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Show WedThursFri, April 14-16, 2004 A-2 The Park Record More medians alarming UDOT says additional be installed after lengthy public process XAP) A little-known Utah Department of Transportation policy could result in more medians medi-ans in eastern Summit County "cities and towns where state roads like S.R. 32, double as Main Street. v The Utah Department of Transportation's enforcement of a iule requiring medians on state roads running through the middle of town may result in fewer accidents acci-dents but also may hurt business ;along the streets and that has a 'number of smaller communities ready to seek a repeal from the Legislature. "We found that if there's no median ... there's more accidents," said Brent Wilhite, UDOT spokesman. "Everybody just wants to turn where they want to turn. We can't have people cutting across lanes all over the place." I However, new medians would ;only be installed in conjunction with new UDOT road projects and a lengthy public process is required prior to any approvals, Wilhite said. i "These rules basically balance out business access and safety," ;Wilhite said. "The policy calls for a strict public involvement ... before we put down any median we would have public involvement involve-ment - find out who's in the area, Dems plan . r i: i a a Continued from A-1 ! "I do have a lot of friends over on the east end of the county," Perry said, adding that, his past experience in county government sets him apart from Elliott. "And my connections with people both at the local level ... and I have quite a connection with people at the Legislature." Elliott says she's a better fence-mender. fence-mender. "I think we differ in our ability to bring people together to find a consensus, l m a people person," Elliott said. "We can leave and go get things done ... it's something some-thing that the county very much needs and I think that's why so many people peo-ple urged me to run." "Perry's a .fine person. per-son. , I've worked very well with him in the past and vet I do think that I'm the right person for mim this time," she adds. The Summit County Republican Convention is scheduled sched-uled at Treasure Mountain Middle School on April 21 at 7 p.m. Randy Ovard, chair of the Summit County GOP, said he would prefer that one of the four Republicans vying for the nomination nomina-tion for the commission seat, get 60 percent of those delegates' votes so the Republicans can avoid a primary pri-mary election. Republicans running for commission com-mission include, Coalville resident Merlyn Johnson, Snyderville Basin resident Steve Osguthorpe, Basin resident Max Greenhalgh and Kamas resident Margie Christiansen. Developments to be Continued from A-1 dominiumhotel suites, 19,000 square feet of commercial space, 473 parking spaces, and 51 acres of open space. The plan is part of a longstanding long-standing development approval for Creole Gulch. During the work session the developer is scheduled to lay out the locations medians would only who would be affected by the median." "Every road is different, every community is different," he added. Improved safety is the focus of the policy, Wilhite said, adding that safety at intersections increases when medians are installed. "Everything that we do is based on nationally accepted traffic traf-fic engineering," Wilhite said, about warrants for additional medians. He couldnt predict if future medians would be necessary in Summit County. "Any projects that come up in Summit County ... we will take into consideration where the median should be placed and we will include public input on that," Wilhite said. "It's a baseline for where we think medians should go." City leaders in Weber County, interpret the rule, as saying medians medi-ans will be put down the middle of each state road, allowing a place for business access every 300 yards. The rule has become a major concern and it was the subject of an hours-long debate at a recent meeting of the Weber Area Council of Governments. Thursday "It's hetter for the candidate, if "It's better for the candidate if they come out with a clear victory and it also helps the party to the extent that you dont need to raise as much funds to have a battle between Democrats," Bonham said. "It'll be a real miracle if we get a nominee out of the Republican convention." However, with a "nasty" presidential presi-dential race underway, Bonham said a primary would help keep people interested in local politics. "If we dont have something like George Bush has done so much for the Democratic Party it's unbelievable." unbeliev-able." . - Laura Bonham Summit County Democrats the county race to keep us interested, interest-ed, then we start focusing on other things and I dont think it's good for anybody to be focusing on the negative neg-ative campaigning that's going on at the national level," she added. Plus, Bonham said, voters are more heavily impacted by political politi-cal decisions made locally. "What goes on in the county, really, really does affect you directly, far more than what happens hap-pens at the federal level," she said. Democratic leaders expect candidates for state and federal offices in Utah to attend this week's convention and deliver stump speeches. "We're expecting all the state for specific uses and take initial comments from the commissioners. commission-ers. The public will get a chance to comment during the commission's commis-sion's April 28th meeting. Public input on The Village, originally approved as part of the Flagstaff annexation, will be taken during the regular session. The area is now being developed Thanks for a great season ! We re-open May 5th look for our new summer menu "When a city makes a master plan, we plan where the commercial commer-cial is going," said Mayor Fred Oates of Harrisville. "That's where we put our commercial because of the traffic." He said big cities, such as Ogden, dont rely on the state roads, but his city has two major state roads: Highway 89 and Washington Boulevard, and, "We rely on the traffic flow." Leaders of several smaller communities com-munities say they were not involved in the process that resulted in the rule, which went into effect in January. UDOT maintains the revision revi-sion has been in the works for three years, with plenty of public input. "It wasnt just sprung on these people," Wilhite said. UDOT said roads and access issues will be taken on a case-by-case basis, and a business or resident resi-dent can contest construction of a median in front of the owner's property. "We're not going to just allow (a road without a median) because they complain," Wilhite said. Cities have a different idea about voicing their objections state lawmakers. "We're going to try to go to the Legislature and get it changed," Oates said. "I don't know how else the cities can do it." Record reporter Patrick Parkinson contributed to this story. convention Democratic candidates for this Democratic candidates