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MINUTES
BOX ELDER COUNTY
COMMISSION
DECEMBER 07, 2004
The Board of County
Commissioners of Box Elder County, Utah met in a work session at the County
Courthouse, 01 South Main Street in Brigham City, Utah at 8:00 a.m. on DECEMBER
07, 2004. The following members
were present:
Suzanne R. Rees Chairman
Clark N. Davis Commissioner
Scott Hansen Commissioner
LuAnn Adams Recorder/Clerk
The following items
were discussed:
1. Rock Hill Land
Issues – Chairman Rees
2. School Trust Land –
Chairman Rees
3. Anderson Hill –
Chairman Rees
4. Assignment Review –
Commissioners
5. Staff Reports
6. Correspondence
7. Mobile Command Post
– Lynn Yeates
The work session
adjourned at 8:59 a.m.
The regular session
was called to order by Chairman Rees at 9:00 a.m. with the following members
present, constituting a quorum:
Suzanne
R. Rees Chairman
Clark N. Davis Commissioner
Scott Hansen Commissioner
LuAnn Adams Recorder/Clerk
Commissioner Davis
offered the prayer.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
THE MINUTES OF THE
REGULAR MEETING OF NOVEMBER 30, 2004 WERE APPROVED ON A MOTION AS WRITTEN BY COMMISSIONER HANSEN, SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER REES AND UNANIMOUSLY CARRIED.
AGENDA: ATTACHMENT
NO. 1
FOLLOW-UP BUSINESS
County Auditor
Roger Handy said Box Elder County won an award at the UCIP Meeting. The award was for most improved loss
ratio. Mr. Handy presented the
Commissioners with a plaque. Mr. Handy
also explained to the Commissioners that UCIP would have land use coverage next
year. It will cost $10,000 for $100,000
worth of coverage. They will be putting
in a land use hot line for counties to use when land use issues come up.
VACATION CARRY-OVER
– PEGGY MADSEN
Personnel Director
Peggy Madsen said County policy states, “Unused current and accrued vacation may
be carried forward to succeeding years.
However, no more than 80 hours will be carried over from one year to the
succeeding year. Ms. Madsen said this
year six days from 2004 fall in the pay period that ends January 8, 2005. The employees will have until January 8,
2005 to utilize their vacation over 80 hours.
This includes vacation earned in that pay period. Any vacation over 80 hours on January 8,
2005 will be forfeited.
MOTION: A motion was made by Commissioner Hansen to approve the vacation carry-over to
January 8, 2005. The motion was
seconded by Commissioner Davis and
unanimously carried.
CONTRACT FOR
INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS – AMY HUGIE
MOTION: A motion was made by Commissioner Hansen to accept the contract for employment
between Kenneth D. Bradshaw as Deputy County Attorney and Box Elder County for
the 2005 year. The motion was seconded
by Commissioner Davis and unanimously
carried.
LANDFILL – GINA
ALLEN
This item was cancelled.
SET PUBLIC HEARING
/REVISION OF 2004 BUDGET – ROGER HANDY
MOTION: A motion was made by Commissioner Davis to set the public hearing for the revision
of the 2004 budget for December 28 at 9:10 a.m. The motion was seconded by Commissioner
Hansen and unanimously carried.
WARRANT REGISTER –
COMMISSIONERS
The warrant
register was signed, and the following claims were approved for payment: Claims number 34854 thru 34873 in the amount
of $296,612.58. Claims number 34874 thru 34942 in the amount of $484,671.59. Claims number 34821 was voided
PERSONNEL ACTIONS –
COMMISSIONERS
CORRECTIONS: Lisa Naef, compensation change,
effective 12/02/2004
SHERIFF/ADMIN: Tia Lynn Rowley, separation,
effective 12/06/2004
ASSIGNMENT REVIEW -
COMMISSIONERS
The Commissioners reviewed assignments.
RECESS
PUBLIC
HEARING–BOTHWELL ZONING & COMMUNITY PLAN – COMMISSIONERS
(See Attachment No.
