By Myrna Trauntvein
TN Correspondent

The city golf course expansion is getting closer to reality.

Recently the Nephi City Council authorized Mayor Justin Seely to sign a new land exchange agreement with the Utah State Division of Natural Resources (UDNR).

This agreement was to facilitate the exchange of land owned by the city and by DNR (Division of Natural Resources) in order to expand the golf course.

An amendment to that agreement is now being proposed because an updated appraisal has occurred on both pieces of property.

The appraisal update shows that the city’s property is valued at $60,000 while the portion of the parcel from the DNR that will be swapped is valued at $35,000.

In the original exchange the DNR parcel was valued higher and the city needed to pay the difference at closing.

In this case the request from DNR is that the city would donate the difference in value as part of the exchange.

It reduces the costs the city was assuming it would pay at closing but also means that no cash value will be received for the land swap of city property.

Nevertheless, he said, the city staff was recommending moving forward with the amendment to the exchange agreement as the benefits to golf course expansion will more than likely exceed the lost cash value of the city’s property in Reese’s Flat.

The appraisal update was needed to complete the update to the Environmental Assessment (EA).

Hailey Blair from the DNR will submit the updated EA as well as the grant for the land exchange to the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) so both can be reviewed at one time and hopefully expedite the process.

Once these anticipated approvals occur from the USFWS, the city property should be ready for closing with the DNR property closely following.

He said the city staff was recommending that the council authorize the mayor to sign the Amendment to the DNR Land Exchange Agreement.

He shared the “Letter of Just Compensation,” which the mayor would also need to be authorized to sign.

In the letter, it stated that the $25,000 difference in parcel value between the parcels involved in this land exchange in favor of UDWR (Utah Division of Wildlife Resources) is based on a fair market valuation comparison dated June 26, 2024.

The statement by the mayor that needed signing was: “I will accept this purchase price at closing as a fair value and just compensation for the parcels involved in the land exchange and agree to donate this value difference to UDWR.”

Atkinson said that fair market value was conducted via a Yellow Book appraisal, which determined the fair market value of the Nephi Parcel to be $60,000. The UDWR parcel is valued at $35,000 and the agreement is that Nephi will donate the $25,000 value difference to UDWR.

The city and UDWR entered into an exchange agreement May 22, 2024. UDWR will exchange 13.77 acres within the Nephi Canyon Wildlife Management Area (WMA) for a 40-acre parcel owned by Nephi city and located adjacent to the WMA.

“This has been an ongoing and long process,” said Atkinson. “I knew it would be long because we are dealing with a government entity but I didn’t expect it would be this long.”

“It took forever and a day,” said Skip Worwood, council member.

He said he would make the motion to approve the amendment to the exchange agreement and authorize the mayor to sign the amendment and the letter of Just Compensation.

Travis Worwood, council member, made the second and all voted in favor.