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Show VW MOAB, UTAH Volume 111 500 WEATHER We did it! We're the first FORECAST Thursday Showers Likely High 53 Low 39 windpower use by homes and businesses Showers Likely High 52 Low 34 hour bloc- k- to buy by Lisa Church Saturday Partly Cloudy Its Low 34 Sunday vyv Partly Cloudy High 60 Low 34 Weather forecast courtesy National Weather Service Grand Junction office. Merv Lawton contributing writer - official the Moab area commuis first in the nation to be named the nity a Green Power Community by the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This Fall, a group of community lead- ers, business owners, and individuals launched a campaign to earn the Moab area community - including Moab, Spanish Valley, Castle Valley, and Pack Creek title. To Ranch - the accomplish the goal, the group encouraged local businesses and residential electrical power users to enroll in Utah Powers Blue Sky program, which allows PacifiCorp customers to pay a surcharge - currently about $1.95 per 100 kilowatt elec- wind-generat- tricity. About 1.5 percent of area electricity users had already signed up for the program during Moabs Blue Sky Community Challenge, which in 2003 won Moab residents bragging rights as the first Blue Sky Community in the nation. To achieve EPA Green Power Community status, 3 percent of all electricity used in the Moab area about 3,000 megawatt hours (3 million kilowatt hours) of the 100,000 - Thursday, October 21, 2004 green power community! Moab area reaches, surpasses goal of 3 Friday High 61 www.moabtimes.com Number 42 megawatt hours of electricity used annually by area customers must come from renewable energy sources. As of Monday, the Moab community had surpassed that goal. Moab Mayor Dave Sakrison B7 library. See page Kealan Partlow B1 0 what? See page Business Directory: B8 Classifieds: B11 Editorials, Letters: Historic Photo: B1 A8-1- 0 Notices: B4 Obituaries: A4 Region Review: B1 Sports: B1-- 5 TV Guide: B2-- 3 Calendar: B8-- 9 Church Directory: BIO LAST WEEK'S WEATHER Date High Low Precip. Oct. 16 69 55 73 36 81 38 82 43 --- Oct. 17 Oct. 18 82 43 Tr. 71 58 Tr. Oct. 19 65 57 Tr. Oct. 13 Oct. 14 Oct. 15 First in the Nation EP Green Power Community First Place Categories . j in Four Group H Th Times-- office. A drive to register Grand County High School students has netted at least 20 new signups, and Moab Rocks The Vote a community-wid- e voter registration event held October 9 netted 15 new - voters. For those who still have not registered to vote, it isnt too late. The Grand County Clerks office will accept changes and new voter signups on Friday, Oct. 22, and Monday, Oct. 25. Area residents may also sign up at a satellite registration site at City Market. The voter registration table at City Market will be open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday, October 22, and Monday, October 25. by Lisa Church contributing writer Times-lndepende- nt of various statewide constitutional amendments and initiatives. This week, we offer a brief summary of each of those ballot measures. The Times-Independe- Utah Proposed Constitutional Amendments Constitutional Amendment 1 nt call subscribemoabtimes.com The This news- - paper is This proposed amendment changes Utah law governing the impeachment of state officials. Specifically, the amend- nt 7 (fiy X) 3S printed on recycled paper and is recyclable. applaud everybodys efforts. People here showed theyre willing to put their money where their mouth is, Sakrison said. Im very proud of this community. The campaign drew support from a of Grand County, diverse said Andy Netted, owner of Arches Book Company, and a strong supporter of the push for EPA status. Its been hugely gratifying to see people from all corners of the county support this, he said. Everyone Ive Continued on page 4 Volunteer crews spruce up the river road, SR-12- 8, for the "second half' this weekend. race this weekend on the river road New half-maratho- n Five hundred runners will compete this weekend in an inaugural race along the scenic Highway 128 northeast of Moab. Called The Other Half, it is a half-marath- Drivers are alerted that Route 128 will be closed on Saturday morning from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. from mile post 31 of Dewey Bridge) down to the companion to the Castle Valley turnoff. See related story on page A3 4000-runne- r We apologize for any Canyonlands Half inconvenience, said Marathon which will celebrate its 30th Bieschke, but at least when this beautiful highway reopens, it will be a cleaner anniversary next March. Proceeds from both races are used to place! contribute to various local agencies and More information about both halfcauses in the Moab area. is marathons available at The Other Half covers the northern www.moabhalfmarthon.org. section of the scenic highway, locally called the River Road. The race begins at Dewey Bridge, an historic Colorado River crossing and ends 13 miles later at the Sorrel River Ranch resort. Participants will celebrate the finish at the Ranch by Lisa Church with, snacks, beer, massages, and an awards ceremony. contributing writer Grand field of filled We 500 County residents will vote on up our limited 2 on two proposed ballot initiaNovember racers in just six weeks, said Ranna aimed at altering the makeup and tives Bieschke, race director for both race of Grand County Council: structure the events. And this week, staff and volunlitGrand County teers have pitched in to clean up any Citizen Initiatives ter along the highway, which we also do Grand County Proposition Number 1 for the spring race. Bieschke gave parThe citizen ballot initiative reduces ticular praise to local residents John and Sena Hauer and the friends of the number of Grand County Council repCanyonlands Field Institute who have resentatives from 7 to 5. Grand County