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MINUTES
BOX ELDER COUNTY
COMMISSION
MARCH 01, 2005
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 MARCH
01, 2005. The following members
were present:
Scott Hansen Chairman
Clark N. Davis Commissioner
Suzanne R. Rees Commissioner
LuAnn Adams Recorder/Clerk/Surveyor
The following items
were discussed:
1. Park Valley Road
Shed – John Collom
2. Insurance
Allocation – Lynn Yeates/Roger Handy
3. Work Session
Minutes – Roger Handy
4. Job Interviews –
Peggy Madsen
5. Assignment Review –
Commissioners
6. Staff Reports
7. Correspondence
8. Landfill
9. Scenic Development
– Garth Day
The work session
adjourned at 8:59 a.m.
The regular session
was called to order by Chairman Hansen at 9:00 a.m. with the following members
present, constituting a quorum:
Scott
Hansen Chairman
Clark N. Davis Commissioner
Suzanne R. Rees Commissioner
LuAnn Adams Recorder/Clerk/Surveyor
The prayer was
offered by Commissioner Davis.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
THE MINUTES OF THE
REGULAR MEETING OF FEBRUARY 22, 2005 WERE APPROVED ON A MOTION BY COMMISSIONER DAVIS, SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER HANSEN WITH COMMISIONER REES ABSTAINING FROM THE VOTE
WITH THE FOLLOWING CHANGE: THE COMMISSIONERS
TOOK “A” RECESS NOT “AT” RECESS.
AGENDA: ATTACHMENT
NO. 1
FOLLOW-UP BUSINESS
Work Session
Minutes
Commissioner Davis
said Mark Brady, Utah Association of Counties Insurance Pool, suggested that
the County review its policy regarding work session minutes. The state code requires that either minutes
be taken or a tape be kept. The County
is adopting a policy this day that was discussed in work session that we will
keep the tape, and will have abbreviated minutes that highlight the topics discussed
in the work session. Commissioner Davis
said often times the work session goes on for hours and hours and to have a
word for word transcript is fairly meaningless. He said our County Recorder/Clerk LuAnn Adams does an excellent
job of documenting that.
Park Valley Road
Shed – John Collom
Commissioner Davis
said the County received a final insurance proposal as far as
reimbursement. He said this morning in
our work session we discussed the reimbursement allocation and the rebuilding
process.
MOTION: A motion was made by Commissioner Davis to adopt the department allocation suggested
by County Auditor Roger Handy that $120,056 be allocated to emergency services
and $401,989 be allocated to our roads and highway department to be used at
their discretion in replacing lost equipment and the building, and that an MBA
Meeting be scheduled for March 8 to review the process of rebuilding and
selecting a contractor for that purpose.
The motion was seconded by Commissioner
Rees and unanimously carried.
(See Attachment No. 2 –
Reimbursement Allocation.)
John Collom, Road Supervisor, stated that he sent out three bids and received two in return for seven-foot and eight-foot grader blades. He then opened the following bids:
Company Name |
Bid Amount |
Wheeler Machinery, SLC |
$13,738.50 |
Interwest Supply, SLC |
$17,450.50 |
MOTION: A motion was made by Commissioner Rees to allow Road Supervisor John Collom, to
review the bids and make sure the low bid meets the specifications and to award
the low bid to Wheeler Machinery upon John Collom’s recommendations. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Davis and unanimously carried.
Commissioner Davis stated that we may want to review the County’s policy on bidding items out.
RE-APPOINTING WILLIAM MYERS TO DEPUTY SHERIFF MERIT COMMISSION – PEGGY MADSEN
Personnel Director
Peggy Madsen said we have a Deputy Sheriff’s Merit Commission consisting of
three members. Each member serves for a
term of six years. William Myers’ term
expired as of February 1, and she recommends re-appointing him. Ms. Madsen said Mr. Myers is a retired
highway patrolman.
Sheriff Jensen said
the other two members of the Commission are Larry Howell, Portage; and Rees
Quayle, Perry.
MOTION: A motion was made by Commissioner Rees to reappoint William Myers to the Deputy
Sheriff’s Merit Commission for the term ending 02/06/11. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Davis and unanimously carried.
MOTION: A motion was made by Commissioner Rees to table this item until March 22. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Davis and unanimously carried.
