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Show Page 2 THE OGDEN VALLEY NEWS Volume VIII Issue IX August 15, 2003 The OGDEN VALLEY NEWS Staff: Shanna Francis Tel: 745-2688 Fax: 745-0062 Cell: 791-4387 E-Mail: slfrancis@att.net Jeannie Wendell Tel: 745-2879 Fax: 745-2879 E-Mail: crwendell@att.net crwendell@msn.com Opinions expressed by advertisers, columnists or letters to the editor are not necessarily the opinions of the owners and staff of The O GDEN VALLEY NEWS. Guidelines for Letters to the Editor Letters should be 300 words or less. Letters must be signed and the address of the writer submitted. The O GDEN VALLEY NEWS reserves the right to edit or decline printing of any submissions. Announcements Sought As a community service, The O GDEN VALLEY NEWS will print local birth, wedding, obituary, anniversary and missionary farewell & homecoming and Eagle Scout announcements free of charge. We invite residents to send their announcements to: The OGDEN VALLEY NEWS PO BOX 130 EDEN UT 84310 If you would like your submitted items returned, please send a stamped, selfaddressed envelope. The OGDEN VALLEY NEWS, while respecting all property received, will take no responsibility for lost or misplaced items. Please remember to keep a copy for yourself. Invitation for Articles The staff of The OGDEN VALLEY NEWS welcomes the submission of articles by our readership. We invite you to submit local historical accounts or biographies, articles pertaining to contemporary issues, and/or other material that may be of interest to our readers. We also invite you to submit to the paper, or notify the staff of local events. Awards that have been earned by the reader, family members, neighbors or friends are also sought. While the staff of The OGDEN VALLEY NEWS invites the submittal of information and articles, we reserve the right to select which material will be considered for publication. All material, to be considered, must be submitted with the full name, address and telephone number of the person submitting the material. Letters to the Editor Eagle Scout Asks For Donations The OGDEN VALLEY NEWS has the sole authority to edit and locate any classified advertisement as deemed appropriate. It also reserves the right to refuse any advertising. Note: The contents of The OGDEN VALLEY N EWS are copyrighted. To protect this publication and its contributors from unlawful copying, written permission is required before any individual or company engages in the reproduction or distribution of its contents, by any means, without first obtaining written permission from the owners of this publication. Residents Being Asked To Support Effort to Stop Construction of Dam Wall By Shanna Francis My name is Jordan Rhodes. My family and I are going to Cuenca, Ecuador to help care for children in several different orphanages. We are traveling to Ecuador with Orphanage Support Services Organization. OSSO currently provides support to 10+ orphanages in Ecuador in the form of volunteers, food, medicine, medical care, educational supplies and training. OSSO volunteers do everything from changing diapers to giving physical therapy, or from teaching pat-a-cake to giving piano lessons. These orphanages are run by Catholic nuns who struggle day-to-day to fulfill the needs of these children. The local people also do what they can, but there is still much need. Our family will be trying to help as much as possible for the three months that we are there. I have also decided to complete my Eagle Project while I am there. These children have many needs and one of them is a pair of shoes. I would like to purchase shoes for as many of the children as I can. It is very costly to ship items to Ecuador, so the most efficient way to get shoes for these children is to gather donations. I will collect the money, purchase the shoes when I get to Ecuador and deliver them to the orphanages. If you would like to contribute, please make your check out to Orphanage Support Services, and send it to me at the address listed below. You will receive a taxdeductible receipt for your contribution, as OSSO is a non-profit organization. We have had many people contact our family asking what they can do to help, and we think this is the very best way! I hope you will consider this cause and help me serve these children and complete my Eagle Project. Jordan Rhodes 3707 N. 3500 E. Liberty, Utah 84310 Corrections In the July 15, 2003 issue of The OGDEN VALLEY NEWS, there was an article about Landscape Designer Laurie Van Zandt, The Ardent Gardener. In the article it was incorrectly stated that Laurie is a Landscape Architect. It also stated that she assisted with an award winning yard design of a home in the 2002 Parade of Homes. The home was in the 2003 Parade of Homes. The OGDEN VALLEY NEWS’ liability on account of errors in, or omissions of, advertising shall in no event exceed the amount of charges for the advertising omitted or the space occupied by the error. The O GDEN VALLEY N EWS does not endorse, promote or encourage the purchase or sale of any product or service advertised in this newspaper. Advertisements are the sole responsibility of the advertiser. The OGDEN VALLEY NEWS hereby disclaims all liability for any damage suffered as the result of any advertisement in this newspaper. The O GDEN VALLEY N EWS is not responsible for any claims or representations made in advertisements in this newspaper. Editor’s View An ad hoc group of Valley residents are asking the community for their support in an effort to convince the Bureau of Reclamation to reconsider their current action on the Pineview SOD (Safety of Dam) project. Representatives met with the Bureau August 11 in the Weber County Commission offices. The goal is to bring the BOR (Bureau of Reclamation) under NEPA (National Environmental Protection Agency) compliance as required by law. They