Park City is scraping the bottom of its open-space fund, but has found enough money to purchase yet another conservation easement on a key piece of ground along its eastern entry corridor.

The City Council unanimously approved the $5.75 million deal Thursday, cobbled together with the nonprofit Summit Land Conservancy for 121 acres of agricultural land owned by the Osguthorpe family.

The acreage, near the intersection of U.S. Highway 40 and State Route 248, is the last piece of a puzzle that will keep the area west of Park City's indoor ice rink and recreation center from being developed.

"The economic future of Park City isn't just what we build, but also what we don't," said Mayor Dana Williams. "That's why people come here."

Over the past two decades, Park City voters have approved $40 million in bond issues to purchase open space.

All told, Park City has purchased or otherwise preserved more than 7,000 acres of open space, the mayor said. That eliminated construction of about 1,000 houses and an additional 1 million square feet of commercial space, he said.

Although the Osguthorpe land -- if zoned residential -- would appraise at $9.4 million, the conservation agreement calls for Park City to pony up $4.75 million, and the Summit Land Conservancy will add $1 million. The land will continue to be used for grazing and alfalfa production.

The city will commit the final $1.7 million of its open-space bond funds to the purchase. The remaining $3 million will come from open-space impact fees.

City Councilwoman Liza Simpson calls it nothing short of "spectacular."

"Without citizen support for bonding we could never have purchased this much open space," she said.

The Osguthorpe parcel fits nicely with adjoining open lands comprising about 1,600 acres in the Round Valley area, said Cheryl Fox, executive director of Summit Land Conservancy.

"Give a lot of credit to the Osguthorpe family," she said. "They have never yet sold property for development."

Fox said her organization will spend the next two years raising $1 million for the deal.

"The city has scraped the bottom of the [open space] barrel, and we need a little more," she said. "So we are going to go to the community and ask them to help us out."

csmart@sltrib.com