for this county and all the federal, including the senatorial candidates," candi-dates," Bonham said, adding that Scott Matheson, Jr., a Democrat running for Utah Governor, should also to be in attendance. Only delegates will vote in the county commission race, but Bonham said others who attend the convention, can vote on resolutions reso-lutions proposed by county Democrats. "Anybody who's there and a resident of Summit County can vote on ... two resolutions. That actually is something about what the Democratic Party stands for and what we think would help benefit all people in Summit County," Bonham said. One resolution seeks to establish a committee to examine expanding the Summit County Commission. The other would create a non-partisan committee to study a recent redistricting of Utah by the Utah Legislature. "Basically it's about having better government," Bonham said. County Republican leaders oppose changing Summit County's form of government from its three-member commission, commis-sion, Ovard said. The Summit County Democratic Party will also be looking for about 21 volunteers to represent the county as delegates dele-gates at the upcoming state convention con-vention on May 7 and 8 at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Bonham said. studied by United Park City Mines and the Talisker Corporation. The Village encompasses approximately 84 acres of the 1,655 acre parcel and calls for no more than 470 residential units, no more than 75,000 square feet of commercial space, no more than 16 single-family homes and a day skier lodge of no more than 35,000 square feet. 6uND - inn t.ss ''' i i Not yet tuckered out Y V . - GRAYSON WEST I PARK RECORD Linda Miller, of Evanston, Wyo., dances with friends to the tunes of The Marshal Tucker Band Saturday at The Canyons. The concert was the last in the spring music series as the resort closes down and prepares for w Nil V X JJ. V Continued from A-1 ing was actually a horse," Rolfs said. He expects the virus to turn up in horses and birds in .May and June. "Human cases are likely to start to occur around the first of July," Rolfs said. Those infected may not show symptoms for two weeks and people over 50 are at higher risk for catching the disease. About 20 percent of those who contract the virus will show fever symptoms, symp-toms, Rolfs said, adding that statistics sta-tistics show that one in 150 of those people could develop a neurological disease like meningitis menin-gitis or encephalitis. Ten percent of those who develop brain disease dis-ease could .die, or j!ie in every . 1,000 of those infected with" the"" virus overall. Though mosquitoes are most P.C. government issues guide Continued from A-1 director. "It's a brief report to the city." The guide was recently distributed dis-tributed in The Park Record and the government mailed it to all post-office boxes and addresses within the city limits. The city spent $15,000 to print 15.000 copies of the guide. Of the press run, 14,500 were sent out, Rademan said. Single copies of the guide remain available avail-able at City Hall and the Park City Library and Education Center, 1255 Park Ave. Rademan said the guide represents rep-resents the government's ongoing ongo-ing efforts to inform the public about City Hall. Phone numbers of city and Summit County offices are published pub-lished in the guide. "The vast majority of people will use it for the contacts," Rademan said. Some of the topics covered include defining the different roles of the mayor, the City Council and City Manager Tom DoG ;i ::. 1 1 t i i A- the upcoming summer season. - . n T 11 iW WM CtlllT V JVVll ly responsible for infecting humans when they bite, corvid birds ravens, jays and magpies and raptors, including hawks and eagles, and some owls, spread the virus when they migrate and are bitten by mosquitoes. mos-quitoes. West Nile Virus has no cure. Katie Mullaly, a public information infor-mation officer for the Summit County Health Department said county officials are focused on expanding the North Summit Mosquito Abatement District to include all of Summit County. "Stop raising mosquitoes in your yard," Mullaly said. "Mosquito abatement can only do so much. You need to look around your yard for places where mosquitoes can grow." . Flowers pots, birdbaths, dog . -Wishes;' clogged gutters and tires ' are potential breeding grounds, she said. "Make sure mosquitoes can't Bakaly. Williams, for instance, is supposed to support the tourist industry, represent the city and articulate "Park City's vision, goals and action agenda." 'Hie guide offers brief descriptions descrip-tions of government boards and commissions like the Planning Commission, the Historic Preservation Board and the Recreation Advisory Board. It includes information about the city's free transit system and provides a list of sites on the World Wide Web that the government gov-ernment has deemed useful, including the Park City School District, local mountain resorts and the Park City School District. Meanwhile, a survey that asks about people's experience with the government is included in the guide. Survey questions include whether respondents receive enough information about City Hall issues, if people use the city's Web site, if people are satisfied with city services and if they had been treated "courteously and fairly" when 0--Y ' get into the house," Mullaly said, adding that damaged window screens should be repaired or replaced. When outside at night, pants and long-sleeves should be worn and mosquito repellent containing contain-ing DEET should be used, she said. "If it's really bad just go inside," Mullaly said. Citizens will be encouraged to report dead birds for testing, but those details have yet to be worked out on a state level, she said. "We want people to take the precautions necessary to keep themselves safe," Mullaly said, reminding residents that infected mosquitoes mostly bite at .night. I For more' information, about' preventing West NileVirysJio learn 'about ; horse vaccinations for the disease, contact the county coun-ty health department at (435) 615-3222. dealing with City Hall. The government gov-ernment would like the surveys to be returned by May 15. The guide includes four pages of information in Spanish. One page is dedicated to Old Town, which it describes as "a historic treasure," and the guide urges readers to "support your local merchants by shopping in Old Town." Other information in the guide includes: Parking options in Old Town, including a description of the Pay and Display paid-parking system and where free parking park-ing is available nearby Main Street. A breakdown of the city's budget, which shows that tourism generates 58 percent of the city's revenues. Forty percent of the city's expenses are related to tourism, the guide says. A page of 2002 Winter Olympic trivia, with facts like that 500,000 tickets were sold in Park City area venues. The tickets tick-ets brought in $35.5 million in sales, the guide says. |