Commissioner Davis
pointed out that Commission Meeting will be cancelled on March 15 and the Commission
by the County’s own ordinance must respond to the Planning Commission’s
recommendation within 45 days.
Commissioner Davis said that by tabling the issue and continuing the
discussion on March 22 we will keep the County in compliance with that 45-day
requirement.
RECESS
The Commissioners took a recess at 9:27 a.m. and reconvened at 9:43 a.m.
DIVISION OF
WILDLIFE RESOURCES PILT CHECK – ROBERT HASENYAGER
Robert Hasenyager, Northern Regional Supervisor for the Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife Resources, presented the Commission with this year’s PILT check in the amount of $11,049.89. He said when the Division of Wildlife Resources acquires property for wildlife from private ownership by contractual arrangement they reimburse the county .50 cents an acre. The Division of Wildlife Resources owns about 22,000 acres in Box Elder County. Mr. Hasenyager said he is pleased to present the Commission with the in-lieu of tax check. The money used to pay the in-lieu of tax is provided by sportsmen.
Mr. Hasenyager said
the deer population got hit pretty hard this year in Northern Cache
County. Box Elder County is in pretty
good shape but not where we need to be.
The Division of Wildlife will continue to work on habitat projects to
increase the caring capacity and need additional work to get closer to our
target. They have inter-cooperative
projects. They want to help the landowners improve wildlife on their property,
and there is money for improvements. The Division of Wildlife has partnered
with the Selmans to increase the wildlife habitat.
Mr. Hasenyager
appreciates the Commission’s support as a partner in managing Utah’s
wildlife. He applauded Box Elder County
for looking at property and the use of OHV’s along with proper use and
education. He applauds the County for
what they did seven years ago on the initial plan. He said there is a lot of pressure on the wildlife with the
recreational use, and one of the most critical times is the winter range and
getting through the winter in good enough condition.
MORMON CRICKETS –
KELLY WARR
Kelly Warr said he is a resident of Grouse Creek and has been appointed to head a committee to try and get a Mormon Cricket Plan together. Grouse Creek has had problems the past two years. He said the biggest thing stopping their plan is lack of funding. He said the State of Utah is willing to work in part to pay half the cost of spraying and baiting the Mormon Crickets and APHIS is also involved. One-Third will need to come from the private landowners. Mr. Warr is hoping to get some help from the County. He said Millard County declared their County a disaster area. He said the affected area in Grouse Creek Valley is approximately 20 miles long and 10 miles wide. They would like to do a buffer zone of approximately three miles wide on each side of the valley. He said there is early hatching of crickets and a later hatch on the higher elevations. They want to do strip spraying.
Commissioner Rees has met with Leonard Blackham, Commissioner of Agriculture, and addressed this issue. Grouse Creek is one of the state’s hot spots. They are watching March to see whether we have rain or not. Under six inches of snow the crickets are still hatching. The only thing that can deter the crickets is the moisture in March. She said the state is willing to help 50/50 on cropland and one-third on rangeland with APHIS helping one-third and the property owner one-third. The state will be sending people to Grouse Creek to look for early hatching. Commissioner Rees said it is not uncommon for the crickets to move, and they will double or triple every year. Commissioner Rees is looking into Mosquito Abatement to help. She said this problem is not going away. It will get bigger and bigger, and the County needs to look into it and see if there are any answers and ways that we can help before it becomes a health problem. Commissioner Rees said we need to be working with our Extension Agent Mike Pace.
ROAD BETWEEN GROUSE
CREEK & LYNN – BLAINE TANNER
Blaine Tanner expressed his concerns about the road from the top of Grouse Creek Mountain to the Grouse Creek School. It is a three-mile section of road that needs to be widened so there is some place for snow to go. There has been one death on the road. He said in the summer time the road is a single lane road, and in the wintertime you better find a place to go if you see someone coming a mile away.
Heath Higley, operations manager for Raft River Electric Company, said they have power lines that go into the area and must have access. Last year they had to take a CAT to get access to them. They also have a radio communication on top of the mountain and need to access service. This radio feeds Wendover, Nevada; and speed is the key to restoring service.
Blaine Tanner is appreciative of the County and their efforts put forth to help Grouse Creek, but there is a stretch of three miles that has had no work done on it, and it is a critical piece of the road.
