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Show Outside watering banned in Monticello Monticello City Council ordered a ban last week on outside watering, car washing, and burning. The ban will be in effect until further notice. The action came following a discussion of anticipated inadequate water supplies, despite recent precipitation. Because of drought conditions, melting snow is mostly soaking into dry ground with little run off to depleted reservoirs. In a related matter, expressed appreciation to all who helped with support for the $240,000 water coun-cilme- n The fragrance of the Purple Sages delicate flowers permeates the desert Alvin Reiner photo terrain. The San Juan Record HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER FOR SAN JUAN COUNTY, UTAH Vol 73 Noll 30 cents April 17, 1991 Blanding C of C finds home at city office The Blanding Chamber of Commerce, up till now basi- cally a telephone number and a post office box, soon will have a home at the city office. The good news came at the regular Wednesday meeting of city council. In addition to supplying office space, the city will cooperate by installing a separate telephone line for calls to the chamber. City staff agreed to take calls and forward messages to the chamber. The arrangements were made following a report and request from Joe B. Lyman of the Blanding Economic Development Committee. Mayor Jim Shumway and council expressed complete support of the chamber and their desire to cooperate in a combined effort to promote Blanding. A public hearing regard- ing the proposed 911 phone system for San Juan County brought little response from Blanding residents. The county will approach the Community Impact Board seeking funding for the system, which requires a public hearing be conducted. Of those who attended, the vote was unanimous in favor of installing a 911 system. The council is in complete agreement. However, complaints regarding local and long distance telephone service were again voiced. The question was raised as to whether a 911 system wrill really work when it appears that regular telephone service often is unreliable. Aloa Stevens, Contel Customer Service manager, present at the hearing, reas sured the council and the public that a 911 system is handled over special cables, different from regular service. She also responded to specific complaints about local service problems. Numerous complaints to the city from residents regarding overgrown weeds and debris in vacant lots and yards prompted a discussion of this problem. The problem is compounded because high winds blow tumbleweeds and trash to neighboring yards and lots. The city has an ordinance in place that allows inspection of private property for violations and issuing a warning with a 30 day period for clean up. If property owners are not compliant, the city has the authority to do the work and then bill for the cost. Council would rather not have to take that step; they urge individual residents to take an active role and personal responsibility in Blandings appear- ance. Council agreed that rental of airport hangars for avia- tion purposes takes precedence over rental for uses. The current non-relate- d rental agreement remains effective requiring that a full years rent be paid in advance, $600 for a small size hangar and $800 for the Private parties wishing to rent space for larger. other purposes are encouraged to patronize local rental businesses. Council officially announced that Blandings celebration of Independence Day this year will be on Thursday, July 4. Mayor Shumway is especially anx ious to hear from persons who would like1 to head or work on committees needed to organize the celebration. The city wants to include a parade, rodeo, mudbog contest and possibly a flea market. Persons interested in participating are encouraged to contact the mayor or any council member. In other business, council heard requests from residents in three different parts of the city for con- nection to the city sewer system. Two of these requests came from residents outside city limits. The issue of annexation may have to be addressed in connection with these re- quests, - issued a schedule for outside watering, which will be similar to last summer: watering will be allowed from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m., with a restriction on windy against watering days. Although snowfall this winter has improved, and the level on the mountain is 87 percent of normal, council feels water conservation is still a wise policy, authorized use of money allocated for the golf course to hire an architect to design a master plan. The money also will be used to seek grant funding for the actual construction, - appointed Jim Slavens to the irrigation company board of directors. - Emergencies Anywhere in San Juan County Dial development grant awarded to the city by the Community Impact Board. Mayor Jack Youngs leadership of the group who successfully appeared before the CIB was noted with appreciation. Young feels possibilities are good for future grants from the CIB. He said the insight of the CIB was noted in choosing to meet the needs in this area. Council decided to order needed repairs for the city lawn mower rather than replacing the entire machine, and awarded the only bid received for sidewalk, curb and gutter work to Don Adams, independent contractor from Ephraim. Adams currently is doing cement work on the San Juan High School addition in Blanding. Financing of the city recreation district is in con- - The College of flict. Eastern Utah San Juan Center, which administered the 1990 program, feels it is entitled to all receipts. Council feels the city should keep enough funds to cover its expenses. Consideration of a new dump site is an ongoing subject not easily solved as few people are anxious to have it nearby. Council has been encouraged to resurface the runways and the taxiways at the city airport. The FAA will soon inspect the runways with the purpose of assisting in financing the entire job. The golf course is a subject of continuing concern since the current fee schedule does not provide enough money to meet costs. In other business, council decided not to rent the citys industrial tract for pasture; learned that an application is being prepared with the hope of obtaining a used street sweeper from the Fed- eral Surplus Property Program; and noted the need to address a misunderstanding with the county on building inspection feos. Council noted that city inspection fees had not been increased and city inspections should not be charged at the county rate. Council is making plans e for a clean up week in the near future. city-wid- Visitor Center grand opening Saturday Multi-Agenc- Its y finally happening. tourist and recre- All of the ation information agencies in southeast Utah are joining forces for the first time. San Juan County Travel Council, the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service, and Utah State Parks are represented in the Multi-Agenc- y Visitor Cen- ter in the San Juan County courthouse. These agencies invite the public to a grand opening on Saturday, April 20 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The center is in the courthouse at 117 South Main in Monticello. Canyonlands Natural History Association stocks the center with books, maps and guides that complement the wide selection of brochures and posters pro- vided by San Juan County Travel Council The center offers one stop shopping to travelers and the staff has received many positive comments from visitors about the nience of the multi-agenc- y conve- concept. The Visitor Center opened in August of 1990 for an ab- summer and helped over 3,000 visitors breviated between August and ber. Octo- Staff at the center ask county residents to visit the first Center Multi-Agenc- Visitor y in Utah this Saturday during the open house. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Staff says, If you cant come Saturday, please drop in sometime during the summer. For answers to questions cancer-relate- d CALL TOLL-FRE- E The Monticello City Council has ordered a ban on outside watering and burning until further notice |