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Show mje Pauunu Number 29 Volume Wednesday, July 16, 1980 91 Beehive Cement Plant rezoning is approved by Planning Commission 2 In a split vote the Utah County Planning Commission voted to recommend rezoning 40 acres of orchard land near Keigley Quarry to permit the building of a cement plant. Previously the commission had voted against the rezoning. n The vote came in Planning Meeting Tuesday. The meeting had to be moved to a courtroom in the Utah County Building because so many people showed up. The meeting was the second attempt by Beehive Cement Company of Salt Lake City to have the commission recommend a parcel 3-- 4-- 1 Com-cissio- of agricultural-land be rezoned to Mining and Grazing-1- . The land is adjacent to the M & l zone on which the Keigley Quarry is located. If built, the plant would create 75 jobs, with a payroll of $1.75 million per year, and pay $440,000 in taxes in Utah County. The plant would also necessitate expanding the work force at 1 G-- Keigly Quarry. The recommendation of the planning commission will be sent to the Utah County Commission, which will either approve or reject the rezoning proposal. The West Mountain District Planning Commission opposes the rezoning. During the meeting a spokesman for Beehive Cement ComW. Allan Flandro, pany, the that plant reported to meet will be required Environmental Prostringent tection Agency Standards on air pollution. Proponents of the plant emphasized the need to expand the tax base and provide jobs in Southern Utah County. Speaking in favor of the Cement Plant were Hugh Hjorth, President of Nebo School District; Representative Lucille Taylor; Dick Bradford, Director of UVIDA; and the mayors of Payson, Gary Hansen; Spanish Fork, Brent Hansen; Salem, Harry Davis; and Santa-quiRobert Steele; and Max Nelson representing Genola Town. Other proponents were: George Gardner, representing employees of Geneva Steel, Harold Lassen, the Carpenters Union; Ray Johnson Superintendent of Keigley Quarry; Vance Abbot, Operating Engineers Local representative; and opponents said they were not against a cement plant in Southern Utah County. They only opposed the location of the plant in an area presently zoned for agriculture. They indicated there were alternative sites in the area. Speaking against the rezoning were: Reid Wayman, President of the Utah County Farm Bureau; Melvin Meredith, Chairman of the. West Mountain District Planning Commission; Reed Rowley, orchard owner and Don Brown. When the vote was called by Chairman Keith Richan, Commissioners Merrill Fox and John Patrick voted against recommending rezoning. Fox warned against what he called the gradual loss of valuable farming ground noteing the importance of agriculture. Voting in favor of the rezoning were Commissioners Clair Porter, Boyd Park and Lew Christensen, of Salem. Chriostiansen, who was the only commissioner to vote in it of rezoning when favor was first requested said, I love farming too, but, you cant buy peaches if you dont have jobs. The next move in approving this site near Keigley Quarry for a cement plant is up to the CountyCommission. Impact of growth discussed at 80s agenda meeting Fifty concerned citizens met with members of the Governors Agenda for the 80s Commission Wednesday in the Spanish Fork High School Auditorium. The commission is seeking input regarding the problems citizens see facing Utah in the coming decade. Among the concerns expressed were, the need for a severance tax on coal and other energy resources to help pay for resources to help pay for the costs of growth state-widThe need to determine what level of quality we want in education and how to pay for education with rapidly e, Water safety is topic of meeting Thursday The fate of the Geneva Steel Mill depends on EPA negotiations and maintaining marginal profits. Rumors of Geneva closing unfounded Rumors of the Geneve Steel Plant closing within the year are unfounded according to Jack spokesman for Geneva Bollow says Geneva Steele. will remain in operation as long as the plant continues to show marginal profits. Rumors of the plants closing have been sparked by recent cutbacks. Since the first of the year, a total of 950 people have been Included in affected by this number are 350 employees on And temporary furloughs. 320 of these people have already been called back, reports Bollow. rehabiliWhen the tation is completed, 100 more employees will be called back. This leaves 500 people on indefinite Its hard to predict whether more can be expected, That depends a Bollow. says great deal upon inflation. Most of the steel plants orders are for the construction and agriThese two culture industries. industries have been hit particularly hard by inflation, according to Bollow. Bol-Io- lay-off- s. coke-ove- n lay-off- lay-of- fs s. repons tne dumping of on the American steel foreign market adds to the inflation problem. Geneva would be able to if the compete successfully federal government would ene laws. force Donow fair-trad- feels the government e should enforce the laws as stringently as they enforce EPA standards. Bollow fair-trad- Contrary to some reports, the issues are not settled. Adding