Mr. Tanner said he is aware that the County is on a three-year rotation, but feels this needs to be looked at before the three-year period. He said with the rock trucks and traffic, it is critical. They need access from one range to another. It is 35 miles on this road and 135 miles on the other road. Truck traffic is approximately 10-12 trucks a day, both semi and trucks hauling from the quarry. He said if a semi gets over the top of the mountain, it takes off 100 miles. Mr. Tanner appreciates the efforts to keep the snow off the base of the road. He said it is in good shape. He once again asked the Commissioners to look into putting the road on their priority list and to not wait two more years. He said it is an economical value to both the power company and the ranchers. In order to keep the three miles open, there needs to be basic improvements to the road.
ROCKY DUGWAY &
DEVIL’S GATE ROAD PROPOSED CLOSURES – MAYOR ROBERT ASH, MAYOR ED SKROBISZEWSKI,
MAYOR LOUANN CHRISTENSEN
Mayor LouAnn
Christensen said she appreciates addressing the Commission. She is here today fighting for the public’s
right to access the Rocky Dugway and Devil’s Gate Roads and to voice opposition
to vacation of the Rocky Dugway and Devil’s Gate Roads. She said last week there were meetings held
throughout Box Elder County. Special
meetings were held with cities to pass opposition resolutions. The cities that passed the resolution
include: Brigham City, Bear River,
Corinne, Fielding, Garland, Mantua, Perry, Tremonton and Willard. She said they have received letters of
support from Elwood, Plymouth and Deweyville.
There were two cities that were not able to gather a quorum: Portage and Honeyville. She said as you can see out of the entire
population of Box Elder County we have 77% that were in favor of this resolution. She gave the Commissioners a handout that
showed if you take out the unincorporated county, which is roughly 8,000
people, there are 95% of elected representatives that support the opposition of
vacation of those roads. 95% of the
cities and towns support the resolution.
(See Attachment No. 3 – Handout by Mayor
Christensen.)
Mayor Christensen
said the benefits to the County are:
Access to public property, (Brigham City actually owns part of that
property) access for recreation, public safety/emergency response/fire
suppression; transportation routes and economic development/quality of
life. Mayor Christensen then addressed
the economic development/quality of life issue. She said the Devil’s Gate and Rocky Dugway Roads are the links
that are needed to access the Shoshone Trail.
It can be compared to the Paiute Trail System that was established in
1990. It is a 236-mile network through
four counties, has an additional 587 miles of side trails making up loops and
accessing 16 communities. Trail users
stay in motels, buy gas and groceries, repair vehicles and eat in
restaurants. In 2003 it was a $3.4
million benefit to the local economy.
It is estimated that for each dollar that is spent that dollar rolls
over 4.5 times which is a total economic impact of $15 million a year for the
entities adjacent to the Paiute Trail System. She said Economic Development is
Brigham City’s number one priority, and this is a big part of why Brigham City
is concerned about this trail system.
(See Attachment No.
4 – Resolutions from Municipalities and facts about Paiute Trail.)
Mantua Mayor Robert
Ash said Mantua is the hub for what takes place. He said as far as recreation goes, it has become an
understatement. Mayor Ash said Mantua
has people that are either coming to the reservoir to enjoy it, water ski or
fish. He said they have ATV users,
snowmobilers, hikers and horsemen. He
said you name it, and they come to Mantua, and Mantua feels that these people
need to have their access to the public grounds maintained so that they can
have a chance to recreate. They work
hard and on their days off, they need a place to go. Not only do they need a place to go to, but they need a place
where they can have safe recreational opportunities. They feel as a city council in
Mantua that both of
the roads should be left open and maintained for a public access to public
property. The original intent of the
roads was to gather resources for the communities built in Brigham City and
Mantua and many of the descendants of those people who built those roads and
labored to open those areas up and gathered those materials to help build those
communities are people who are in this room now and are residents of both
Brigham City, Mantua and the surrounding areas. He thanked the Commission for the opportunity to voice their
opinion about this matter.
Perry City Mayor Ed
Skrobiszewski thanked Mayor Christensen for being the lightning rod and thanked
all the Mayors in the County that supported this issue. He said the Mayors had a week to do this,
and they responded very well. He said
Perry City Council and himself are against closing Rocky Dugway and Devil’s
Gate Roads that these roads need to be kept open for economic and recreational
development and improvement for the County.
