In his letter, written under a legislative letterhead, Orem Republican Rep. Jim Ferrin noted that Summit Academy is a public school and that public schools usually avoid impact fees. What he didn't note is that he is the founder and a former co-owner of the company housing the school.

The City Council originally voted 3-2 to waive the fees, but at least one member wants to revisit the decision. The main question: Did the city actually waive the fees for the school, or was it for the company (Charter One Development) that built it?

"Our council is very supportive of schools, but they had trouble seeing past how the arrangement with Summit Academy works," Draper City Manager Eric Keck said. "They want to do the right thing for the schools, but they don't want to enrich someone else."

That someone else is Glenn Way, a former legislator and current owner of Charter One Development and Charter One Management, two companies founded by Ferrin in January to finance and manage construction of charter schools.

The state Department of Commerce still lists Ferrin as the principal agent of Charter One Management and shows both companies at the same location as Ferrin Capital Advisors, his other business.

However, Ferrin provided notarized records Thursday showing he divested himself of both Charter One companies in February, saying they "conflicted with other business interests."

He said his interest in Draper's impact fees stems from his support of charter schools, not any financial gain.

"I confess to having more than a mere passing interest in this, but I have no legal or financial connection to Charter One Development or Charter One Management," he said.

Last month, Ferrin wrote a letter on House of Representatives stationery to urge Draper officials not to assess the impact fees.

Arguing that the academy is a public school exempt from the fees, Ferrin wrote that he was requesting the waiver on behalf of the school and Charter One Development. He did not disclose that he is the founder and former co-owner of the company.

That lack of disclosure is irrelevant, he said Thursday.

"I don't know what better use I could have for legislative letterhead than asking a city to waive impact fees," he said. "I have a huge interest in seeing that Uniform School Fund dollars are used on schools and not on impact fees."

If the City Council imposes the fees, the developer will, in turn, tack the cost onto the school's monthly lease payment, Ferrin said.

Keck is scheduled to testify on impact fees this morning during a legislative task force meeting on school buildings. Ferrin is chairman of that task force.

Meantime, the council will reconsider the fee waiver Sept. 7.

rlynn@sltrib.com

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Tribune reporters Derek Jensen and Rebecca Walsh contributed to this report.