution.
“The plan for remediation is to build a buttress at the bottom of the slide, the buttress is 20 to 30 feet high,” Edwards said. "And then the land mass, which is up a little bit higher, to go up and shape it, re-contour it, make it so that it will drain water and then put vegetation over on top.”
City officials said taxpayers won't foot the bill, but instead private parties are coming to the table, including Sky Properties, which is the main developer in the area, and the Questar and Kern River Gas companies--which have pipelines running through the area.
“While the studies that we have show that their pipelines are safe, I think they feel like, they feel if they can get this fixed then it'll give them a higher level of reassurance,” Edwards said.
Some homeowners who live nearby are happy with the plan
“I think it’s about as good as you can get,” resident Dave Curtis said.
While others declined interviews, saying the topic has been too divisive and controversial.
If the plan is approved, the project could be complete in four months. Edwards said that after months of working out the details, he hopes the project can move swiftly forward.
The agreement does not assign blame to any particular party for the damages caused by the landslide.
