Debate highlights differences on topics ranging from lawsuits to building codes

The two candidates for mayor of Tooele sparred over crime, the handling of the Overlake lawsuit, city attitudes toward residential growth and transparency at City Hall in a spirited but cordial debate in the Tooele High School auditorium Tuesday evening.

The debate, which was sponsored by the Tooele Transcript-Bulletin, involved incumbent Mayor Patrick Dunlavy and challenger Becky Bracken fielding questions and responding directly to one another.

One of the key flashpoints came during a question about the lawsuit filed by Overlake developer Tooele Associates that resulted in a $20.7 million judgment against the city last June.

“The city has not told us everything about the lawsuit,” Bracken said.

“You have been told everything,” Dunlavy retorted, challenging Bracken to divulge additional information if she had it.

Bracken did not respond.

Prior to the exchange, Dunlavy had explained how he sat down with Drew Hall, managing partner of Tooele Associates, two weeks after being elected mayor to settle the suit.

“It soon became evident that the die had been cast,” Dunlavy said. “There was no desire to settle. Mr. Hall wanted the lawsuit to go forward. His strategy was clear. His business plan had failed and the economy went bad, so he could not get additional funding. He blamed it on the city and wanted money.”

Bracken said she has heard inconsistencies from both sides of the story but still believes a resolution should be possible.

“I can not believe that two people can not sit down and work out the issues and come to an agreement,” Bracken said.

Both candidates agreed that more police officers are needed to help combat a rise in crime in the city. However, how to pay for them and when that could be possible was a source of disagreement.

“If we review the budget of each department carefully and find places where they can be more efficient and make cuts, we can find the money somewhere,” Bracken said.

Bracken, who retired this year after 20 years with the Tooele City Police Department, said she felt the department was a little top heavy, and there was at least one job being done by a uniformed officer that could be done by a civilian employee. Dunlavy countered that since becoming mayor he has increased the police force by five officers, but that current economic conditions don’t make hiring more officers feasible now.

“To keep up with declining revenue, the city has already cut $1.6 million from the budget without involuntarily losing any employees. Nine employees took an offer of early retirement,” Dunlavy said. “One department has been reorganized and two employees transferred out to other positions. Capital projects have been halted, training and travel budgets reduced.”

Dunlavy and Bracken also clashed over concerns about the city’s aging infrastructure.

“We have been playing catch up with aging roads, sewers and water lines,” Dunlavy said, mentioning that such problems were inherited by administrations even before his. “We spend $2 million a year on roads and $1 million a year on sewer and water.”

Bracken said residents have contacted her about problems with sewage back up in their basements.

“They have been told by the city that it is not the city’s problem,” Bracken said. “While the city’s insurance has paid for some of the repairs, homeowners have been left with bills for as much as $12,000. Improvements should be made before citizens need to make expensive repairs.”

Bracken also challenged Dunlavy’s assertion that City Hall is completely open and transparent.

“Transparency to me means the citizens know what is going on before they read about a decision being made in the paper,” Bracken said, using the city’s recent acquisition of 101 acres of open space on the southeast bench as an example.

“While I am for open space,” Bracken said. “Nobody knew ahead of time that this was going to happen. The citizens have a right to have a voice and to be heard.”

Dunlavy replied that everything the city does is open. Agendas are printed in the paper, the public is given an opportunity to speak at each city council meeting, and open meeting laws are followed, he said.

“Tooele does not hide behind closed doors and we don’t close meetings improperly or illegally,” Dunlavy said.

Bracken also took aim at the city’s building department.

“I have talked to contractors and developers that have said the city is difficult to work with,” she said. “Some have told me that they will not come to Tooele because there too many hoops to jump through.”

Dunlavy said the city doesn’t want builders that don’t want to adhere to city code.

“We have had complaints,” Dunlavy admitted. “We also have had contractors tell us how helpful and streamlined our department is compared to other cities. Frankly the contractors that complain the most are ones we don’t want in the city. They are the ones that try to take shortcuts and create their own problems. We do not have a shortage of contractors that want to bid for work in Tooele.”

When it came to the subject of downtown redevelopment, both candidates made reference to Sostanza restaurant.

“Sostanza restaurant is a success story,” Dunlavy said. “They came to the city for help and we made a substantial financial commitment to help them.”

But Bracken recounted a conversation with one of Sostanza’s owners to the contrary.

“I was told by one of Sostanza’s owners that they almost did not complete the project because of the hoops they had to jump through,” she said.

On the topic of economic development, Dunlavy said his administration has aggressively courted new businesses, but will not openly recruit businesses that will compete with those already in town.

“We are looking for those businesses that citizen input has told us are wanted in the city,” Dunlavy said.

Both candidates also addressed the plight of the derelict Newtown area.

“We need to encourage in-fill in this area,” Bracken said. “We need to reinvest in our older neighborhoods. We can clean up the lots and make this part of our city beautification.”

Dunlavy said the city is currently working with a major developer for drastic improvements in Newtown.

“We are working with a developer that owns property just north of Hometown Grocery,” Dunlavy said. “The first phase of his project will be to rebuild the apartment complex across from the Venus Club. Phase two involves a complete renovation of the old Broadway hotel into an apartment complex with retail space on the ground floor. The developer came to us and asked for help and we said we would and we did.”

Both candidates ended the debate by expressing their love for Tooele and desire to make the city a better place.

For a full transcript of the Tooele mayoral debate, visit the Transcript-Bulletin’s Web site at www.tooeletranscript.com.

Tim Gillie: tgillie@tooeletranscript.com