Opinions voiced in Orangeville

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The public showed up to speak their minds about Orangeville City and the city council at the Orangeville city council meeting on May 12. Recently there has been concern, contention, pride, and patriotism displayed amongst the residents of Orangeville. Dixon Peacock was the first of several to speak during the public comments portion of the meeting. He recalled Orangeville’s clean up day, and how many of the council members and local businesses would donate their personal time, and equipment to clean up the city and reminded citizens that they need to show support for the council and the work that they do, despite differences in opinions. He also mentioned that just over 20 years ago, in order to start the secondary water system now in place, the city council had to go door to door asking for water shares to lease. The council was met with opposition, but Peacock stated that it was nothing compared to what the council is dealing with now.
Peacock was recognized by Mayor Thayne Cox for his many years of political service, as well as 35 years of service in the county museums.
Tom Humphrey, a former mayor of Orangeville, was next to voice his opinion. He stated that he is appreciative of the service that the council has given, having been through the leadership position himself. He realized that there is no way to please everyone, and that no matter which decision the council makes, for whatever reason, someone will always be upset about it. He also added concerning the secondary water system that if the city were to turn it loose and let it be used, Orangeville would regress and turn back into swamps. Humphrey was also recognized for his years of service.
Carol Larsen shared the reasons that she is proud to be from Orangeville. A few things she is grateful for are the ability to open a public meeting with a prayer, paved roads, garbage collection, street lights, snow removal, three days of watering and honest people.
Sarah Grindley also shared her thoughts with the council and guests. She is tired of the criticizing and complaints being made against the council. She reminded the guests that the council makes decisions based on the need of the majority, not the minority. She thinks that people are looking too hard for a reason to complain, and are not offering any solutions. She also mentioned that just because the water is available this year, doesn’t mean the drought is over, and that it doesn’t hurt anyone to conserve a little bit.
David Robertson said that he was proud of the city council and doesn’t appreciate the criticism of the city. He was very angered by signs that have been posted at the post office concerning the integrity of the city council and stated that he thought it was cowardly of the citizens posting them to not have the courage to sign their names.
Lewis Stilson commented that the donation of time and services to the city from citizens should not be discounted because the city donates back. He said that he sees good things being done amongst all of the negativity. He suggested having an arbitration committee. Stilson stated “Something needs to be done to reunite the community.”
Carl Labbee told the council that people come before the city council because they want to see changes. That is how the government works, and he is not afraid to speak up for what he believes in. He agreed with Stilson that an arbitration committee would be a good idea. He stated that new ideas need to be heard.
Paul Riddle also shared his thoughts at the meeting. He stated that if something needs to be said, you need to say it. He had an issue with the council about a year ago regarding a fence and decided that the complications were not worth the trouble to his family. He said that he is aware that you cannot make everyone happy, but he also reminded others that they shouldn’t be upset with others for having a different opinion. Regarding the use of city equipment, he stated that he was not upset about the resident who was allowed to use the equipment until he was denied the privilege of using equipment himself. He quoted Utah state law as saying no one can use city equipment unless it is available to the public generally. He feels he was discriminated against and was treated unfairly. He also told the council that he was upset to find a council member removing notices on the public board at the post office. He stated that he and his family love Orangeville and that he doesn’t want the negativity, however, if he is to be held to the letter of the law, then so will everyone else. He was also upset that an acquaintance at the Sun Advocate told him that he would no longer run letters from Orangeville regarding issues previously run, unless the writers purchased an ad, because of the amount of contention. He said, “In order to move forward, things must change.”
Rue Ware also asked for volunteers to be greeters at the cemetery gate for Memorial Day weekend, and noted that there will be water available again this year thanks to donations.
In other business, JJ Grant, Chairman of the Board of Adjustments, showed the application form the board has been working on for all items needing to come before the board. Councilman Pat Jones stated that he thought this would be a help to the citizens in understanding the process of coming before the board and what needs to be done.
In order for Orangeville City to get money for the new fire station, it is necessary to set up a Municipal Building Authority, which is a corporation that is separate from the city. The city cannot be in debt for over a year, so the bond from the CIB Board will be handled through the MBA. The city will pay the MBA, and then the MBA will pay the loan.
The council also approved amendments to the personnel policy, and tabled the procurement policy. They set up a public hearing for the 2005-06 tentative budget on June 15 at 7:30 p.m. They may also have information available on the fire house at the point. The council agreed to enter the Interlocal Agreement-Uniform Addressing System. Home owners must change their own numbers, the city would like all numbers changed by May 31. If residents choose not to comply with the changes, emergency response personnel will not be held responsible for any damages incurred from being unable to locate the home. The council suggested having the numbers painted as a youth council project or eagle scout projects. Barbara Peterson, Planning and Zoning Chairman, informed the council that she will be resigning for personal reasons. The council agreed to send a letter of intent to the architect service for the fire house, agreeing to send down payment July 1, in order to allow time to receive money from grant. Dennis Tuttle reported three dog bite incidents in the past few weeks.
The next Orangeville City meeting will be held June 9 at 7:30 p.m.