Eight years after voters approved Salt Lake County's Zoo, Arts and Parks tax - which has funneled nearly $125 million into recreation centers, museums, theaters and trails - renewal of the popular program is headed to the Nov. 2 ballot.

This time, however, some of the tenth of 1 percent sales tax could be pumped into fitness centers south of Sandy.

Program advocates and city officials agree arts and recreation needs have changed since the tax was approved in 1996. What they're really saying is: Follow the people.

Lynnette Hiskey, Salt Lake County's former ZAP director, says the county should use the next chunk of funds to bolster recreation in the booming southwest end of the valley.

"They have tons of kids out there and they don't have any facilities," she says. "Countywide, they have a big barren spot out there."

Riverton City Manager Mark Cram points to off-and-on discussions regarding plans for a multi-use recreation center that could serve Riverton, Bluffdale, Herriman and South Jordan. Designating ZAP money for such a facility near 12800 South and 5000 West, according to city officials, would fill a growing recreational need.

"That would be awesome," Cram says. "It would serve our needs for quite some time."

Nearby, in Draper, residents are clamoring for a recreation center, perhaps on par with Sandy's Dimple Dell facility - a product of the first round of ZAP money.

"They'd love a rec center," City Manager Eric Keck says. "Going to Dimple Dell is a little too far. We'd like something closer, especially for the children."

Draper and Herriman are among Utah's fastest-growing cities.

Despite the area's growth, county leaders have made no commitments should the tax - which expires in 2006 - win a 10-year renewal.

"They may wait until it's reauthorized until they start looking at what they are going to do," says Hiskey, who added the parks and recreation master plan may be used as a guide. The key, she says, is identifying who will benefit the most.

Winners from the inaugural ZAP bonanza included, among others, Sandy, Holladay, Magna and West Jordan - all of which landed fitness centers.

The funds - ZAP raises $14 million to $16 million a year - also provide seed money and support for dozens of cultural programs, including one that exposes at-risk kids to live theater. In all, nearly 190 organizations have benefited from ZAP.

"From families to seniors to kids - there really is something for everybody," says Carter Livingston, a consultant for groups pushing to renew ZAP.

Advocates hope a high turnout for the presidential race leads to a victory at the polls. If so, they say sports fields and even a trail system on Midvale's former "slag site" could be in the works.

Critics of the program include private fitness centers, worried about loss of business, and the Utah Taxpayers Association, which cites education and transportation as more pressing issues.

djensen@sltrib.com

Who can apply for ZAP funds

l Arts groups looking for a boost from the second tier of Salt Lake County's Zoo, Arts and Parks program can get their applications online now.

To qualify for ZAP money, an organization must:

l Maintain 501(c)3 nonprofit status.

l Have average expenditures of less than $294,206 over three years.

l Be located in Salt Lake County.

l Have a primary purpose of advancing and preserving history, natural history, art, music, theater or dance or the advancement and preservation of plant science through horticultural display, botanical research and community education.

Applications, available at http://www.slcozap.org, are due by Oct. 1 at 5 p.m. For more information or to request a mailed copy of the application, call Kristi Marshall at 468-3571.