That is Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson's take on the disputed 13 acres Mount Olivet Cemetery wants to sell to a private east-side school.

Anderson reached that conclusion - albeit with several provisos - as part of a position statement released this week.

The conditions: The city must be unable to buy the land itself, and Rowland Hall-St. Mark's must agree to preserve as much open space as possible.

"If the city is unable to appropriate funds [to buy the property], the land should be sold to Rowland Hall, provided the school works with community stakeholders and the city on legal commitments that will make this beautiful open space available for all Salt Lake City residents to enjoy in perpetuity," Anderson said.

The issue erupted when Rowland Hall asked that the acreage be rezoned "institutional." School officials want to use the property to expand. Cemetery officials want to sell the parcel to finance capital improvements.

Neighbors, however, have fought the plan with worries about increased traffic and dwindling open space.

The opposition spreads up to the Capitol Hill neighborhood, where homeowners worry a rezone at the cemetery would undermine Salt Lake City's fight to keep another 80 acres it designated as open space.

That land is owned by North Salt Lake, and city officials there want to see it developed.

North Salt Lake has sued to disconnect that property.

While Peter Von Sivers, chairman of the Capitol Hill Community Council, worries a nod to Rowland Hall would hurt the city's fight with North Salt Lake, the idea of "legal commitments" could save the day.

"That is probably a compromise that is workable," Von Sivers said.

Rowland Hall plans to devote a third of the property to buildings and parking for a middle and upper school. The remainder would be used for a soccer field and open space.

Anderson argues the city is getting nothing today from the land, which he calls "little more than a fenced-in weed patch."

The mayor adds that Salt Lake City would benefit from the sale.

"While this option would provide the community with less land for recreation than if the parcel were developed into a city park, it would allow for greater utilization of open space than at present," Anderson said.

Rowland Hall officials could not be reached Wednesday.

The Salt Lake City Planning Commission rejected a request to rezone the land in December.

The sale also must be approved by the federal government because the property once was part of historic Fort Douglas. A deed stipulates that property was to be used as a cemetery.