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Show VOLUME 80 NUMBER 59 u ST. GEORGE, UTAH FRIDAY, JULY 24, 1 987 Esplin gives new golf course details Jeanette Rudt COUNTY NEWS EDITOR HURRICANE Pioneer Day is a family day for the children of Tom and Kay Hirschi. Richard, 7 (holding dog), Natalie, 5, and Amanda, 9, and Matt, 3, are all ready for Hurricane's Pioneer Trek to the ballpark. Also trekking will be their older sister, Toni, and older brother, Steven, and, of course, Mom and Dad. Photo by Marilyn Alder Homes may be in redevelopment district Pat Mellor STAFF WRITER ST. GEORGE - Four homes fronting on 200 North on the same block as the old sugar mill have been suggested for inclusion in the downtown redevelopment district, community development director Bob Nicholson told the St. George Planning Commission on Tuesday. Nicholson said the homes are owned by various individuals and generally are somewhat dilapidated." Their inclusion in the redevelopment district would have no effect on their zoning or taxes, Nicholson said, but would be a posi- - Section of Hurricane canal collapses again by Marilyn Alder COUNTY NEWS CORRESPONDENT A section of hillside below an open, unused portion of the Hurricane Canal gave way Monday afternoon, blocking the paved road to the Pah Tempe resort. According to Rick Marchal, Hurricane City Utility Director, water draining off the hill ran into the canal and to the point of a break which had occurred last year. Water flooding to that point poured out, causing the slide. Pah Tempe owner Ken Anderson said no one was stuck at the hot springs, since the area is still accessible by the old road and HURRICANE water-saturat- ed bridge, although the southwest abutment of the old dirt road is washing out which is making driving hazardous, and impassible for large vehicles. Access roads to Pah Tempe are county owned, and Andersen said Wednesday that he is trying to find out when county crews will be able to clear the paved road. After last years break, water has been piped around that section of canal. At the time of the slide, water was out of the canal in preparation for the sand flushing of the piped sections. When too much sand collects in the pipes water is taken out, then flooded through the pipes in order to clean them. Phyllis Stout, wife of Hurricane Water Master Wynn Stout, said there was damage done under the pipeline, and work is being done to shore it up so water can be returned to the system. The recent storms have been helpful to the Hurricane City Fire Department. Chief Eddie Camp- bell reported several lightning strikes in the areas, but no property damage or fires related to the strikes were recorded. Campbell said fire calls were down from the previous week, thanks to the wet weather. Only two calls were answered during the week, both minor. tive move, because as part of the redevelopment district, an incentive could be provided to help upgrade the properties. Eventually, Nicholson said, the old homes will probably be converted to office space. He told the commission that the action to include the homes in the redevelopment district was instigated by the city staff and not by lheL.propprty.. owners themselves. The action requires a public hearing, he added, and if the property owners object, they can have their land removed from the redevelopment district proposal. The sugar mill has been approved as part of the redevelopment district, and plans to renovate the structure and restore it to its original use as an opera house are unde way. Forty-thre- e new trees are scheduled to be planted this fall in a k area from Tabernacle Street to Second North along Main Street, Nicholson told the Planning Commission. Some of the trees will replace ones which have failed to thrive on the section of redevelopment landscaping on Main Street between Tabernacle Street and St. George Blvd. and others will be planted along the west side of J. C. Penney's, directly north of the Boulevard on Main Street. The redevelopment district's landscaping project will not narrow Main Street above the Boulevard, he noted, but will provide some continuity with the previous work done in that area. Trees will be planted. -- two-bloc- The city will subsidize up toone-thir- d of the costs of storefront renovation, or up to $7,500,Nicholson explained, which should provide some stimuli for fixup projects. Most projects are considered for participating funds on a case-bycabasis, he noted, with some emphasis on restoration or preservation of historic structures weighing in the final decision on the percentage of assistance from the Redevelopment Agency. Nicholson said the bids on the landscaping project would be opened July 23, and the tabulation would be presented to the city council, sitting as a redevelopment agency board, on July 30. Bids were taken once before," he explained, but it turned out the low bidder wasn't bondable." se city-own- Esplin said the city views the new golf course as more than a recreational project. It is an economic stimulus for the area, he said. More holes will allow more people to come down in the winter time, he asserted. He said the city initially hoped that a private developer would handle die building of this major new golf course, but that didnt work out. We decided the city has got to take the initiative and do it, he said. A study is currently being conducted on the financial feasibility, he added. The tentative schedule for the project is that it will be under construction by late October or early November; the construction will be completed in three or four months; grass is to be planted next April; and the course is projected to be open by about January of 1989. The new city golf course project full-tim- Sexual harassment suit settled out-of-co-urt Dan Dickson STAFF WRITER ST. GEORGE - An settlement has been reached in the federal sexual harassment suit filed by three female employees of the St. George Police Dept, against former police chief Joseph Hutchings and the city of St George. Alan Boyack, representing the three women, along with Salt Lake City attorney Zane Gill, said Wednesday that an agreement satisfactory to both parties" was finalized at approximately 11:45 a.m. Wednesday morning between attorneys for the women and attorney A1 Larsen, who represents St George City. Boyack said the settlement was reached after 10 days of negotiating with the attorneys for Hutchings and the city, and that part of the agreement of the settlement was not to disclose the amount the three women - Tiffany Musser, Lynn Mitchell and Wendy Weston The present and past come together in SANTA CLARA Santa Clara at the historic home of pioneer Jacob Hamblin, where Amber, 6 (front), Aubrey, 4, Nicole, 6, and Gregory, 7, children of Greg and Jill Ence, try out a