He said there is a lot of money riding on this and in theory one of the
things they are doing to enhance the County’s recreation and get people off the
highway is trying to develop the Pointe Perry Area as a destination area. If these roads are closed and these
recreational possibilities are eliminated, why should they even go through that
effort to try and get part of the 55,000 cars a day off the Interstate? He thinks that Pointe Perry will be a real
boon to the County, but we also need to have the recreational areas for these
people, and that would enhance the economic growth and development in Box Elder
County. He doesn’t think it is
emotional with them; it is a fact of life and the Commissioners have to look at
10-15 years ahead instead of looking at the short-term solutions. He thinks all the other vandalism problems
and things can be handled with the proper enforcement, why couldn’t something
be done on the Class “D” Roads like sending a bulldozer or a grader up there
and fixing the roads up periodically?
He firmly believes that closing them is the wrong way for the County to
go.
Bruce Leonard, Director of Public Works for Brigham City Corporation, said County roads are not private property. They can be established by a variety of instruments: one instrument is the Utah Code 72-5-104, “A highway is dedicated and abandoned to the use of the public when it has been continuously used as a public thoroughfare for a period of ten years.” They can also be established by purchasing rights-of-way and through express dedication from the property owner through the liquidation of ownership plats or dedicating them to the public. He said they feel like a lot of County roads were established during the settlement period and that deeds are on record that reference these roads.
County Roads
through Private Property – He said the presence of County roads does not
diminish property owners’ legitimate rights or legitimize abuse or trespassing
on adjacent private lands. He showed a
picture of the Rocky Dugway Road looking from the Dugway down through Mantua
Valley through Box Elder Canyon out into the Brigham City Valley. It is recognized by existing deeds,
recognized by the East Access Management Plan and it is a popular recreation
route for a lot of people. It provides access to Avon Road and access to Forest
Service Property.
Issues were raised
regarding noxious weeds. The claim was
ATV’s and other public uses spread noxious weeds. The response was pulled off the Internet, “Many activities, including
road building, timber harvest, and agricultural practices contribute to the
invasion of noxious weeds in the Watershed…These weeds are spread by animal
hooves, fur and other dispersal methods.
Birds and other animals may also spread non-native plants by ingestion,
or by seed temporarily adhering to their bodies.” The key to noxious weed control is good management, not
exclusion!
Rocky Dugway Road
Claim was that the public access hinders watershed protection. Mr. Leonard said source protection zones do
not exclude public use. Brigham City
source protection zones cover the majority of the Mantua area including many
areas used for recreation. Highway 89
goes through some of Brigham City’s source protection zones. The road going to Willard Basin goes through
Brigham City’s source protection zone.
The road going through Devil’s Gate and back around off the Dugway does
go through Brigham City’s source protection zones. The key to watershed protection is good management, not
exclusion!
Issues were raised
regarding the Rocky Dugway Road that public access damages Sharp-Tailed Grouse
habitat. The response was taken from a
report prepared for Utah State University students. The name of the report was, Use of GIS and Remote Sensing to
Map Potential Columbian Sharp-Tailed Grouse Habitat in Southeastern Idaho. “Numerous factors have been identified in
the decline of the Sharp-Tailed Grouse populations. Conversion of native rangelands to croplands, excessive grazing
by livestock, herbicide treatments, removal of trees in riparian zones,
invasion of conifers, and urban development have been identified as
factors.
Another issue
raised regarding Rocky Dugway Road was that the public access hinders
Sagebrush-Steppe restoration efforts.
The response was taken from the Utah Division of Wildlife
Resources. “Conversion of sagebrush to
agricultural cropland, herbicide treatments, overgrazing by livestock and big
game, and fire suppression have significantly altered the distribution of
sagebrush communities and habitat conditions statewide.” There was a claim that the public access
hinders Sagebrush-Steppe restoration efforts.
The response is that the Sagebrush-Steppe restoration project does not
call for exclusion of the public. The
key to Sagebrush-Steppe habitat restoration is good management, not exclusion!
