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Show Page A2 Thursday, January 1 1, 1990 Park Record 400 attend public hearing Jan. 3 Residents support Heber Creeper t by SENA TAYLOR Record staff writer r '. More than 400 Wasatch County 'residents showed their support for ' the Heber Creeper at a Jan. 3 public hearing by backing a proposal to subsidize the scenic railroad with I almost $2 million from the state. The Utah Department of . Transportation Commission review- ed the hearing at a later meeting Jan. 6 and concluded that local sup- : port for the railroad may call for in- ; creased state involvement. ; Kim Morris, UDOT public information infor-mation officer, expects a state legislator representing Wasatch County will now propose a bill or appropriation ap-propriation to the Utah Legislature which could give the train a longer lease on life. UDOT and the state Division of Parks and Recreation act as the railroad's landlord because the state owns the railroad right-of-way and tracks. The Jan. 3 meeting held in the Wasatch County High School was called by state legislators including Rep. Beverly Evans (R-Altamont), Rep. Glenn Brown, (R-Hoytsville), and Sen. Alarik Myrin, (R-Altamont). (R-Altamont). They wanted to measure community support for the railroad before asking the legislature to invest in-vest as much as $1.9 million in the financially ailing train. The Creeper runs between Heber City and Provo Canyon and employs about 200 people. Morris said the Creeper is the largest employer in Wasatch County in terms of staff size. "The jobs may be minimum wage jobs," said Morris, "but they're still jobs." The hearing was largely attended by Heber City residents, but a handful hand-ful of state officials were there, including in-cluding Doug Bischoff, administrative ad-ministrative assistant to Gov. Norm Bangerter, Eugene Findlay, director direc-tor of the Utah Department of Transportation, and Wilson Martin of the Utah Historical Society. In addressing the UDOT commission commis-sion in the later meeting Jan. 6, Bischoff said the governor feels UDOT, rather than any other state agency, ought to be in charge of the railroad if the state makes a commitment com-mitment to preserve it. UDOT commissioners didn't state a preference for three possible options op-tions that have been outlined for the : Creeper, one of which would be an outright purchase of the assets for $1.9 million. A second option would be for the state to buy and upgrade the line, but lease its operations out to a con-. con-. cessionaire. A third option would be for the state to purchase the terminal ter-minal property and rolling stock for about $800,000, then lease it back to the present owner, Lowe Ashton. Under the third option, Ashton would install the remaining ties and spend $75,000 to upgrade and main- ! tain the railway. Lease payments , would be based on revenue and the ; state would have an option to pur-' pur-' chase the remaining stock. Ashton has complained that he's ; caught in a "Catch- 22" situation, ' wherein his property taxes increase each time he spends money to ! upgrade the state's property. Martin, representing the Utah ' Historical Society, said at the Jan. 3 : hearing he had never seen such : public unity at a hearing to discuss ; the future of a historic relic. Representative Brown commented com-mented that local residents would ' have to make a concerted effort to build support for the train on a statewide basis in order for it to ; receive the necessary funding. ; The Wasatch County Commission ; requested that the state help fund the Creeper after Ashton announced he could not continue funding it under present conditions. ', He told audience members at the Jan. 3 hearing that 55,000 people , rode the train in 1989, but his gross III IFairlk name- address, city bill me 1 $ enclosed STAFF gun prof it was only about $20,000. An example of his financial problems pro-blems was evidenced last month when he sold the historical steam engine "Old 1744" and five cars to a Texas firm which has offered to puchase the remaining rolling stock if the state doesn't. Last spring the state appropriated $125,000 to make critical repairs on the rail line, with $25,000 in equipment equip-ment and labor provided by Ashton, and some help from Wasatch County. Coun-ty. About 5,600 new railroad ties were also purchased and stockpiled. At this point, the UDOT commission commis-sion has simply acknowledged that the large, supportive crowd of railroad buffs and concerned citizens at the Jan. 3 meeting seemed seem-ed to send a message to the Utah Legislature that the state should help support the recreational asset. UDOT's Morris said the residents of Heber "are certainly going to have to do more" than talk about saving the train. "We may have seen the only 400 people in the state who care about the Creeper at the Jan. 3 meeting," he conjectured. "They must be able to show broad support for it to justify spending $2 million. The bigger question is if there is any support for the Creeper outside of the Heber Valley." Gezelius fills vacancy COUNCIL from A1 surprised by the council's action, but "delighted to be chosen. I hope to work toward making Park City a better place," she said. She said at the top of her agenda would be addressing the concerns of residents on the "scale and pace of growth" in Park City. She had gone door-to-door during the election and was surprised how worried new residents were about the issue in