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Debate over a Utah school district bond has become so heated that both supporters and opponents may have broken election laws.
On Wednesday, Summit County Attorney Robert Hilder announced that his office was investigating allegations of inappropriate and illegal conduct related to a $56 million bond proposal for the Park City School District.
The school district staff is accused of using public funds to advocate for the bond's passage, Hilder said, while community members opposed to the bond have allegedly campaigned on school district property.
"We would hate to see a legitimate ballot question marred by errant conduct," Hilder said in a prepared statement.
Todd Hauber, the school district's business administrator, said informational materials describing the bond were created and distributed to community members.
That material included a video that was shown to students during class time.
Hauber said state law is contradictory, in that school districts are required to inform the public about the scope and scale of a bond proposal but are prohibited against advocating for its passage.
"One says do and the other says don't," he said, "so the board did the best it could in navigating between those two statutes."
If approved, the $56 million bond would raise property taxes by roughly $10 each month for the average primary home in Park City.
The bond's funds would be used to expand Park City High School, build a new school for fifth- and sixth-graders and demolish Treasure Mountain Junior High. Five of the district's seven schools are currently at capacity, and Hauber said the construction projects are needed to address projected growth in Park City.
"We need to do something today to get ready for that," he said.
But many residents are skeptical of the need for new buildings and the proposal to pay for them.
A community group called Citizens for Better Education was formed to oppose the bond, and co-chairwoman Ali Ziesler said the district has failed to provide specific plans to justify the raise in property taxes.
"This bond is starting to look like 'Hey, give us $56 million and trust us,' " she said. "People aren't comfortable with that."
The community group recently handed out pamphlets near schools in the district — so near that they were accused of violating state law by campaigning on school property.
Ziesler said bond opponents stayed off school grounds and that they had contacted lieutenant governor's office to verify that no laws were broken.
"They have told us that nothing we've done has violated election code," she said.
Ziesler said the bond would catch schools up to current enrollment, rather than positioning schools for future growth.
She said parents are also critical of the district's plan to tear down a junior high and replace it with a football field for Park City High School.
"You're taking all those students and you're moving them to a location that is now 30 minutes away by bus," she said.
Treasure Mountain Junior High is past its useful life, Hauber said, and bringing the building up to code would cost almost as much as a new building.
Instead of renovation, the school board elected to build a new school adjacent to Ecker Hill Middle School, and expand Park City High School onto the current location of its football field to house ninth-grade students who would otherwise study at Treasure Mountain.
"They would move Dozier Field over to where the junior high is actually being demolished," he said. "It will fit right on that footprint."
The bond is also expected to fund the construction of an indoor practice facility to shelter students from Park City's mountain climate.
"Many of our sport seasons are during heavy snow seasons," he said. "That would provide a place of practice for those teams."
Park City School District's bond is on the ballot for Tuesday's election, and both Hauber and Ziesler said the race is too close for predictions.
"Those who are opposed to the bond have really hit the streets hard," Hauber said. "They've gotten their message out."
Twitter: @bjaminwood