St. George not selling old airport property

The city of St. George and a developer who had agreed to pay $43 million for the airport announced they are terminating the deal. The city will no longer sell the 274-acre property, with officials saying the deal is no longer needed to help pay for a new $160 million replacement airport. Thanks to an influx of federal funds, cutbacks in the design and the favorable bid environment created by the economic downturn, the construction costs have been much lower than earlier projections of more than $200 million.

From their end, representatives from Sandy-based Anderson Development have been wary of the $43 million price-tag, given the drop in property values since the company signed on to buy the property in June 2008.

So instead of $43 million, the city will hold on to a property that is likely worth half as much in today's economy. City representatives said they were excited about the possibilities of maintaining control of such a large plot of prime real estate so close to downtown. The Spectrum