Some of the other
issues raised: ATV’s damage private and
public land. The forest service has
been working with Brigham City in reclaiming this area. They installed a buck rail fence, and they
closed off the access roads. That is
one coordinating effort that Brigham City is taking with the Forest Service to
prevent abuse and damage. Mr. Leonard
said there is no question that some ATV riders trespass on private land and
damage resources. He said they neither
deny nor condone this behavior. The Paiute Trail in Central Utah is the model
for management of ATV use, and has led to reduced damage of public and private
lands. According to Sheriff Phil Barney
from Sevier County, there have been no problems with enforcement since
establishment of the Paiute Trail.
Closure of the road will
exclude law-abiding
riders, not those who ignore the law and damage land. This will increase damage to public and
private land and increase enforcement costs.
According to Sheriff Jensen, search and rescue funding that can be used
for ATV enforcement is available through a $.50 fee paid with annual
registration. Currently, $300,000 is
available for this use. The key to
reducing ATV damage to public and private land is good management and
enforcement, not exclusion!
Mr. Leonard showed
a picture of Devil’s Gate Road taken from the Cache County side going back
towards the Box Elder County Line. He
said Brigham City Corporation is a public landowner in the Devil’s Gate Valley
and opposes vacation of the Devil’s Gate Road.
Mr. Leonard showed a slide of the Chatfield Basin. Brigham City has a reservoir that was
constructed in the Devil’s Gate Valley and owns approximately 207.1 acres in
that vicinity.
Brigham City received
a letter signed by Merrill Bateman on February 24 from the LDS church. Mr. Leonard read the letter. (See
Attachment No. 5 – letter from LDS Church.) The letter was paraphrased,
“The Church does share many of the concerns expressed by other land owners…but
recognizes the merit in providing for public recreation and access to public
lands. …The Church encourages all
parties to work towards reasonable solutions, and the official position of the
Church on this matter is neutral.”
There was a claim regarding
the Devil’s Gate Road that it is not a public road. The response is a cover sheet submitted to the County Commission
on February 7, 2005 that acknowledges the Class “D” Road in Devil’s Gate
Valley, and requests vacation. A letter
from Smith family members to the County Commission dated December 14, 2002
acknowledges the Class “D” Road and requests vacation. Mr. Leonard said numerous historic maps show
County roads in Devil’s Gate Area. The
dedication was by use established after 10 years of use. The East Access Management Plan eliminated
numerous roads as a trade-off for the Devil’s Gate Road remaining. Mr. Leonard showed an 1884 Precinct Map
located on the wall of the County Courthouse, bottom floor, which shows both
the Rocky Dugway and Devil’s Gate Roads.
He showed a 1955 USGS Map, and the west half of the map is a1991 map
showing the Rocky Dugway and Devil’s Gate Roads. A 1969 Forest Service map also shows both Rocky Dugway and
Devil’s Gate Roads. He then showed the
East Access Management Plan adopted by Ordinance #248 in May 2004 that shows
the Devil’s Gate and Rocky Dugway Roads in the connecting loop. It shows the travel designations and also
goes through the Open Areas, the R1 Areas, R2 Areas, Seasonal Areas and the
Closed Areas.
In summary Mr.
Leonard said: Closure of roads is
counterproductive to reduction of damage. Landowners’ concerns can be addressed
through cooperation and enforcement.
The public’s right to use historically public rights-of-way will be
eliminated by closure of the Rocky Dugway and Devil’s Gate Roads. Economic benefits of connection to the
Shoshone Trail will be lost to Box Elder County if the Rocky Dugway and Devil’s
Gate Roads are vacated and closed. He
said the overwhelming majority of elected representatives of Box Elder County
residents oppose the vacation and closure of the Rocky Dugway and Devil’s Gate
Roads.
Brigham City
Attorney Stephen Hadfield said there are two ways you can get a public
road. The first way is the more common
way by a subdivision plat or a dedication directly to the government or a deed
from a private property owner. The
other way is dedication by use. He said
what we look at there is how the road was used, who has used the road, and if
it has become well established. There
are several roads within our County that were established that way because the
first people started to use them and they continued to use them that way and
they became dedicated by use. With
respect to the Devil’s Gate and Rocky Dugway Roads, we are looking at
dedication by use because there has not ever been an express dedication for the
most part on any of these roads. Utah
Code 72-2-104 is the one that applies.
It says, “A highway is dedicated and abandoned to the use of the public
when it has been continuously used as a public thoroughfare for a period of ten
years. There are three elements that
have to be met: (1) continuous use (2)
by the public (3) for a period of 10 years.