Proposition adopted stretches of the highway for litNumber 2 ter removal. (north On October 14, 2004, the Moab Area Partnership for Seniors (MAPS) held the official groundbreaking ceremony ushering in a new era for senior citizens and recreation in Grand County. The occasion was marked with a festive air of accomplishment; flying shovel fulls of dirt, refreshments and speeches and was attended by many city and county officials and senior citizens. MAPS and City Council member Kyle Bailey summed the situation up when he said, This is what can happen when city, county and citizens work together. The keynote speaker was Joette Langianese, MAPS chairperson and County Council member who spoke briefly to say, Its a wonderful day! Im very proud to be here. Youll all see our new building here in June 2005. Colin Fryer, who donated the three-acr- e parcel of land the new Community and Senior Center will be located on, said, Joette has really been the spearhead of this project. Its important that she be here to continue to carry the ball and Id like to take my hat off to her. Marcy Till, outgoing city recreation director, described her vision of activities that Continued on Page A4 A final exam of Grand County's two Citizen Initiatives Proposition Number 2 eliminates Grand County Council representative districts and makes all elected council members representatives. While the language and intent of both ballot initiatives seems clear, questions have arisen about how either or both propositions would be implemented by the county should voters approve them. Last week, Grand County Deputy Attorney Scott Barrett issued a news release explaining that the county has at-lar- Continued on Page A2 Here's a recap of statewide measures on the ballot During the past month, has examined the pros and cons To subscribe to said. I running contributing writer both new registrations and changes, Mayberry said Tuesday. Normally I would spend about 10 hours a week on voter registration. Now, Im spending sometimes eight hours a day. Were seeing a lot more forms come through the residents pulling together for the common good, Sakrison is now off and s, Inside T he Times area MAPS project by Lisa Church Voter registration drives across the nation have signed up millions of new voters, especially in battleground states where pollsters believe the outcome of the presidential election will be decided. Many Utah counties have also reaccording to a ported record sign-upSalt Lake Tribune story earlier this week. In Grand County, the number of new voters registered for the November 2 elecsince tion has jumped by about to figures provided February, according by the Grand County Clerks office. As of Tuesday, 7,186 people have registered to vote in Grand County, compared to 7,002 in February. But those numbers dont tell the complete story, said Wendy Mayberry of the County Clerks office. Scores of local voters already registered here have also submitted change of address forms or made other corrections to their voter registration in order to assure they are properly entered on the voter rolls. Ive been getting at least 10 a day, The effort is a good example of cross-sectio- n Residents can still register to vote this Fall Converted his pickup to over com- munity. said once-in-a-lifeti- Shepherds fundraiser for To go that goal shows a lot about this See Moab area Blue Sky business participants' list on page A4. about 3.2 percent of local electricity consumed is now wind generated. Everybody in this community has really stepped up. Its exceeded all my expectations for sure, Sakrison said Tuesday. I thought we were going to have a - tough time getting ment eliminates a provision that exempts justices of the peace from possible impeachment. The amendment also strikes a provision of Utah law that limits how much money lawmakers receive for work days during an impeachment proceeding that exceed those allowed for general or special sessions. Constitutional Amendment 2 law to Amendment 2 changes state allow the state of Utah, and publicly funded colleges and universities to acquire ownership in private businesses in exchange for intellectual property developed in whole or in part by the state or the public institution of education. Current law prohibits all government entities and publicly funded education facilities from holding equity interest in any private company. post-seconda- ry Supporters say this amendment could improve the financial outlook for many state universities, especially science and research facilities associated with universities because it will allow them to reap long-terbenefits from research created at the university and sold to private companies who will develop and market the products to the public. m Constitutional Amendment 3 Amendment 3 defines marriage as solely the legal union between a man and a woman. The amendment also prohibits any form of domestic union, including common law marriages, domestic partnerships, etc., from being recognized as a marriage, and prevents those relationships from being granted the legal rights associated with marriage. Supporters say this amendment protects Utah from having to recognize gay marriages and civil unions performed in other states. Opponents say it will strip important legal rights including property rights, hospital visitation and medical decision rights from all unmar- ried couples, and could negatively impact laws governing domestic violence and other partnership issues. Ballot Initiatives Statewide: Utah Clean Water, Quality Growth and Open Space Initiative Initiative 1 authorizes the state to increase sales taxes to create a fund for purchasing and protecting open space. The bond would be repaid through a of 1 percent sales tax -about $14 per year for the average Utah family earning $51,000 a year. When the bonds are retired after about 13 one-twentie- th Continued on Page A2 |