By Julie Johansen
The Orangeville City Council met on last week for its regularly scheduled August meeting. Following the approval of bills, warrants and minutes of the previous meeting, Paige Haeck and Taylor Cook from the Southeast Utah Health Department announced their upcoming Hope Walk on Sept. 9 in Price as well as World Health Day on Sept. 10.
The duo requested a donation for care packages to help needy families. Mayor David Robertson expressed his appreciation for what they are doing and the council approved placing their name on the donation list.
The Castle Country Fuller Center also requested a donation. The council questioned the relevance of the center to Orangeville or Emery County and the request was denied.
Mike Bean then addressed the council about the dead trees along the old canal that are dying as there is no longer water in the canal. Orangeville City will get bids and have the trees removed before they cause damage or become a city liability.
Doug Stilson again stated his concern about speeding on Main Street, especially the north end. He spoke with the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) about flashing speed signs and found that they cost about $5,000 each. The city would only be responsible for half of the cost and UDOT the other half.
Maintenance costs for the signs would be about $50 to $100 per year and then battery replacement. Stilson had been previously informed that there was money in the city budget to do this. There were still some questions, so this was tabled for further information.
Backpay for Carolyn Marsing, a former city employee, was then considered. Following much discussion as well as reviewing of previous minutes, emails and recordings to determine what action had been taken at a previous meeting, a motion was made to pay her the back wages.
The mayor then appointed council member Greg Jewkes to serve on the Emery County EMS advisory board. Shaun Bell was also appointed to act as Mayor Pro Temp for Orangeville City.
A motion was entertained to allow ABS, strong plastic vaults, to the burial code in the cemetery ordinance. The purchase of a new lawn mower and wages for Dave McKee, a seasonal worker, were ratified by the council.
Annexation of the San Rafael Research Center was then considered. All council and audience comments voiced were in favor of this annexation. Also, a question about water shares Mayor Robertson felt had not been transferred to Orangeville from the county for the business water hookup was discussed. He will get these items on the agenda for the next Emery County Commission meeting.
Orangeville City Zoning Administrator Seth Manning advised the council of new Airbnbs and a couple of new business licenses approved by the Planning and Zoning committee.
Manning also outlined the things that have transpired in the last eight months at Food Ranch. He stated that the building there did not have a building permit, nor zoning approval, or even licensed contractor. He made several attempts to help correct these infractions but has been unsuccessful. He then spoke about the fees attached to these infractions. Part of the extension has been removed, but he felt mainly because of an accident where someone was hit by a car. The motion was made to assess the fees for the six weeks.
The city treasurer reported that shut-off notices had been mailed for overdue utility bills that are beyond ordinance dates. Also, it was decided to obtain a plaque for Carole Larsen for her more than 16 years of service to Orangeville.