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The Utah Taxpayers Association and local Draper business owners have scheduled a press conference Monday afternoon to voice their opposition to Draper's proposed $29 million recreation bond, which will go to a vote June 26.
Royce Van Tassell, Utah Taxpayers Association vice president, said bond proposals such as this should go before voters in November rather than June. "There is a significantly higher voter turnout in November than in June," Van Tassell said Monday. "This bond is very poor tax policy, and if it's going to be voted on it needs to be in November."
A recent survey conducted by Draper found 86 percent of residents would be willing to increase their property taxes by $5 to $7 per month to help fund a new community recreation center. Seventy-two percent said that having an indoor recreation center is a priority and 73 percent said they will vote in favor of the proposed bond.
"We've seen lots of communities turning out these surveys," Van Tassell said. "But when presented with the costs, people are more concerned about where the money is spent."
In a letter on the city website, Mayor Darrell Smith said the city council was encouraged to put the proposal to a vote when survey results showed that residents were for a new facility.
"We have come to the conclusion that the only way Draper will ever get a recreation center that meets our needs is to build it ourselves," Smith wrote in the letter.
The conference starts at 1 p.m. at the Cowabunga Bay waterpark in Draper.