But Salt Lake City officials acknowledge that the loss of neatly nestled open-space nuggets - once slotted for protection - also could be pinned on the capital's stodgy bureaucracy.

During the past year, five natural spaces in the heart of the city were designated for preservation by the nascent Open Space Advisory Board. Yet, somehow, builders have bought three - and bulldozed the path to construction permits - right under the city's gaze.

Created in 2005, the committee was tasked with targeting undeveloped jewels for preservation.

A review of open-space applications reveals conservation plans for a community garden near 600 South and 400 East, a would-be pocket park - doubling as a memorial for a slain police officer - on the corner of 1300 South and 300 East and the Wasatch Hollow gully along the Emigration Creek corridor on the city's east bench.

But, thanks to the city's slow-to-the-draw deal making, the parcels have been purchased. Suddenly, the slices of solitude are destined for brawny houses and, in one case, billboards.

And open-space advocates are peeved.

"It's been frustrating to see a lot of good potential out there and not be able to close the deal," says Sharen Hauri, an open-space board member. "We were dealing with owners that were more interested in getting the money out of it than preservation."

City Councilwoman Jill Remington Love says two handicaps may have hurt the city's chances. Since the board was the first of its kind, she explains, members faced a learning curve. And the process was public.

"It opens it up to anyone who wants to come in and make a quick buck and take advantage of the city," Love says. "That's what happened."

There was another hurdle.

Even though the city had some $5 million in the bank - voters approved the open-space bond in 2003 - the city faced a ceiling on how much it could bid.

"It is expressly written in the bylaws that the city cannot pay more than fair-market value," notes Patty Jarvis of the public services office. "When you are dealing with bond money and you are dealing with government agencies, there is some red tape you have to go through. On some of the properties, that is what happened."

Still, there are some successes.

Sometime this fall, the city expects to close on a parcel known as the Foothill Preserve. The area comprises roughly 15 acres next to the so-called "H-rock" near the mouth of Parleys Canyon.

"We've got two agreements with those landowners," says Wendy Fisher, executive director of Utah Open Lands, which has helped preserve 47,000 acres statewide. Fisher continues to help the city negotiate such deals.

Prospects also look promising for the Draw at Sugar House Park, a project selected by the board to connect the park to the Hidden Hollow area via a tunnel beneath 1300 East.

And just last week, the developer who snatched Wasatch Hollow announced he is willing to sell - perhaps to the city.

"It can be a win-win situation," says Don Edwards, agent for Salt Lake City-based Kensington Cove. "I just told them, 'I can get what I want, and you can get what you want. The community can have its open space, and I can build two or three houses.' "

Ideally, Edwards would sell part of the land to the city and build two homes on the property, but he needs to be sure the city will do something with the land. Edwards said drug addicts use the area to get high and people constantly trespass onto the property, trashing the creek corridor.

Edwards, who acquired the land in May, had planned to build more luxury homes on the property at 1665 E. Kensington Ave. Since then, the city placed a moratorium on building anything within 100 feet of the water.

"How do you fight City Hall?" Edwards laments. "They have the six-month moratorium on the property. What do you do?"

He has placed the hollow back on the market for $4 million - significantly more than he paid.

But that won't dampen the city's interest, Love says.

"We absolutely want that piece," she says. "It just makes sense that it remain open space."

Despite the setbacks, if the city scores Wasatch Hollow, it will be batting better than .500.

And, as the open-space board kicks off a new round of applications this fall, members say they won't make the same mistakes.

djensen@sltrib.com

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* OLGA MU OZ contributed to this story.