He said there are some interesting things that have come out of that as
the statute has been interpreted and used.
He said continuous use has been defined to mean uninterrupted use. The use occurred when people want to use the
roadway whenever they choose, so if there are no restrictions on when they use
it, they just go use it whenever. By the public - it needs to be used for whatever purposes they deem convenient
and necessary and whenever they deem convenient and necessary. Use by adjacent landowners for use by
permission does not constitute use by the public. If you had a roadway that was
just being accessed by those in the area, it would not be public use; and you
would not fall under the provisions of this statute.
Some of the case
law that has come out says, “The consent of the private landowner is not
necessary”. He said it used to be that
they would look at the private landowner to try to decide whether he intended
that road to be made public. That is no
longer the case. The Supreme Court has
abandoned that position. The position
now is that the landowner’s consent is not necessary. The sole focus is on how the roadway was used. Another interesting thing, generally a
simple no-trespassing sign is probably not enough to prevent establishment of
the public roadway. Generally speaking
a no-trespassing sign has not been enough to stop use of a road. On the other hand, there has been a recent
case that says a locked gate over a roadway is enough. Somewhere on that scale is what they are
going to look at. We know that a locked
gate will be sufficient to prevent the use to the public. He said it is important to remember that if
there is a higher standard of proof when you are trying to do dedication by
use, they do recognize the right to the landowners. The burden falls upon the public to establish the public use, not
upon the landowner to say that it is not public. What evidence does the court consider when looking at these
things? There are basically two sources:
(1) historical maps - a
distinction, the map itself does not create the roadway. The map is just evidence of how the roadway
is being used. There has been some concern that a map shows roads and that has
created the roadway. It doesn’t create
the roadway. It is the use. If you look at the maps and how far back
they go, it gives you some evidence of how the roads have been used. (2) Those
that use the roadway. They take their
testimony. Things they will look at are
how and when the roadway was used. Who
the individuals are that are using the roadway—Are they adjacent landowners or
are they
just general
public? What is the reason they are
there? When you get into the cases that
have interpreted this, you get a lot of testimony from old timers and people
that have been around for a long time using the roadway, and that is really
what will control. Mr. Hadfield said
when applied to the Rocky Dugway and Devil’s Gate Roads, it is pretty clear
that we are looking at public use and pretty clear that the roads have been
dedicated to public use in light of the statute. The two roadways do need to be kept separate because there are
different issues, different uses. With
respect to Rocky Dugway, the roadway has been used for recreation and access to
other areas. It has been used whenever
and as often as desired, and it is acknowledged and referenced in some of the
deeds. The continuous use element is
there. By the public--The road has been
used by the public at large. He said it
is his understanding that the road has never been blocked off completely to the
public. It has been used by the public. He said we get into the issue of how do we
block the road off. He said a
trespassing sign is not sufficient. He
said we know that a locked gate is.
There have been some cases that say a gate without a lock is
insufficient. A ten-year period--How long
has the road existed? It shows up in
the 1800’s on the maps. It was there in
1884, 1955 and 1969. It has clearly
been there for a long, long time. The
ten-year period--Once that 10-year period goes, the road is established. The map does not establish the roadway. The map is just evidence of how it is being
used.
Devil’s Gate
Road. You have the same situation. The roadway has been used for recreation and
access to other areas. It has been
whenever and as often as desired, and the use has been continuous. By the
Public--It has been used by the public at large. It is Mr. Hadfield’s understanding that the road has never been
blocked off. He said it shows up on the
same maps and clearly it has been around for the ten-year period.
Mr. Hadfield said
in conclusion a couple of points need to be made: This is not an attempt by the public to sneak in and take some
land away from some private landowners.
The public use was established a long time ago. The maps indicated that the roads have been
around for a long time. The history is
there. The way it has been used. This is only an attempt to protect the
rights of the public. Mr. Hadfield said
there are certainly legitimate concerns.
He talked about a park in his neighborhood and sometimes people will
come and drive through the park and leave big tire marks and ruts in the park,
but we do not talk about closing the roads around the park to prevent the
problem of the ruts in the parks. He
said it is not the right answer. There
are other answers. He said we have the
same situation with the roads. We have
a rural area, but the answer is not to close the road. The answer is to protect the public’s rights
but also to protect the private landowners.
