In a debate Tuesday, talk got testy after Councilman Joe Hatch suggested Mayor Peter Corroon keeps moving the guidelines for a deal "like a sand rope."

"What criteria are we operating on?" Hatch asked, exasperated. "Is there anything out there that is in concrete or is it all fuzzy?"

At the same time, several members are convinced that even if Real Salt Lake goes bust and bolts, the county may be just fine.

Councilman Randy Hori- uchi says another Major League Soccer owner probably would swoop into Sandy if RSL sells the franchise.

And Councilman Jeff Allen argued the county-owned land beneath a stadium should appreciate by about $1 million a year.

"I can knock that sucker [the stadium] down for $750,000 and move on," he said. "That's a no-brainer for me."

Still others - like council members Jenny Wilson, Mark Crockett and Marv Hendrickson - want more details on what risks the deal poses to the county.

"Where are we vulnerable?" Wilson asked.

County officials are wrestling with projections from RSL and an independent consultant to decide whether to invest $30 million in hotel taxes toward the $110 million project.

Executives worked the numbers again Tuesday and the Debt Review Committee will meet Friday to perhaps make a stadium recommendation to Corroon that day.

The county mayor says he always has insisted on a due-diligence review and dismissed Hatch's double-talk accusation.

"I want to see if [RSL officials] can pay their bills," Corroon said. "That's all I've asked."

- Derek P. Jensen