restored wagon. The children are descendants of the Ence and Hafen families, some of the first settlers of Santa Clara. Photo by Pat Mellor and along St. George Boulevard's north side between Main Street and the old Pioneer Courthouse, existing sidewalks will be ripped out and replaced, and planters will be installed against the storefronts and shrubs planted. Nicholson said property owners on that side of the street had expressed enthusiasm for the redevelopment agency's efforts, to improve the storefronts and indicated their willingness to participate. A commission member asked if the rear entrances to the properties could be included in a redevelopment project and was assured that this would also be possible under the district. A new $3 milST. GEORGE lion first class golf course that will be the best in the state is expected to be under construction by October or November, and ready winter to open by the 1988-8- 9 peak, according to City Manager Gary Esplin. An update on the city's golf course development was one of many topics covered by Esplin in a speech at the weekly Chamber of Commerce luncheon on Wednesday. The city manager took advantage of the opportunity to review for Chamber membeis the various ways that the city is attempting to meet the demands of its burgeoning population, including power, water, sewer, roads, fire protection, parks, downtown revitalization, and economic development. The city is expected to announce the selection of a top nationally known architect" for die new golf course project next week, Esplin revealed. We are going to build a first class golf course. We think it will be the best in the state a recreation, resort type golf course. It will be expensive. It will cost about $3 million to construct. A site selection committee has narrowed the alternatives to two, Esplin said. One is west of the West Black Ridge on private land, he said, adding I can't be more specific. This is his own personal favorite site, he told the Chamber. I have a little knowledge of golf, he joked, concerning his well-knoreputation as an avid golfer. It is extremely beautiful the best site in the entire state. The other site is on property pn the Red Hill. Esplin explained that it would be an entirely separate course from Dixie Red Hills, and would be an 1 course with the potential for expanding to 27 holes. is part of a concept the city is trying to focus on for economic development in the area, according to Esplin. The industrial development council has decided that with the assets of this area, it would be best to emphasize trying to bring in more recreation-relate- d activities, he said. Fitness city is what were calling it, Esplin said, explaining that the city wants to expand upon successful activities it already has, such as the Marathon, softball tournaments, and the upcoming Senior Olympics in October. As an example, he said softball tournaments this year have involved 264 teams and 5,000 people. Although the city has been actively involved in industrial development activity and is pursuing good leads" in an attempt to get new industry to locate here, Esplin said the city has so far not proven in the industrial competitive sphere. He explained that 10,000 different entities are competing for the 3,000 plants that open or relocate each year in the country. The odds are not in our favor, especially in the incentives were allowed to offer, Esplin said. We feel the direction to go is to make us a fitness city. We can capitalize on our assets and be more of a destination resort. The city is considering hiring a e person to coordinate the events, Esplin said. An example of a new event in the fitnessrecrea-tio- n area that the city is going after is the national masters 10K race. Were activly seeking it, Esplin said. The other major topics briefly touched on by Esplin in his wide ranging presentation were utilities and roads. He termed as staggering the growth in utility demand. If these growth rates continue, we will not be able to continue with the present base and will need to look for other revenue sources, he said. He pointed to the growth in utility billings in the city. The month of June, 1987 was 12 percent higher than June, 1 986, and a whopping 26 percent higher than two years ago in June, 1985. In the power area, Intermountain Consumer Power Association engineers have done an analysis of St. Georges power system and have recommended a $10 million plan to upgrade the current system, Esplin said. It would be phased in over five years, with $2 million built into this years budget. Two new crews are expected to be added in the Power Department next year to keep up with the changes, Esplin said. Some improvements have already been made or are in progress. Three new electrical substain tions have been built Middleton, Green Valley, and at Continued on Page 2 - would receive. The suit was originally filed in September of 1986 and was scheduled for trial on Aug. 1 0 in Federal District Court with Judge David K. Winder presiding. The suit will now be dismissed, bringing an end to the legal problems facing Hutchings, who was charged by the women of continual sexual harassment, which included continually kissing and fondling the women against their will. Earlier this year, Hutchings pleaded no contest to one count of lewdness, a Class B misdemeanor, in a plea bargain as criminal charges were also filed against him. Boyack said the city was named in the suit because city officials should have been aware of what was going on. Hutchings was hired by the city to be the chief of police," Boyack said. City officials should have known what was taking place." A spokesman for the city said Colonial Penn, the insurance carrier for the city, will pay the settled amount for both Hutchings and the city. Part of the agreement on the settlement was to drop City Manager Gary Esplin from the suit, according to Boyack. We actually dropped Esplin from the suit a month ago, but it was official two weeks ago," Boyack said. We took a lot of depositions and there was just not enough evidence to sustain a case against Esplin. The only ethical thing to do was to drop him from the suit." Boyack, speaking on behalf of the three women, who are all still employed by the police department, said the women are glad it's over. They are satisfied," he said. It is now over and the women can go on with their lives." Weston is the only female police officer employed by the city, and Mitchell and Musser are ROCKVILLE Robbie (with gun) and Dusty Jones polish their skills to participate with Springdale Ward Primary children in the Pioneer Day Parade. Robbie tries his aim and Dusty practices lassoing. The boys are sons of new Rockville residents, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Jones. Photo by Lindy Merry |