The County has taken the position in the past that we do need to protect
public roads. Brigham City has a
resolution supporting the Shoshone Trail, and we have also adopted the East
Access Management Plan. The matter just
needs to be put to rest. There is
overwhelming support in favor of maintaining the public roads. The law clearly indicates that it has been
dedicated by use as a public road.
Landowners’ concerns should be addressed. He would suggest that a committee or group be put together that
has people from the landowners, people from the public, and independent people
to determine how to address those concerns.
Just because there is damage to the property, you do not
close the
road. Brigham City really urges the
Commission to defend the rights of the overwhelming majority of the public. Vacation is not the answer. Vacation is a drastic approach, and it would
affect more people negatively than it would positively. The landowners do need to be assisted, and
we recognize and encourage that.
Brigham City and the other cities that are here, their position is that
the road should not be vacated. That is
just too drastic a measure. It is too
valuable a resource that is needed in the County.
Chairman Hansen
thanked the Mayors for their presentation.
He said it was well presented.
There were a lot of points made that help the Commission to increase
their knowledge of what is going on there.
Commissioner Davis
said the failure of the Commission to act has been a reflection of this
Commission’s position in part of a right to public access and to not have
closed the road. Commissioner Davis is
not sure that a proactive motion is required other than in some respects the
Selmans have been extremely good stewards of the land, and he thinks that there
is a lot of area for compromise and working out responsible solutions as were
referred, and he hopes that the Commission will be able to do that.
OUT-OF-STATE TRAVEL
– LYNN YEATES
Deputy Lynn Yeates
asked the Commissioners for approval of out-of-state travel for Deputy Steve
Berry to attend the controlled F.O.R.C.E. Instructor Certification Course to be
held in Wendover, Nevada February 27-March 3.
MOTION: A motion was made by Commissioner Davis to approve the out-of-state travel for
Deputy Steve Berry. The motion was
seconded by Commissioner Rees and
unanimously carried.
OUT-OF-STATE TRAVEL
– GINA ALLEN
Commissioner Rees
asked the Commission to consider travel for Gina Allen, Louise Taylor, Bruce
Morris, Kellen Cook and George Misrasi to attend the Waste Exposition and
Training Center in Las Vegas, Nevada May 1-4.
This training provides SWANA certified training courses along with
access to equipment and service vendors that is vital to the solid waste
industry. Estimation on the trip for
five employees is $3,432.42. Gina Allen
said this would not impact the operation at the landfill by sending the five
people.
MOTION: A motion was made by Commissioner Rees to allow out-of-state travel for Gina Allen,
Louise Taylor, Bruce Morris, Kellen Cook and George Misrasi to attend the Waste
Exposition and Training Center in Las Vegas, Nevada May 1-4. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Davis and unanimously carried.
WARRANT REGISTER –
COMMISSIONERS
The warrant
register was signed, and the following claims were approved for payment: Claims number 36145 thru 36172 in the amount
of $406,720.77. Claims number 36173
thru 36249 in the amount of $67,222.83.
PERSONNEL ACTIONS –
COMMISSIONERS
TREAS/ASSESSOR: Shaun Thornley, compensation
change, effective 03/01/2005
ATTORNEY: Kevin McGaha,
compensation change, effective 03/01/2005
ROAD DEPT: Jason Cook, compensation
change, effective 03/02/2005
ASSIGNMENT REVIEW -
COMMISSIONERS
The Commissioners reviewed assignments.
RECESS
EXECUTIVE SESSION
MOTION: At
2:00 p.m. a motion was made by Commissioner
Rees to move into an executive session to discuss the character,
professional competence or physical or mental health of an individual. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Davis, and the motion was
unanimously carried.
MOTION: At 5:25 p.m. a motion was made by Commissioner Rees to reconvene into regular
Commission Meeting. Commissioner Davis seconded the motion, and
regular Commission Meeting was reconvened.
Chairman Hansen
explained that there was a discussion of the character, professional competence
or physical or mental health of individuals.
ADJOURNMENT
A motion was made
by Commissioner Rees to adjourn. Commissioner
Davis seconded the motion, and the meeting adjourned at 5:26 p.m.
ADOPTED AND
APPROVED
in regular session this 8th day of March 2005.
_______________________________
Scott Hansen,
Chairman