By ANGIE BERGSTROM & PAUL HATCH
A small group of west Provo residents suing the city said their lawsuit has to do with more than just the construction of another Smith’s grocery store in their area.
Anita Reid, a Provo resident and one of the members filing the lawsuit, said it is not about Smith’s but about the council following the Provo city general plan.
“Smith’s is the catalyst that brought (the lawsuit) to head, but I think the city was undermining their own process of due cause according to the general plan that’s been implemented last year,” she said.
The general plan of the city was designed by city council members and neighborhood representatives, Reid said.
“There were too many hours put into the general plan to have it wrote over the top of on one of the first issues that comes before the council,” Reid said.
But Reid said she does not necessarily object to the store.
“I think they should go back to the general plan and do it right and if it turns out that they approve Smith’s — fine, we’ll live with it,” Reid said.
David Rail, a city council member, said that the general plan is not a law or ordinance, but a fluid document. He said the council interpreted the document correctly.
“I feel the council followed to a large degree what was accepted,” Rail said.
The council expected the new store would cause controversy in the community, Rail said. He said the council took extended measures to make sure the addition of the store was legal. Rail also said the council worked with many different sides of the community before approving the project.
“I believe that the majority of the council feel that there was plenty of due process, that we had plenty of public input in the thing — hours and hours and hours of public input,” Rail said.
John Mulliner, another one of the lawsuit participants, said the city council rushed through their approval of the store and changed the zoning laws without consulting the people.
“I think the city council ought to follow their rules,” Mulliner said.
When the general plan for that area was made, it designated the area for a one to five-acre shopping segment, members filing the lawsuit said. The proposed Smith’s is 12 acres, including a number of new stores for the area. Some of the plaintiffs said that the council wanted the Smith’s store so much that they sped through the project quickly.
Other residents in the area are more concerned about how the store will affect their neighborhood.
“If (Smith’s) goes in, I’m selling my house and moving,” Taska Rewis, west Provo resident, said. Rewis said she has grandchildren and worries about their safety because of the increased traffic the store would bring.
Other residents in the area said the new grocery store would be a benefit to the area.
“Everyone I have talked to is in favor of it,” Provo resident Bud Allison said. “There’s some opposition, but I don’t know where it’s coming from.”
Allison said the biggest benefit of having Smith’s in the area is that most of the west side residents have never had close access to such a large grocery store before.
Mickie Ericson, also from west Provo, said the proximity of the grocery store would be a benefit to her. Ericson said she recently suffered a stroke and the new store would make shopping much easier.
“My husband does all the shopping, and I keep sending him on little errands,” Ericson said. “(The new store) would be convenient.”
Area resident Teddi Cornelius said the new Smith’s would beautify the neighborhood. Cornelius said the site for the new Smith’s has been neglected and is a dirty area. Cornelius said plans include a drive-up pharmacy and the planting of 250 trees.
The site is currently held by a small grocery store called Clark’s Market, a few houses and an old hardware store. The buildings will be torn down for the new store.
