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Mapleton officials say Sen. Chris Buttars repeated his infamous remark about a black baby during a meeting with them this week.
Three city officials - one was Mayor Laurel Brady who has three adopted black children - said Buttars referred at least three times to inflammatory remarks earlier this year, saying of a bill, "this baby is black . . . it's a dark and ugly thing."
The comments, they said, came during a Capitol Hill meeting Wednesday to discuss a Utah County developer's ongoing dispute with the city over a proposed Maple Mountain housing project.
That's not all Buttars said during the meeting, according to the city officials. He also expressed no regret for writing a critical letter to 4th District Judge Derek Pullan who had ruled against the Maple Mountain developer - and Buttars' friend - Wendell Gibby.
That letter prompted Senate leaders to remove Buttars as chairman of the Judicial Confirmation Committee, which makes recommendations on judge appointments.
City Administrator Robert Bradshaw said Buttars appeared to be proud of writing the missive and told the group he would send it "a hundred times over." In addition, he was looking forward to Pullan coming before the Legislature's Judicial Review Committee, said Bradshaw.
The officials said they interpreted Buttars' remarks as an attempt to underscore that they were facing a powerful opponent in the Legislature - unless the city to acceded to his developer friend's demands.
"I was so shocked; I couldn't believe what he was saying," said Brady. "We were all surprised. It ended with Senator Buttars making it clear to us that he is powerful; he could repeat the 'black baby' remark and that he was untouchable. He said, 'If they wanted to get rid of me, they would have done it in the primaries, and they didn't. I am here to stay.' ''
Buttars faces Democrat John Rendell in the November election.
Said Bradshaw of the "black baby" remark: "It was totally off the wall." His interpretation was that Buttars seemed to be saying that there was nothing Mapleton could do to stop him.
But Gibby, who was in the meeting, said he is the shocked one. He claims that Brady and other city officials are distorting facts for political gain.
"That is an absolute lie," Gibby said Thursday. He said Buttars mentioned the controversial ''black baby'' remark once, but only in the context that his re-election campaign was going well, and the controversy had blown over.
"He said it was a terrible year, that he knew what it was like to be attacked, and his constituents have seen through all that," Gibby said.
Buttars did not return phone calls seeking comment Thursday, and Senate leaders declined to comment.
Brady said the city had agreed to meet Buttars to acquaint the West Jordan lawmaker with its side of the dispute and to show him the Maple Mountain property. But she said that Buttars declined to come south.
Instead, a city delegation - Brady; her husband, former Mayor Jim Brady; Bradshaw; City Attorney Eric Johnson; Planning Director Cory Branch; and David Spatafore, the city's lobbyist - went to Capitol Hill on Wednesday. Buttars was accompanied by Gibby and Gibby's wife, Trudy.
"We understood it was an opportunity for us to present our side and state our situation," Brady said.
Instead of letting the city present its case, Brady said Buttars allowed Gibby to lay out his side of the ongoing dispute over an opening the Bonneville Shoreline Trail and building 47 houses on the bench.
Among the issues were claims that the city was not allowing Gibby to access the property or granting him extra houses as compensation for not meeting earlier development-approval deadlines.
At the end of the meeting, Brady said Buttars told the city officials to grant Gibby's request, or he would be forced to introduce legislation restricting citties' use of eminent domain. Gibby said Buttars didn't threaten the city; he only stated that eminent domain was a "monster" that needed to be tightly regulated.
Gibby vowed to resume his legal battle with the city, saying he will not negotiate with Brady's administration again.
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* ROBERT GEHRKE contributed to this story.