2 – Attendance List.)
Chairman Rees declared
the public hearing for the Bothwell Zoning and Community Plan open at 10:00
a.m.
County Planner
Garth Day said the purpose of the public hearing is to receive the final round
of public input for the Bothwell Community Plan that consists of zoning. Mr. Day introduced Pat Comarell who is the
planning consultant who walked the County through the process of getting to
this point.
Pat Comarell went
through the details of the plan. She
explained how the County has come to this point. She said the Bothwell Community Plan was started over one year
ago. Two meetings were held and an
advisory committee was formed of members from the Community and Planning
Commission. The Advisory Committee
recommended the plan that is being presented to the Planning Commission and
Planning Staff who also recommend the plan as presented.
Garth Day explained
the zoning map. He said the MU-40 is
land that for the most part is not very developable. The plan goes to Howell and also reflected in the plan is the area
already zoned in Thatcher.
Pat Comarell
reminded the Commissioners that in a public hearing the Commissioners could go
less restrictive than what was advertised.
Advisory Committee
Member Jim Bingham said the Committee did not adjust the southern
boundary. They decided not to change
the boundary because historically it has not been part of the community and the
landowners were not involved in the process.
Chairman Rees then
opened the public hearing up for public comment.
Doug Call said he
lives on 10800 West and has lived there for approximately 20 years. He is in support of the zoning.
Katie Bodily said
she and her husband support the five-acre zoning. She said that is one of the reasons they chose Bothwell to raise
their children in a community that was more open and more of a farming
community.
Steve Zollinger has
lived in Bothwell and he is a third generation landowner and farmer. He is for the five-acre zoning. Mr. Zollinger read the following statement: (See Attachment No. 3.)
David Harris is a
property owner. He has a problem with
the boundaries on the west side. He
said it is sagebrush and mountainside.
Mr. Harris feels it should be zoned MU-40. He does not have a problem with the five acres but would like to
see more in the MU-40.
Richard Nicholas
supports the five-acre zoning and concurs with David Harris that one mile
should have been with the MU-40. He
said in the last meeting that they met at the Tremonton City Office with the
Planning Commission, there was not one dissenting vote on the zoning from
residents of Bothwell. They were 100%
in favor. He said the thing he has
struggled with is it was made very clear in the early going that the majority
of people support the five-acre zoning.
He feels it is imperative to give respect to the public process. The public has made their wishes known. There is overwhelming support from the
community. He has had family members that have come to Tremonton and cannot believe
how beautiful it is. They told him to
do everything he can to keep it in tact and not let it be destroyed. They said
you will have many people and that will change the complexion of the
community. Mr. Nicholas said the
Community is not in it for money, it is the beautiful pristine area. He said they cannot accommodate everyone
that wants to come and live in Bothwell or we will lose the very thing that
people want to come for. He said zoning
is the only way to keep it from being overrun.
He said it is a Pandora’s box, and once it is opened, it will never be
shut again.
Courtney Zollinger
said they have chosen farming as a lifestyle.
She said it is not about more, it is about the lifestyle. She said smaller zones would change the
lifestyle. She feels it is better for
their children.
Shane Newman is for
the five-acre zoning. He asked the
Commissioners if they realize the impact it has on the Community.
Gary Feldman said
about three years ago he moved to Bothwell.
They chose Bothwell for the lifestyle.
He said at the time they found out there was land available, there were
two lots. These two lots were on the
market for one day. He said we would
still get growth with the five-acre lots.
There are one-half dozen homes going in every year and that amount does
not affect the community. The roads are
not big enough for an influx of people.
He supports the five-acre zoning.
Layne Summers was
born and raised in Bothwell. He
supports the five-acre zoning.
Steve Holdaway owns
quite a bit of land on the east side of Bothwell. He supports the five-acre zoning. He is concerned that it will be split up and everyone will have
different rules.
Douglas Newman is
for the five-acre zoning.
Arlene Thurgood has
owned land in Bothwell since 1999. She
said the reason they relocated to Bothwell was for more open space. She came from Syracuse, and Bothwell is at
the point Syracuse was 10 years ago.
