Draper will not fund its share of a study on extending Highland Drive through Dimple Dell Park, Council Member Tasha Lowery said in a Facebook statement Nov. 10.

Draper would also need to fund its portion for the study to move forward, ABC4 reported. Sandy is weighing whether to contribute $157,000 toward the study.

As we reported Nov. 10, the Sandy City Council had been considering the contribution, and Draper's participation was required.

Lowery said Draper previously withdrew funding for even a preliminary environmental study on the extension. That position has not changed, she said.

"The bottom line: Draper is NOT pursuing this road extension, has no plans to fund it, and does not consider it a priority," Lowery wrote.

She acknowledged regional planners or the state could revisit the project someday but said that would require substantial funding, planning and years of additional review. Neither Sandy nor Draper has the resources to fund a road project of that scale, she said.

Sandy pushback

Lowery's statement came the same evening Sandy residents spoke at a city council meeting to oppose the study during the public comment period.

Sandy Mayor Monica Zoltanski told ABC4 she does not support the study. She said connecting Highland Drive through Dimple Dell is no longer a top priority for Sandy and that attitudes have shifted over the decades the idea has been discussed.

"For the past five years, my budgets have not included funding this transportation study. Why? Because it doesn't solve our congestion problems," Zoltanski said, according to ABC4. She added that the extension would only make the city busier.

Zoltanski said the city does not have the funds to spare. Cities both north and south of Sandy have also spoken out against the extension, according to ABC4.

Joyce Walker, president of the Dimple Dell Preservation Community, told ABC4 the idea of cutting through Dimple Dell is not new. Previous attempts to disrupt the more than 600-acre nature preserve were redirected after community pushback, according to ABC4.

Walker said residents worry the road would bring more traffic through the residential community rather than ease congestion.

What happens next

Sandy's proposed $157,000 contribution would come from the city's budget carryover process, which reallocates money that was budgeted but not spent. A public hearing and possible vote on the amended package are on the agenda for the Sandy City Council meeting on Nov. 17.