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Show Record selects MX-related project for 1 980-31 The Iron County Record has chosen its "Let's Work Together" community project lor 1980-81. "Though not a certainty yet, it is increasingly probable that the MX missile system will be constructed, and that an MX operating base will be located in our area," said Editor Lee Warnick, in introducing the project. "Of the many line project suggestions we received, one stood out in our minds every time we thought about it," Warnick added. "That was to promote intelligent and thorough planning in preparation for the probabledevelopment. The originator of that idea was Kathy Christensen, of 1290 S. 860 West. Cedar City. Mrs. Christensen was presented a $100 check Tuesday morning by Record Publisher and General Manager Mike Stansfield. Quoting from Mrs. Christensen's suggestion: "Like all other Iron County citizens, I am concerned about the impact the MX project will have on my lifestyle. I have close relatives in Castle Dale "and Vernal, two small Utah towns which have had tremendous growth rates in the past few years. "Citizens of those towns have watched wat-ched as their streets have been ripped up for years on end while larger sewer systems are being installed. They have lost irriaation privileges in some areas and have been placed on water rationing schedules which allow yard watering only on certain days. "They have seen their main streets clogged with traffic and their police force double, and a new, large maximum security prison facility now overlooks their town. Taxes have skyrocketed, schools are overflowing and innumerable headaches have occurred as large subdivisions filled with trailers and cheap housing have necesarily sprung up. "A large segment of the popultaion is now composed of people who intend to stay only a few years and therefore have little interest in long-range community improvements. My proposal is that we do some in-depth in-depth surveys in such towns as Castle Dale, Huntington, Vernal and Rock Springs, and interview in person not only local officials, but local citizens as well, and find out what kind of problems we can expect to face if the MX project becomes a reality in our area. Then perhaps we could get some planning committees organized to examine our own growth capacities in such areas as water, sewage, schools, traffic, law enforcement, county services, and housing. It takes a lot of planning to save a community from the sprawling, "boom-town" headaches that Rock Springs has suffered." Warnick commented on the selected project: "We feel there is nothing of greater importance we can do at this time than to assist and promote this crucial planning process. The MX missile may never be built, but Iron County should not take that chance. Planning should be undertaken with the assumption it will be built, and that the operating base will be located in Iron County." Warnick continued: "This project will pose a unique challenge to our newspaper, and we intend to proceed, working as hard as we can on it." |