She hopes they can maintain the five-acre lots in Bothwell. She presented a letter from her husband that
she wanted inserted into the minutes. (See
Attachment No. 4.)
Chet Nelson and Tracy
Nelson – Tracy Nelson said she brought her son so he could see what would
happen to a place that he loves very much.
Chet farms with his grandpa everyday.
He has friends that come out to their home to be in an area that is
open. They have fun on snowmobiles,
hunts and four-wheelers. The change
could impact the young kids and something that they hold dear to them from
grandpa to grandson to possibly their own children. The Community is standing up for preserving the five acres.
James Bingham said
he was part of the advisory committee, and he would like to make a couple of
points. He said this initiative is not anti-growth. The Committee looked at Bothwell. There have been about 43 homes built. He said one of the advantages of the five acres is that you don’t
have adverse impacts or concentrated impacts.
He said at the time when the upper part was ignored, there were no
services. The Committee never
considered that would be an area to attract residential zoning. He said this plan differs from some of the
other plans that have been presented.
Mr. Bingham said some of the other plans treat people differently. There is a strong view in the Community that
it should be uniformly fair; that all people have to abide by the same
rule. He and his brother own about 500
acres. They have 5 ½ miles of
frontage. He said if they sell off
their frontage they could make some money.
He said there is strong support in the Community for the Commissioners
to support the plan.
Lynn Rindlisbacher
is a landowner, and he is against the five-acre zoning. He said it is fine for where almost every
resident lives in the traditional area of Bothwell and feels it is a good idea
to keep the five-acre zoning on the north end.
He said there are 2-3 other landowners that are concerned about the
five-acre lots. He feels it is good
planning to have a diverse mix of residential and commercial. His land has a lot of sand, and it is a dry
farm. He is requesting that 160 acres
of his land be one-acre lots. He said
look at the West Corinne Plan, and they are all farmers. Mr. Rindlisbacher presented a pie chart (See
Attachment No. 5.). He is asking
that 1 ½ % of the land be zoned one-acre lots.
He said the total acreage is 10,560 and they are asking to zone 160
acres as one-acre lots.
Brenda Sagers asked
how many horses they would be putting on one-acre lots.
Allen Harris said
he is representing the Harris Family.
The Harris Family was born and raised in Bothwell. They own property on the north end and on
the west side and also the south. He
said even though he does not live in Bothwell, he owns property and is still
very much in favor of five-acre lots.
He was always taught and brought up that the Bothwell borders include
the whole valley. He said it went from
mountain to mountain on the east and then went down to the main road to
Tremonton.
Kim Rindlisbacher
owns 160 acres in Bothwell. He is
against the five-acre zoning. He is in support of it in certain areas for those
that desire. He does not desire it on
his property. He said high density does
not increase property taxes. He said
you have to take your land out of greenbelt.
He has property in Salt Lake City that gets taxed on greenbelt. He said the purpose of zoning laws is to
help establish a zoning plan and to protect property values. He said the one-acre lots on his property
are not going to damage property values in any way. The only property values that will be damaged are his. He bought the property when there was no
zoning. He did not realize how far the
water line was to upgrade the system.
He was doing three to four lots, and when the County Planner asked him
to present a conceptual plat that is when things blew up. The intent was not developing over
night. He said the other issue he had
was the need for an upgraded water line.
That cannot be done on one or two lots. He said they feel like this is
all one sided and has gone the direction the community has wanted. He said they are part of the community, and
are property owners. He feels there
should be a mix in the area. He
supports the five-acre zoning in certain areas. He appreciates the Commissioners consideration on his property
going to a little higher density.
