Commission Discusses Emery County Archives

By PATSY STODDARD Editor

The Emery County Commission met in their regularly scheduled meeting on Feb. 18 at 9 a.m. Those present were Commissioners Ira Hatch, Drew Sitterud and Gary Kofford. Sheriff Lamar Guymon and County Attorney Dave Blackwell were also present.
The first item addressed was a request by Kathleen Truman of the Historic Preservation Commission to temporarily relocate the Emery County Archives in the old sheriff’s office. Truman said, “The archives is funded by a cost share between Emery County, the Bureau of Land Management and the Utah State History Division. We are currently housed in a building owned by the school district. We have been notified by the school district that they are in need of the building. We are to vacate the building by March 1.”
The commission wondered how many items the archives has to store. Truman replied they have a collection of old Emery County Progress newspapers that were donated to them by the Castle Dale Library. They also have numerous boxes of old materials. She said they had four rooms in their current location; they were used for storage, processing the materials and a reception room for the public. Truman sees the old jail cells as an excellent storage room for the old materials.
Commissioner Hatch mentioned that at this point they are not sure what the county will do with the old sheriff’s office. The building has several problems which need to be worked out. Hatch made a motion to allow the archives to temporarily move into the old jail and the motion was contingent on the sewer problems with the facility being worked out. Sheriff Guymon mentioned that the building is still being heated at the cost of $600 per month.
Truman pointed out that the Emery County Archives is a functioning archives and will continue to conduct business when settled in their temporary location. She said the archives are funded a year in advance. One of the things which will be beneficial should a heritage area ever be established here, would be the funds spent on the archives could be used as matching inkind funds for a heritage area. Having an archives shows Brenda Barrett and others at the Department of the Interior that we are serious about protecting the heritage of our area.
The next item on the agenda was the approval of a business and beer license for Rick and Robyn Simmons to operate the Millsite Golf Course restaurant. They are the operators of the Lotsa Motsa Pizza in Castle Dale and are expanding to include the restaurant at the golf course.
The next item was the approval of three positions on the Emery County Public Lands Council. Those appointed were: Dennis Worwood, Dickson Huntington and James Gilson. Two advisory members were also named who will retain nonvoting status on the council; those members are Tory Ward Killian and Margaret F. McMullin. Appointments are for two years in duration.
The next item was the appointment to fill vacancies on the planning and zoning commission. Judy Ann Scott and Merrill Duncan will be reappointed to the planning commission. Two other nonvoting advisory members will include Chris Rowley and Julie Johansen.
The next item on the agenda was the consideration of the project agreement between the U.S. Forest Service and Emery County for the Ferron-Mayfield project. Public Lands director, Ray Petersen explained that mag-chloride will be sprayed on the road beginning at the end of the pavement at Millsite Reservoir. The road base must be saturated before the application, the water for this will be provided by the Ferron Canal and the forest service will be using their water shares. It is estimated the project will take place some time in April depending on the weather.
A question arose about the wording of the agreement in dealing with liability issues for the project. It is a forest service road and the county is acting as a contractor doing the work on the road for them.
The next item was discussion of the bonds for the Castle Valley Special Service District which will be signed in March. County Clerk Bruce Funk also alerted the commission to House Bill 358 which is in regards to the county fund balance. Some of the wording other counties needed was taken out and needs to be put back in to accommodate all counties. Funk stated the bill when properly worded will allow the county enough of a fund balance to operate on and they will not need to borrow money to operate.
Funk presented the check edit list, additional claims, dispositions and requisitions to the commission. Commissioner Hatch pointed out the need for invoices getting into the clerk’s office in a timely manner so bills can be paid. Commission meetings are the first and third Tuesdays of the month and bills must be in so they can be presented to the commission before they are paid. Funk pointed out the need for the county to keep their vendors taken care of in a timely manner. Claims also go to the department head for approval before they are presented to the clerk.
A plaque was approved for Swasey’s Cabin, the site of the 2002 Public Lands Day. A charge from Grand County in the amount of $200 was approved for the purchase of items in the John Wesley Powell River Museum; items included a display case and a rack for brochures. Green River City is purchasing the rest of the supplies left over when Grand County vacated the museum.
The next item addressed was the consideration for adoption of a resolution approving the adoption by the Municipal Building Authority of Emery County of a parameters resolution authorizing the issuance of not more than $162,000 lease revenue bonds, Series 2003. Clerk Funk pointed out that copies of the parameters are on file in the clerk’s office and are available for public review.
The next item was the tabling of the previous meeting’s minutes until they could be reviewed more thoroughly by the commissioners.
The commission reports were next on the agenda. Commissioner Hatch reported that they had a successful day at the legislature and made some good contacts. He mentioned the drought meetings the farm bureau is planning and suggested having someone attend those. He reported they were given an update by Utah Power on the Electric Lake situation. A meeting is being set up between those involved with the issue including Carbon and Sanpete counties.
Commissioner Kofford mentioned that the planning commission had met and they are trying to update zoning ordinances. The GIS department is preparing a map of where all the houses in the county are located which will be a benefit to the planning and zoning commission. He said he has also met with Martin Wilson and the veterinarian, Glen Jensen on animal control issues. A hearing is being planned for some time in March to review and discuss these animal control issues.
Commissioner Sitterud said he had attended the BLM RAC meeting in Salt Lake and they had discussed the travel plan. He said he felt they tried to justify the closing of some roads close to rivers to justify a wild and scenic designation at some point. He said the BLM has formed a subcommittee to look at the resource management plan and several local people are involved in that including: Tracy Jeffs, Dennis Worwood, Gary Kofford, Glen Dale Johnson and Neal Peacock. This committee will make recommendations to the BLM and take comments but its recommendations are not binding. Their recommendations will be taken before the BLM RAC and Commissioner Sitterud said he expected some good input from the subcommittee.
Commissioner Sitterud also reported that Kevin Conway from the DWR would be in Price explaining the wolves at the AOG meeting. He also mentioned that the funds for the construction of a low water boat ramp at Joes Valley had been denied. The remainder of the available monies went to Deer Creek Reservoir and Lake Powell which were classified as high use areas. Commissioner Sitterud said he was told that in a normal year, we would have been funded, but with all the budget cuts it wasn’t a priority. They also told him that one of the words in the proposal which stated “an alternative boat ramp,” bothered them. They should lose the word “alternative” before the proposal is submitted again.
Commissioner Sitterud said it is not known what will happen now at Joes Valley. No one wants the mud.
Commissioner Hatch suggested they consider putting the request on the low priority list for a CIB grant. It was also mentioned that it didn’t look like the businesses at Joes Valley would open this year because of the low water and no access to the lake for boats. Commissioner Sitterud said they will pursue the matter and look for alternative funding for the low water boat ramp.
The meeting was adjourned until after the special meeting of the municipal building authority after which it reconvened and further business was addressed.