The Ogden Valley news May 15, 2010 PRSRT STD POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 11 EDEN UT POSTAL PATRON EDEN-LIBERTY-84310 HUNTSVILLE-84317 OGDEN CANYON- 84401 HCR 843AO Your Community Newspaper VCRD Slates Annual Meeting Board of Trustee Positions Open The VCRD (Valley Citizens for Responsible Development) will hold their annual membership meeting on Tuesday, May 18 at 7:00 p.m. at the Ogden Valley Library Auditorium. Two Board of Trustee positions will be up for election, or reelection, at the meeting. Only members who are current with their 2010 membership dues and lifetime members may be considered for a trustee position and vote at this meeting. An updated status report on Ogden Valley development projects filed with the Weber County Planning Department will also be reviewed at the meeting. A Board of Trustees meeting will immediately follow the annual meeting. Membership dues are $10 per person, and should be mailed to: VCRD PO BOX 115 HUNTSVILLE UT 84317 Anyone wishing to be considered for a trustee position, please submit your name to Larry Zini by e-mailing him at <DHitman@aol.com> This MeMorial Day, A 70-foot tree came down onto Jodi Allen’s roof at 564 Ogden Canyon after high winds blew through the state on April 28. Shown next to the tree’s failed root system is curious Valley third grader Brigham Tuttle. reMeMber The Men anD woMen of our arMeD services. Strong Winds Prove Too Much Traffic Stop Leads to Burglary Case Arrest Deputies: Man was driving van with stolen Ogden Valley goods for Stately Conifer By Shanna Francis Luck was on the side of Jodi Allen of 564 Ogden Canyon after a strong windstorm blew an estimated 36- to 40-year old tree over onto his home during the early morning hours of April 28. The pine tree, about 70 feet in height, fell onto the roof over Allen’s bedroom, but the only damage it inflicted was to an old satellite dish connected to the house. Allen stated, “Fortunately, I wasn’t at home, and there was no damage done. The mass from the weight of the tree was dispersed through its branches.” He added, “My neighbor called to tell me, since I was out of town. It went down at about 3:00 a.m. Wednesday morning.” The soil underneath the tree was gravelly, and, apparently, unable to support the root system and the massive tree it anchored. A spring windstorm proved too much for the towering conifer. High winds blowing across Utah on April 27 and April 28 ahead of a strong cold front CONIFER cont. on page 10 Public Hearing Slated for June 1 for Proposed Powder Mountain The negotiations are the result of a pow-wow By Shanna Francis At least for now, plans are on hold for moving forward with “Powderville”—a proposed town at the top of Powder Mountain in Eden. Instead, Powder Mountain owners under the name of Western American Holdings have come back to the drawing board—the Weber County Commission—in an effort to negotiate a palatable solution for the county and the community alike in a proposed large-scale development at the top of the pristine mountain. They’re hoping for a satisfactory rezone option from the county that will make incorporation a moot objective. that transpired down at the Utah state capitol during this year’s legislative session after antiPowder Mountain incorporation advocates were making headway to pass bills sponsored by Representative Gage Froerer and Senator Allen Christiansen that would allow them to quickly disincorporate. The Utah Supreme Court had also denied Powder Mountain defendant’s request to dismiss the legal case by petitioners Weber County and citizens unhappy about being caught up in the incorporation boundary against their will. But heavy hitters up on the POWDER MTN cont. on page 8 Ogden Valley’s Biggest Charity Garage Sale in Its 12th Year! Elisabeth Hillstrom who passed away in 1999. Summer is almost upon us and school is almost out. And that can only mean one thing . . . it’s time once again for the annual Ogden Valley Charity Garage Sale! Ogden Valley’s 12th Annual Charity Garage Sale will be held Friday, June 18 and Saturday, June 19 at 9520 East 400 South in Huntsville. Each year over 100 families donate items to the Charity Garage Sale. All of the proceeds from the Charity Garage Sale go directly to local charities: The MakeA-Wish Foundation of Utah, Ogden Regional Infant Demise Foundation, McKay Dee Labor and Delivery Bereavement Foundation, and others. The proceeds are donated to these causes in memory of several Valley infants and children who have passed away in the past few years. Leftover items from the garage sale are donated to the YCC, a center for abused women and children, the Deseret Industries, and the Salvation Army. Over the past eleven years, the garage sale has made and donated over $39,100 GARAGE SALE cont. on page 10 at the command of a police officer, as well as with running the red light, fleeing, driving on a suspended license, failure to remain at the scene of an accident and providing false perLIBERTY — Homeowners whose Ogden sonal