Randy Marble,
President of Chanshare Inc., is against the five-acre zoning. He submitted letters from Bear River Water
Conservancy District, Chanshare Farms, Keith and Cloe Anderson, Gregory Marble,
and a genealogy of the community. (See Attachment No. 6.) LaDell Harris would like the record to show
that he would like to remain with five–acre zoning. Mr. Marble thanked the Commissioners for the work they did at
Marble Hill Estates. The benefit allows
for future development. He believes
that if we are going to zone the area RR-5, it should be administered across
the board fairly. He said there are
numerous violations like mobile homes on lots and the nuisance ordinance
violated with cars and trash. He said
it should be administered across the board also. He said the difficulty of improving the infrastructure is
substantial. He said RR-1 allows for
improvement of the infrastructure.
Randy Marble said he currently lives in Marble Hill Estates. He wants to see a community where
infrastructure and roads are improved and that we welcome people to the
community. He said his grandfather and
many other people used horses and wagons to build roads that are currently in
place. He is afraid the vision of the
forefathers has been lost. He stands
for the right to farm; however, the highest and best use of the land above
12800 w est is not five acres. He said
he is in the minority but asked the Commissioners to look with vision to the
future.
Jill Christensen said she served on the Planning Committee. She said everything that Mr. Marble went over has already been gone over with the Planning Committee, and the vote was 5-3 in favor of the RR-5. The majority of the committee members are in favor of the RR-5 and contrary to the growth issue, 43 homes have been built in Bothwell since the original RR-5. She said in regards to nobody coming to Bothwell, there was a home in Bothwell on eight acres. The property sold in two weeks and the asking price was $294,000. She said there are people interested in the Bothwell area. They are interested in the five acres. She said we are not asking anyone to be limited in development. Five acres just fits the majority of what the people want and the lots are selling.
Lee Summers said he
is a fourth generation farmer, and they have farmed on both sides of his
family. Mr. Summers is a large landowner in Bothwell. He said as a family they would like to extend thanks to the
Committee. He went to every
meeting. His wife was on the committee. He said everyone that was invited was
welcomed to come to the Committee. He
said this is an opportunity for the Commission to hold together something that
has been put together by people to keep a rural lifestyle. It is not against
growth. It is a rural lifestyle that
they have a love for. Five acres is not
too many to build on. Bothwell does not
want to be a bedroom community for someone else. He said we are a farming community that they love and want to
hold on to. He begged the Commissioners
to please leave Bothwell as a rural community.
He said we welcome everyone that wants to come, and are not against growth. One acre does not make you appreciate one
bit of agriculture.
LaMont Nelson is in
support of five-acre lots.
Don Anderson lives
in Bothwell. He had to comply with the
five acres. He wants open space. He said you can look across the nation and
people are crying for open space. He
said the people that are against the five-acre zoning are people not living in
the community, and it will not affect their lives.
Roger Newman was
born and raised in Bothwell and raises a family in Bothwell. He said when he was a kid, they had a
hunting unit posted. The boundaries
went from the west mountain to the east mountain to the north mountain. That was the Bothwell Hunting Unit. He is for the five-acre zoning.
Pat Comarell
mentioned that an existing mobile home on less than a five-acre lot is a
nonconforming use that is allowed.
Garth Day stated
the County’s guidelines on animals are:
two large animals per half acre, four medium or 8-10 small animals.
MOTION: A motion was made by Commissioner Davis to close the public hearing. Commissioner
Hansen seconded the motion, and the public hearing closed at 11:12 a.m.
Commissioner Davis
said this has been a long drawn-out process.
Commissioner Davis feels the Community wanted the County to hear their
input. They have faithfully been in
attendance at the public meetings. If
he were a planner and planning land for Bothwell, he would not have come back
with the same recommendation as the committee has come back with. He took part in the West Corinne process,
and in the process they came back with a much different solution, a variety of
zones. He respects private property rights, and when the developer bought
property, there was no zoning in place.
He worries about the fact that they purchased the property under one set
of circumstances and they now need to abide by another set of
circumstances. As a Commissioner he
feels he has the responsibility to listen to the representatives from the
Community and the consensus of the community which is the five-acre zoning. To adopt anything other than the five-acres
is not being true to the process. The
process was one that the County asked for the Community’s input. He knows it was not unanimous. There was a 5-3 vote which is not a
unanimous decision. When the floodgates
were opened in Tremonton the feelings of the Community were poured out and it
is exhibited here today, and even though it is not a planner’s dream
development we have to pay tribute to the process. Commissioner Davis said we have to recognize the planning
commission and the community committee that have been involved with this for
over a year. He said this would not be
the final story that will be told in Bothwell.
