On one side, the titans:

l Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer with sales topping $285 billion last year.

l Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse, another Fortune 500 giant with more than 1,000 stores.

l The Boyer Co., a Utah powerhouse with 100 commercial properties, including The Gateway shopping district just west of downtown Salt Lake City.

On the other side, the pipsqueak:

l A grass-roots group dubbed Save Our Community.

But Save Our Community already has racked up several victories, gathering thousands of signatures opposing the development plans and then prevailing at the Utah Supreme Court to force a referendum on the issue.

The brouhaha erupted when a divided City Council approved a rezone for a 100-acre, out-of-use gravel pit near 9400 South and 1000 East. The vote paved the way for a mixed-use project that would include a Super Wal-Mart, Lowe's, 300-plus homes, a smattering of small stores and restaurants and a mini-park.

The project foes fear the development will bring traffic problems and safety concerns to the area.

City leaders argue that Sandy stands to lose badly needed tax dollars because both big-box retailers are looking to leave town unless they can build in the gravel pit.

A date for the referendum hasn't been set, but city leaders are eyeing Nov. 8, the same day the mayor's job and four out of seven City Council seats will be on the ballot.

So, will the mega-companies overtly campaign for the project leading up to the referendum?

Wal-Mart isn't saying yes, but it isn't saying no either.

"We enjoy taking our case to voters, and we have a very good record at it," says Ryan Horn, a community-affairs manager for the Arkansas-based retailer.

Last year, Wal-Mart pumped $2 million into two California campaigns. It lost a referendum for a superstore in the south but prevailed in the north. Utah is no California, but Horn notes the company recently won a vote in South Dakota.

For its part, Boyer is considering whether to enter the Sandy campaign.

"We're looking at our options," says Wade Williams, the company's director of retail development.

The other companies - Lowe's, Garbett Homes and Cowboy Partners - didn't return telephone calls. Neither did the gravel pit owners, Mike and Bill Gibbons.

Clearly, the prospect of potentially taking on the deep pockets of retailers and developers in a citywide election is intimidating for the citizen activists.

"Ugh," sighs resident Cynthia Long.

But she adds: "You can't sit and wonder. What good does that do?"

At least one major player definitely will remain on the sidelines: Sandy City.

"You don't use public money to take a side in an issue," explains City Attorney Walter Miller. "You don't do that. It's very dangerous."

But that doesn't mean the city will be mute until the election. It can send out "unbiased" information to voters, Miller says. And elected officials are free to speak out on the issue.

Of particular concern is the park. When the debate flared, a number of residents argued the land should be used as a park, and lawn signs dotted the community advocating for a "park, not a parking lot."

City officials noted that they didn't have the $40 million it would take to buy the parcel. Besides, they said, Sandy already has set aside land for parks.

Now, they fear the voters will go to the polls believing they are choosing between a park and a Wal-Mart.

"This is what will happen in a lot of cases," says Councilman Scott Cowdell, who hasn't decided if he's going to seek a fifth term this year.

"It has obviously been confusing," adds Councilman John Winder, who is weighing whether to run again after 24 years off and on as a council member. "We really need to get the facts out there."

But Save Our Community says it won't be talking about a park.

"You won't hear that from us," Long says.

Instead, the referendum will ask voters if they want to back the council vote and make way for the development or scrap the rezone. A reversal in the zoning won't mean the land will remain a vacant gravel pit, which is now sprouting weeds. Instead, it could allow apartments (1,200 of them), hotels, office buildings and schools.

Ultimately, even if the big companies pour big dollars into Sandy's referendum, Save Our Community leaders remain confident.

"I have to come back to my still-naive belief that money doesn't win elections [or] referendums," Long says.

jsantini@sltrib.com