particular. "I hope we can address that as a group," she said. Gezelius also responded to a note in a Jan. 4 Record editorial that she had not requested a recount when she took fourth place to Jeff Scott by a single vote. Only first and second UDOT updates county UDOT from A1 ject goes to a public hearing before work begins. Still, the district director said "there is a short construction season in Summit County, and I don't see that the project can be done this year." Environmental considerations also are delaying the project to improve im-prove State Road 248 from Park City to U.S. 40. "We will be starting work on that, but we will be in the environmental en-vironmental process there, too," he said. "When the Olympics come to Utah, we will have to have a lot of roads completed. We will work to meet those needs." He said small projects were presently underway on Inters tates 80 and 84, and noted that "Route C," from Kamas to U.S. 40 is finished, being part of road relocations caused caus-ed by the Jordanelle Dam. In the plans for U.S. 40 itself is another phase of improvements that will stretch from the intersection at S.R. 248 (Quinn's Junction) to Silver Creek Junction. "This project is based bas-ed on monies that we hope will be available," said Sturzenegger, "and. we hope to advertise it for construction construc-tion this year and get it completed, but we're not sure." Regarding other projects, Sturzenegger said UDOT is now IEcseaDM .state . Charge my VISA Card no: Expiration date Signature- Andy Edhor Tari Oit SUffwritcn RonCwrKoUiPorttr, SM Taylor, HtM WcH Photography and darkroom David Schuki Contrtbutlni witttrt Htc routh, Tom Clydt Office Suian Davis Sutan Davit Klmtudman rnMH nwwwofn Tom Imm (oAnn HoiwywvN Yvoww TnompAon Kathy McCarthy (jtyMA FWflptOfl IP.Maa Circulation CtaMlflcd Said director AdmtWflfaaln Graphic! Production OtarOMtlon ' Cartoonhtt . The Salt Lake Tribune in a Jan. 9 editorial wrote: "There are countless reasons for keeping the Heber Creeper chugging through Utah's scenic mountainlands, starting star-ting with its promise for good, clean fun for Utahns and visitors of all types. Yet there's only one reason for letting the historic train be sold as scrap metal : immediate cost." The editorial noted that "tourism surveys have shown that foreign visitors most want to see Disneyland, cowboys and Indians when visiting the western United States." It then suggested that "with some work and imagination, the Heber City terminal of the Creeper could provide the cowboy and Indian parts of the equation." The editorial concluded that, "In order to make the most of its tourist industry, Utah needs a variety of attractions at-tractions throughout the state available year-round. The Heber Creeper offers Utahns and nonresidents non-residents something different to do in some of the state's most scenic country only an hour's drive from Salt Lake City spring, summer, fall and sometimes even during the winter. Utahns must rally behind the Heber Creeper if they don't want to see a reliable source of entertainment entertain-ment and revenue derailed." place finishers qualified for a council coun-cil seat, and asking for a recount would have been expensive, she said. "That could have cost hundreds hun-dreds or even thousands of dollars," said Gezelius. "And I had no reason to believe there was any fraud." Gezelius, who competed against Jeff Scott, exiting council member Kristen Rogers and Salt Lake attorney at-torney Gordon Strachan for the vacant va-cant seat, has held a variety of jobs and community positions in Park City. Ci-ty. She holds a B.A. and M.S.W. (Master's in social work) and has worked in adoptions, particularly of abused or handicapped children. She has owned her own antique shop in Park City, and now manages a photo store, does contract bookkeeping, helps manage a condominium association and does some sewing on the side. reviewing a Summit County request to turn the Brown's Canyon road over to the state system. (It travels from U.S. 40 to Peoa.) Any decision won't become final until the proposal pro-posal goes before a rule-making committee, and finally before the UDOT commission with recommendations recommen-dations from staff. He addressed another local concern, con-cern, this one. dealing with sidewalks, by saying the legislature appropriates $1.5 million for sidewalk projects along state highways. For such projects, UDOT pays 75 percent of the cost and the local entity making the request chips in the remaining 25 percent. "Counties make their requests to UDOT outlining different projects, and we make a judgment on which projects are selected based on the type of pedestrians it will be serving," serv-ing," Sturzenegger explained. "The pedestrians play a big role in how those selections are made, especially especial-ly if they involve senior citizens or children." UDOT also is working on a project to relocate and upgrade the port of entry on the Utah-Wyoming border near Evanston. He said the existing port "doesn't have the latest technology such as weigh-in-motion scales, and the parking lot isn't large enough and might create safety safe-ty problems." A consultant for UDOT is currently looking at potential poten-tial sites for the new port. Subscription Rates: 52 issues, mailed weekly $12 in Summit County $23 outside Summit County -zip. MASTERCARD ' The Park Record (USPS 0037-8370) Is published weekly by the Diversified Suburban Newspapers. Second-class postage in Park City, UT. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Park Record, 1070 Bonansa Dr., Box 3688, Park City, UT 84060. Entered as second-class matter, May 25, 1977, at the post office in Park City, UT 84060, under the Act of March 3, 1897. Published every Thursday. 1 1 - '" Hi liny We Were 7.' Early Hot-Doggers Take some old barrel slats, cable bindings, a pair of buckle boots and some fast ski wax and you have Mel Fletcher and Les Roach doing some fooling around on the slopes at Snow Park in 1954. Mel says it was more like ice skating. Their series of spread eagles all the way down the hill made less courageous skiers take notice. Photo courtesy Park City Museum. Education EDUCATION from A1 It states in part, "The fact that adverse employment action was not taken in consequence of a walk-out in the Fall of 1989 does not constitute a waiver of the right of the school district to take any adverse employ More parking is underway This is an architectural rendering of the new parking terrace to be built at the Salt Lake City International Airport starting Jan. 6, 1990. This Saturday, short-term parking will be closed and short-term parkers will ride shuttle busses to the terminals ter-minals from a new short-term parking lot south of the terminal buildings The new structure is targeted for a November 1991 completion. It will feature 2 700 parking spaces, rental car facilities and sky bridges to the terminals. For more information contact Barbara Gann at 575-2992. Bill appeals to rural A pair of bills establishing compensation com-pensation funds for doctors who commit to practicing in rural communities com-munities are on their way to the House floor with approval from the House Health Standing Committee. Members of the panel unanimously unanimous-ly supported the Rural Physician Education Loan Repayment Act (HB102) and the Rural Physician Scholarship Act (HB103) Tuesday. Sponsor Rep. Joseph Moody, R-Delta R-Delta hopes to establish financial incentive in-centive programs aimed at attracting attrac-ting physicians to Utah's rural areas. There have been 35 to 40 openings open-ings for family practioners, obstetricians, obstetri-cians, and pediatricians and 15 specialty positions open in rural areas in recent months. 1 The Loan Repayment Act would reimburse five to 15 doctors for their medical education expenses. Doctors Doc-tors who commit to working in an under-served community for two years would receive a $20,000 loan repayment and those who pledge to . work for four years could receive a loan repayment of up to $60,000. Under the Rural Physician Scholarship Act, six to 12 students from rural areas could receive scholarships to attend medical school if they agree to return to work in one of the state's rural communities. i at critical ment action and you are hereby advised ad-vised that the Board of Education may take adverse employment action ac-tion in the event of a strike, walk-out or work slow-down." Board chairman Gene Lambert, who signed the letter, told the Record that sending the letter was part of a process to prepare the district in the case of a walk-out. He said during the state-wide teacher 4 ' ) rv$, The bills have received support from 11 health and professional organizations. Roslyn Taylor of the Utah Academy of Family Physicians Physi-cians said the measures would help physicians better serve the citizens of Utah. Gunnison Valley Hospital Administrator Mark Stoddard said he believes medical students from rural areas would likely choose to return to their homes or to other rural communities, given the incentive. incen-tive. George Winn, administrator of Sanpete Valley Hospital In Mount Pleasant, testified that he has been unsuccessfully looking for a general surgeon for four years. "This would give me a tool I need in order to compete com-pete with hospitals in larger areas," he told the committee. Rep. Moody is seeking $590,000 to establish a panel which would identify iden-tify needy communities, review applicants, ap-plicants, and ensure that those who receive funds fulfill their service obligations. "This is not a panacea, acknowledged Rep. Gene Davis, D-Salt D-Salt Lake City, "it's a step that goes along with local communities' efforts." ef-forts." Rep. Pat Nix, R-Orem, wondered point walk-out last fall the district was caught off-guard and this time it needs to be prepared if it happens again. The School Board has stated publicly that schools will remain open in the event of a walk-out or strike by the teachers. But, according accor-ding to Horyna, there has been no talk of that action at the local or state levels. doctors whether there might already be enough loan sources for students entering medical shcool. "We currently cur-rently have quite a bit of help in our country. I wonder why you feel we need to create a brand new scholarship scholar-ship fund in addition to paying off contracts?" she aked Rep. Moody. License needs inspection The city will no longer automatically issue business licenses 10 days after fees are paid, but will require proof of an inspection of the building or location where the business will be first. . Assistant City Attorney, Shauna Kerr, told the council that automatically issuing the permits has caused problems with businesses which occupy unsafe or inappropriate buildings. She also noted the building department usually does make an inspection within 10 days but would like the flexibility to take a day or two longer if needed. |