There will be additional amendments. He would like to respect the input
and the process itself. He individually
maybe would not have designed or voted differently, but feels he should be
supportive of the committee, the planning commission and the Community’s input.
Commissioner Hansen
has to applaud the Community for coming together as much as they have. The County is not in the development
business. They do not have all the
right answers, but the best thing the Commissioners can do is what the will of the
people want. He said the people started
out really fractured, and now they have come together. He agrees with Commissioner Davis that this
is not the last time this will be heard.
It will change over time. Water,
sewer, EPA changes and he is not convinced that the flooding has been
changed. He does not know how it will
play out, but for today the best position is the will of the people.
Commissioner Davis
said members that would represent both sides were selected for the planning
committee. He heard a lot of opposing
views today, but the consensus of the community is for the proposal that was
presented by the community planning committee and endorsed by the planning
commission.
MOTION: Commissioner
Davis made a motion to approve the recommendation of the planning
commission and of the community planning committee and adopt ordinance No. 278,
an ordinance amending the Box Elder County General Plan by adopting the
Bothwell Community Plan, effective December 07, 2004. The motion was seconded by Commissioner
Hansen and unanimously carried.
(See Attachment No.
7 – Ordinance No. 278.)
Chairman Rees said
it is interesting when you see a community pull together as strong as you have
and the concerns of those that purchased land, but as a Commissioner she
represents you and the desire to reflect you.
The Commissioners took a recess at 11:48 a.m. and reconvened at 12:44 p.m.
IMPLAN STUDY – JOHN
KEITH/USU STUDENTS
John Keith, Dr. Ruby Ward and students from the IMPLAN master’s class came before the Commissioners to talk about what the IMPLAN does with the information they receive. They have software designed for input/output analysis. It estimates inter-industry purchases and sales in region, measures impacts between industries, give estimates of multipliers, taxes, employment labor income and output. This information is helpful in picturing what may happen as a community grows. They explained the project mass and project highlights.
PUBLIC HEARING –
2005 GENERAL OPERATING BUDGET – COMMISSIONERS
(Attachment No. 8 –
Attendance List)
Commissioner Rees declared the 2005 General Operating Budget public hearing open at 11:00 a.m.
County Auditor
Roger Handy presented the elected officials proposed compensation. In lieu of
step increases the County elected officials receive a one percent compensation
in addition to their 1.85% cost of living.
(See Attachment No.
9 – Elected Officials Proposed Compensation.)
Chairman Rees asked
for comments from the public. There
were no comments.
MOTION: A motion was made by Commissioner Davis to close the public hearing. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Hansen and the public hearing
was closed at 11:30 a.m.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
MOTION: At
12:53 p.m. a motion was made by Commissioner
Davis to move into an executive session to discuss the character,
professional competence or physical or mental health of an individual. Commissioner
Hansen seconded the motion and the motion was unanimously carried.
MOTION: At 3:45 p.m. a motion was made by Commissioner Hansen to reconvene into regular
Commission Meeting. Commissioner Davis seconded the motion, and
regular Commission Meeting was reconvened.
Chairman Rees
explained that the character, professional competence or physical or mental
health of an individual was discussed.
ADJOURNMENT
A motion was made
by Commissioner Hansen to adjourn. Commissioner
Davis seconded the motion, and the meeting adjourned at 3:46 p.m.
ADOPTED AND
APPROVED
in regular session this14 day of
December 2004.
_______________________________
Suzanne R. Rees,
Chairman
_______________________________
Clark N. Davis,
Commissioner
_______________________________
Scott Hansen,
Commissioner
ATTEST:
__________________________
LuAnn Adams,
Recorder/Clerk