Emery County Fair stock photo by Dusty Butler.
By Julie Johansen
Emery County Commissioner Kent Wilson spoke about the small, local celebration that will replace the traditional Emery County Fair during the county’s commission meeting on Tuesday. He said that when the fair was cancelled, it was the intention to have a celebration in late-summer.
Emery County Fair Chairmen Sandra Huntington and Amanda Leonard are still working on final plans, but the dates have been set for the last weekend in August at the city park in Castle Dale. One of the reasons for this is to help stimulate business at the restaurants that were forced to shut their doors because of the pandemic. It is the intention of the commissioners to give free meal tickets to residents of the county to be used at various eating establishments.
For the celebration, some of the activities could include cornhole and horseshoe tournaments, bike rides, and/or a home run derby. Wilson said that part of the fair budget has been donated to the Cowboys Memorial Rodeo and Castle Country Jr. Livestock Show, but the remaining funds will be used to host activities for the county residents.
Also during the meeting, Kris Bell, Emery County Assessor, gave the safety minute presentation, speaking on the hazards of eye strain. Some of the suggestions given to avoid eye strain included reducing the glare of the monitor, blinking more often, moving away from the computer every 20 minutes and looking away from the screen for 10-15 seconds periodically.
Commissioner Lynn Sitterud then drew names for the monthly safety awards, which serve to honor employees that practice safety in the workplace. The full time employee receiving a gift card was Tammy Tucker with the part time award going to Jennifer Funk. The two safety sensitive employees honored were Dustin Deto and Brent Ward.
Approval was also given by the commissioners for a grant agreement for the Russian Olive ISM funds and the Utah Humanities CARES Act Grant for the Emery County libraries. A resolution to declare the existence of a drought emergency in Emery County was also approved as well as a request from the Bureau of Land Management to relinquish the free use of the Millsite Reservoir gravel pit.
Earlier this spring, the commissioners voted to have the county’s lawn care done by county personnel in an effort to reduce expenses. One of the county’s lawn mowers has been out of service, so the request was made to compensate the use of a personal mower. The idea of purchasing another lawn mower was also discussed with the hopes that county entities such as libraries and museums could find money in their budgets to help finance purchasing a mower.
The commissioners also asked Emery County Attorney Mike Olsen to write a letter to the Division of Wildlife Resources and Division of Natural Resources stating their objection to the bison hunt on the west side of the Green River (Range Creek) area.
To conclude, commissioner Wilson spoke about the use of the CARES Grant money and its use to help struggling county businesses, especially in Green River where transient room taxes have seen significant decreases due to COVID-19. He also stated that while the Utah Association of Counties will help direct these disbursements, the decisions will be made locally.