Building official Reid Gerritsen and longtime City Engineer Shane Jones have resigned.

Gerritsen said Thursday his exit had nothing to do with the arrival of Mayor Claudia Anderson, adding that he had had an offer in the works for almost a year. He's going to work for a development company, which he declined to name.

Jones and Anderson could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Debate over two proposed developments - and about 4,000 foothill acres - rocked the growing southern Salt Lake County community this fall and became the driving campaign issue in November, when Bluffdale voters booted Mayor Wayne Mortimer and City Councilman Morris Clark.

This fall, some residents organized Bluffdale United to block the large mixed-use developments: Sorenson Real Estate's South Farms and Development Associates' South Hills.

Concerns revolved around increased housing densities. Current zoning primarily allows one unit per acre; these projects would average 2.6 units per acre, with as many as 12 units per acre in some cases.

As Bluffdale United gathered wide public support for a referendum drive challenging a new "special development plan" zone for this area, the developers sued, seeking to de-annex from Bluffdale and, possibly, latch onto neighboring Herriman.

In late October, the council approved a lawsuit settlement to allow these projects to move forward. But Bluffdale United immediately succeeded in delaying court approval of that accord.

In November, voters elected Bluffdale United activists Nancy Lord and Bill Maxwell to the City Council along with Anderson, who supported their efforts although she took no stand on the expansive projects.

Fed up and determined to de-annex, the developers have asked for a trial. After the election, City Attorney Dale Gardiner anticipated he no longer would be on the city's staff with the pending change in leadership.

But Gardiner said Thursday he had been asked to stay on and had agreed to do so.

"The new group will either have to come up with a new settlement that both parties can accept or the case will be tried," Gardiner said. "They're intelligent folks - my guess is they'll do everything they can to settle."

After all, it would be a big deal for Bluffdale to lose 38 percent of its land.

"It's bare ground," Gardiner said, "and the potential for development is enormous."

cmckitrick@sltrib.com