And before the council voted, the opposition stirred the room enough for Mayor Lewis Billings and Council Chairman George Stewart to spar publicly for a few moments

as well.

Questions raised by Qwest attorney Greg Monson on the legality of the transaction caused the most anxiety for council members, causing them to consider delaying the vote.

In the end, after Billings and other iProvo backers took on the critics, the council voted 6-1 to move $980,000 from energy reserves to cover iProvo's red ink.

'The fear-mongers are back in Provo,' Billings said. 'I would just say to residents of Provo: Fresh courage take. This is not a situation where we need to run and surrender.'

Officials and attorneys from Qwest and a spokesman for the Utah Taxpayers Association were among several critics who spoke out against the funding move.

Mike Jerman, vice president of the business-backed taxpayers association, said there are two problems with iProvo: the competition with the private sector and the risk involved.

'Telecommunications is a risky venture,' Jerman said. 'Not just technologically risky, but financially risky. [This] is bad news, but I fear it could get worse.'

'It's bad public policy,' added Tyler Dallas, community-affairs manager for Qwest.

Provo resident John Hafen Jr. urged the council to vote against the loan, calling fiber optics obsolete in the face of the trend toward wireless technology.

'This project will continue to lose money,' Hafen said. 'And it will get worse and worse and worse each successive year.'

But city information-systems director Robert Ridge had a quick response to those who tapped the fiber-optics system as antiquated.

'Wireless has its place, for sure, but iProvo is not something you can do well with wireless technology,' Ridge said.

Nearly have a dozen city staffers worked to quell fears.

'It's a last-minute ploy to stop this project,' said city attorney Robert West. 'We don't want to do anything illegal. I assure you, we won't.'

thollingshead@sltrib.com