Councilman Doug Lingner has a suggestion for how Phoenix might pay for open space in the South Mountain 620: sell part of South Mountain Park.

At a meeting of the City Council's land use subcommittee last week, the District 7 councilman mentioned a proposal he'd raised in a meeting with City Manager Frank Fairbanks and Arizona Department of Transportation Director Victor Mendez.

If ADOT were to blast through part of South Mountain Park to make room for the proposed South Mountain Freeway - per the current freeway plan - then Phoenix could use the money to buy more open space in the city, Lingner said after the meeting. He suggested part of the South Mountain 620, a pristine desert expanse just north of Pecos Road in west Ahwatukee Foothills, or other land in his constituency of Laveen.

"Even if we are talking about something that the preservation folks were not supportive of . . . my office (is) looking to turn that into a positive," Lingner said.

Last month, the Phoenix Parks and Recreation Board voted unanimously against allowing the freeway to pass through South Mountain Park.

ADOT officials were quick to back away from Lingner's proposal, saying that it's up to the city how it spends compensation for its land.