By Julie Johansen
The March Orangeville City Council meeting was held on Thursday, March 14. Mayor David Robertson opened the meeting with an invitation for public comments. There were no comments and the first agenda item was a request from Emery High School senior Ashlynn Tuttle for a donation to support Graduation Night. The council approved $100. Tuttle also announced their annual Senior Service Day coming on May 16. The mayor thanked them for this service and ask her to coordinate with the girls in the city office.
Jentri Price, a Girls State participant, also requested a donation to support her expenses to attend Girls State at Weber State University. The council approved a $100 donation and asked her to please come and report about her experiences when she returns in June.
Orangeville resident, David James, then wanted to bring to the city council’s attention the intersection of Center Street and Mill Dam Road. He was suggesting a yield and speed limit sign be placed there. He feels like this a dangerous intersection and imminent accident area. After some discussion on the signs that are already there and where new ones are needed, he was told they would study the situation and help with his concerns.
A motion to order fireworks was approved. It was reported that they are included in the budget and will be ordered to make sure they arrive in time for Orangeville Days in June. Approval was also given to purchase steering shocks for the lawn mower. The annual water lease with the school district also received the council’s approval. Registration fees for the council and city staff to attend the Utah League of Cities and Towns Conference in St. George in April were also ratified.
Discussion about hiring part-time summer help was next on the agenda. They also considered the volunteer service hours they could use in these positions. Councilman Shawn Bell was ask to work with these workers.
City Recorder, Amanda Lake, has been with the city long enough for her probationary pay period to be considered. She will now receive the pay raise and other benefits of a full-time employee. It was also suggested that cost of living and performance assessments be at the same time and that these not be random, but rather happen at a set time.
The truck lease with Unified Leasing was considered and discussed. The concern came from dealings that the Emery County Sheriff’s Office has had with Unified. The main question was,” What is the cost when we leave the lease?” It was decided that more study was needed, including looking at other solutions such as purchasing instead of leasing.
Councilman Tracy Addley spoke for the fire department and related an offer from Castle Dale Mayor Van Wagoner to maybe combine the two departments. He had read the Memorandum of Understanding, which the fire department had also viewed. He reported it will need some changes before they could adopt it.