are asking the Bureau to halt work—the building up of the dam on the west side above the road elevation, and the construction of the ten foot concrete retaining wall—until they can adequately and legally address, what they consider to be, a blatant NEPA violation. Plans also call for the wall to turn the corner and continue approximately another 200 feet down the canyon. The alternative project plan the Bureau is now working on is a “new feature,” the impact of which has not been investigated as required by the NEPA process. It was not explored as a viable option under the original EA (Environmental Assessment) developed in March of 2000. The alternative the Bureau is currently pursuing was only recently selected as a means of appeasing Weber Basin Water. The original plan of action called for a shoring up of the dam on the east side below the road elevation, with no permanent visual impact, as stated in their FONSI (Finding of No Significant Impact). This would have required the level of water in the reservoir to be lowered during construction. Attorneys with the Salt Lake City law firm of Ray, Quinney, and Nebeker, who specialize in the NEPA process, have been retained. After reviewing the case, attorneys stated that it was their opinion that the BOR is in violation of NEPA regulations, and have advised the Bureau to stop their work on the dam until they come under compliance. This will provide time for the full impact and scope of their current decision to be comprehensively explored through the public process as required by NEPA law. By forcing the BOR to follow the law as outlined in NEPA, the current design plan may not be the plan of final choice, and an alternative, perhaps the original plan, will be imple- NOTICE OF PROPOSED TAX INCREASE The Weber Fire District is proposing to increase its property tax revenue. As a result of the proposed increase, the tax on a $187,775 residence will be $144.59, and the tax on a business having the same value as the average value of a residence in the taxing entity will be $262.89. Without the proposed increase the tax on a $187,775 residence would be $120.94, and the tax on a business having the same value as the average value of a residence in the taxing entity would be $219.88. The 2003 proposed tax rate is .001400. Without the proposed increase, the rate would be .001171. This would be an increase of 20%, which is $23.65 per year ($1.97 per month) on a $187,775 residence or $43.01 per year on a business having the same value as the average value of a residence in the taxing entity. With NEW GROWTH, this property tax and other factors, Weber Fire District will increase its property tax revenue from $1,833,610 collected last year to $2,276,175 COLLECTED THIS YEAR WHICH IS A REVENUE INCREASE OF 24%. All concerned citizens are invited to a public hearing on the tax increase to be held on August 19, 2003 at 6:00 p.m. at the Weber Fire District Station 61 located at 1871 N. 1350 W., Ogden, Utah 84401. ~ Dine ~ Shop ~ Relax Inspirational Thought Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off the goal. —Henry Ford Deadline for material for the September 1 OVN issue is August 23. mented. At the very least, mitigating features will be implemented to decrease the dramatic and negative impact current plans will have on the midground and foreground viewscape as residents and visitors traverse the dam and highways leading to and from the area. Highway 39 is designated as a scenic byway. There is also concern regarding highway safety as residents and visitors traverse the dam, especially during winter months. The wall will create lift as snow blows across the road and hits the wall. The snow will then be blown upwards and deposited on to the road. The road design calls for the road to be sloped only in one direction—towards the reservoir. Snow and ice on the west side that thaws during warmer hours, will run across the road to the east side, which can then be expected to freeze when temperatures drop. The Bureau is contending that they are not in violation of NEPA regulations. Bureau representatives have stated that, after a careful review of the new design, they considered the new plan of action to fall within the parameters explored and weighed during the original EA process. Funds are being solicited to offset legal costs associated with the effort to stop the Bureau’s current construction option. Most likely an injunction will have to be filed in order to stop the construction on the wall and raised berm. The group is looking for 100 people to pledge, immediately, a minimum of $100, to be paid over a four-month period. If you can help, please call Shanna Francis at 745-2688, or 7914387, or Dan Van Zeben at 745-4740. We are asking for the community’s support to help shoulder these expenses. If $10,000 can be pledged within the next week, the injunction will be filed immediately to stop any further construction on the wall and material that will be brought in behind it. While large donations are needed, a small donation by everyone in the community can be equally effective. Thank you for your interest in Ogden Valley, and the quality of life we enjoy here so readily. We are counting on the past track record of Ogden Valley residents who have shown themselves to be conscientious and involved citizens. Today’s Gifts ~ Tomorrow’s Treasures T P his quaint litlan your next special tle gift shop is event in this beautifully located in the hisdecorated lodge surrounded toric Jolly Boy by the majestic mountains of gambling house. the Ogden Valley. 745-9690 The shop features unique gifts, home decorations, and colelax in the quaint rustic villectibles. lage setting. Open seven 745-9690 days a week. 745-9293 The Yukon Grille R 235 South 7400 East Huntsville, Utah V ISIT US AT: www.trappersvillage.com Commercial/Office Space Available - Call 479-1163 |