A. Open space lands, conservation easements or other interests in open space land placed in the open space lands inventory shall remain in the inventory in perpetuity unless: 1) they are transferred to a qualified public or nonprofit land conservation entity; or 2) a sale, conversion from undeveloped open space land to developed open space land, exchange, or other transfer of the land, conservation easement or other interest in land is approved by the mayor, subsequent to the following mandatory procedures:
1. Any proposal to sell or transfer open space land must be in writing, signed by the mayor, and must include a description of the land to be sold or transferred, the purpose of the proposed sale or transfer, the proposed purchaser of the land, the amount of the proposed purchase price, the anticipated future use of the land, any anticipated change in zoning that would be required to implement that proposed future use, and a statement by the mayor explaining why the proposed sale or transfer of the open space land is in the best interest of the City.
2. Holding a public hearing before the City Council.
3. Providing notice of the proposed sale or transfer and the public hearing through the process outlined in state code for class A public notice.
a. Any notice published, posted or mailed pursuant to this section shall state substantially as follows:
NOTICE OF PROPOSED SALE OR TRANSFER OF
PUBLICLY OWNED OPEN SPACE LAND
The Mayor of Salt Lake City is proposing to sell or transfer certain Open Space Lands owned by Salt Lake City located at [street location] for $[proposed amount of consideration] to [proposed transferee] for future use as [proposed future use].
A public hearing on this proposal will be held before the Mayor and the City Council on [date of hearing] at the Salt Lake City & County Building, 451 South State Street, room 315, Salt Lake City, Utah, at [time of hearing] p.m.
Any individual wishing to address this proposal is invited to participate and to express their views to the Mayor and the City Council at that hearing.
4. Following the public hearing, the City Council may elect to conduct an advisory vote as to the proposed sale or transfer of the open space land.
5. No sale or transfer of open space land may occur until at least six (6) months after the conclusion of the public hearing in order to provide an opportunity to explore other alternatives to the proposed sale or transfer of the open space land.
B. Any open space lands, conservation easements or other interests in open space land: 1) acquired by the City in partnership with other entities, units of government, or other parties; or 2) received by donation, bequest, devise, or dedication, may only be authorized for sale, conversion from undeveloped open space land to developed open space land, exchange or other transfer if such action is allowed for in the instrument under which the open space land, conservation easement or other interest in open space land was conveyed to, or acquired by, the City.
C. The following shall be exempt from the mandatory procedures of this section:
1. The leasing of existing buildings, infrastructure, or facilities.
2. Special events lasting (a) less than twenty-one (21) days or (b), with the approval of the mayor for a reason identified by the mayor in writing, more than twenty (20) days but less than thirty-one (31) days.
3. The leasing of recreation areas in accordance with their intended use.
4. The selling of burial rights in the Salt Lake City Cemetery.
5. The granting of easements or other rights that service the property, including grants in connection with safety equipment such as traffic signal poles, which must be primarily for the benefit of the City, and the granting of easements or other use rights to public utility providers for public utility purposes. Any such easement or use right must not interfere with the intended use or character of the property as determined by the City. With respect to open space land under this chapter, such easement or use right may be granted only with the approval of the director of the City's public lands department or their designee in their sole discretion.
6. A land exchange for a de minimis parcel of open space land owned by the City for another de minimis parcel of open space land where the intended use or character of the parcels is substantially similar to each other, provided that such exchange may be made only with the approval of the director of the City's public lands department or their designee in their sole discretion. For purposes of this section, a de minimis parcel is one consisting of not more than ¼ of an acre. (Ord. 70-23, 2023: Ord. 12-22, 2022: Ord. 52-15, 2015)