information. However, officials have not charged Acosta Valley homes were each burglarized for tens of thousands of dollars worth of property have with possession of stolen property. Authorities will not say whether the van was received somewhat encouraging news rented to Acosta or if he was just from police. the driver, but said there is still not Last week, Weber County Sheriff’s enough evidence that Acosta knew deputies arrested an Ogden man who the property in the vehicle was stowas driving a moving van with around len. $4,000 worth of furniture and items The furniture and items in the that were taken in March from one of van were taken from a Liberty vacathe homes in Liberty. tion home owned by two retired law A deputy saw the U-Haul van run enforcement officers who split their a red light near 6650 South and U.S. time between Utah and Arizona. The Highway 89 in Uintah on April 23 owners estimate more than $30,000 and followed it several blocks before worth of electronics, furniture and pulling it over. The driver, identified items were taken. as Jose Carlos Acosta, 29, gave the Jose Acosta Burglars also hit two other homes deputy a false name and said he didn’t in the area that month. The total property loss have his driver’s license. Police said when the deputy asked further in all the thefts exceeds $100,000. Deputies suspect Acosta could be tied about his identity Acosta drove off, only to crash the van into an awning near 5676 S. Meadow to individuals who might have been directly Lane. He ran but was caught. Acosta was TRAFFIC cont. on page 8 charged with a felony count of failing to stop By Carlos Mayorga Standard-Examiner staff cmayorga@standard.net Community Foundation of Ogden Valley: Putting the Unity in Community T h e Community C O M M U N I T Y F O U N D AT I O N O F of OGDEN VALLEY Foundation Ogden Valley was recently organized. The foundation’s mission statement reads, “Adapted from the strong and vibrant Ogden Valley Pathways organization in 2009, the Community Foundation brings together a broad and diverse community of organizations and individuals concerned with all aspects of recreation. By partnering with local, regional, and State and Federal agencies, pooling the financial resources of our donors, and awarding discretionary grants that address the increasingly complex, growing issues and needs affecting Ogden Valley, together we seek to improve the recreational opportunities and experiences of Ogden Valley residents and visitors. “The Community Foundation will fulfill the mission to improve the lives of Ogden Valley residents and visitors through philanthropic leadership, by developing new services and programs to assist donors and nonprofits in outstanding ways, by growing overall community charitable assets, by providing leadership in collaborative partnerships while promoting the creative implementation of the shared vision of recreation in the Valley, and by supporting the sustainability of our philanthropic community. “The Community Foundation will conceptualize and champion projects selectively if nonprofits are unable to address critical needs. Grants will be actively pursued as a source of revenue. The organization will carefully prioritize grant requests and ask for accountability of grants awarded to nonprofits. It will be strategically positioned to face the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for Ogden Valley as the community evolves.” One of the first events that the Foundation COMMUNITY cont. on page 11 Collaboration between Weber County & UDOT to Improve Safety on SR 158 in Eden By Shanna Francis Weber County, in conjunction with the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT), is preparing for construction activities along State Route 158 in Eden. The road improvements are scheduled to be completed this summer. Much of the work will be in the Wolf Creek area, at the intersection of State Route 158 and Highway 166 near the North Arm Trailhead, and east of the Pineview Dam overpass where an additional 500 feet of guardrail will be installed. Sub-standard guardrail will also be replaced. Weber County hosted an open-house-style public information meeting on April 20 at the Ogden Valley Library in Huntsville to explain the proposed construction projects. UDOT representative Bryan Torgerson stated that approxi- mately 30 people attended the meeting. Funds for the project have come from a partnership between UDOT and Weber County. Federal dollars were originally earmarked for county use a few years ago for road improvements and are now being leveraged with UDOT matching funds. Torgeson stated that UDOT is interested in the road improvements, citing that there have been three fatalities on SR 158 during the last three years. A list of the proposed improvements are as follows: • Realignment of the 2200 North intersection to eliminate current yield- controlled intersection and create standard T-intersection. This is the “Y” created near the North Arm UDOT cont. on page 12 Friends of a different ilk . . . .