now to tough air pollution requirements are the recent water pollution controls. EPA Geneva is waiting for an estimate from the EPA on the cost of a water pollution system, plus the air pollution equipment. If the estimate is in excess of marginal profits, it would not be economically feasible for Geneva to remain in operation, says Bollow. Although devices do not add in any way to production or profits, Bollow reaffirmed Genevas efforts to meet EPA A reasonable settlestandards. ment with the EPA is hoped for, he indicated. In spite of the EPA threat, Geneva continues to show marIt is the quality ot ginal profits. e the that has made the difference in keeping up marginal profits, comments Bollow. A recent study prepared by Clyde Ormond of Job Service shows the contribution Geneva makes to the economy of this work-forc- valley. Each person employed by Geneva has a multiplying effect of 2.86 on the total economy. That means, he explains, for every person working for Geneva, 2.86 people are put to work elsewhere in the valley in various service positions. Besides the 5,500 direct jobs created by Geneva, therefore, another 15,730 indirect jobs can be attributed to Geneva. Considering the indirect jobs, Geneva contributes a total of 22,130 jobs to Utah Valleys job market. That is more than of the valleys 66,000 jobs. one-thir- d The Payson Area Water Safety Committee, a group of citizens concerned with the elimination of water hazards in Payson, met on June 6 to gain input from other interested citizens. Only two other than committee people, members showed up. The committee, consisting of Kenneth Richard Saunders, Shepherd, Larry Carter, Greg Utley and Barrie Campbell, was formed this year following the tragic death of a youngster in an irrigation ditch in southwest Payson. The goals of the committee, according to Barrie Campbell, are to identify existing and potential water hazards and to minimize the He reports dangers involved. that the committee is interested in gaining as much information as possible, educating the public, and later making specific recommendations to city and other officials involved in water in the Payson area. The five man committee neeeds To says, Campbell help. we need the organization complete five or six more volunteers. He urges everyone that is interested in water safety to attend the committees second meeting to be held Thursday, July 17 at 8:00 p.m., in the Payson City Council Chambers at the former Payson Hospital building. For more information about becoming a member or for obtaining forms for input, contact the Pay-so- n City Office. Unemployment 5.8 A chain reaction of unemployment is feared in Utah County as a result of layoffs at Geneva Works. The unemployment rate in Utah County increased sharply again this month to That puts the county average above the state level of according to Utah County Job Service. Unemployment normally peaks in January or February and then declines monthly to a low point in October. However, this year the rate increased by Vi percent from April to May and by .03 from May to June, according to statistics reported by Job Service. The number of persons filing for unemployment benefits have almost tripled since June of last year, says labor market analyst, 5.8. 5.5, Those suffering Clyde Ormond. most are the middle classes with fixed incomes. - layoffs at Geneva, Ormond says, will promote a chain reaction of layoffs in the county. Those now unemployed will cut back their spending, local businesses. affectingucuon employment is also being curtailed, with the number of building permits in Utah County decreasing by 50 from last year. Last year totals at this time included 1585 building permits, as compared with only 775 this year. Agricultural employment seasonally increases this time of year and was up from last month. However, the annual figure is still below last springs. Recent- expanding school enrollment. Other concerns were over the need for cooperation among cities and counties on public utility projects such as water and sewer, the need to use volunteer community resources and the need to plan for increased demands for recreation. One of the most mentioned problems was expressed by Utah County Commissioner Ken Pina-ge- r when he said there was a need to keep the decision making at the city and county level, not to allow state and federal bureaucrats to dictate and regulate in so many areas. The information gathered in the meeting and others like it held through-ou- t Utah will be used by the commission to establish a list of concerns and suggestions to be used by the governor and state legislature in facing the problems for tb" eighties. Nineteen year-old- s must register for the draft Young men in the Payson area are required to join others throughout the nation in registering for the draft during the next two weeks. The law, recently enacted by Congress, required all male U.S. citizens who were born in 1960 r 1961 to register at any post office. Those born in 1960 are to register next week, July Those born in 1961 will register the following week, July 28 to August 2. to Pavson PostAccording master, Richard Bell, all post offices in the area have received orders for registering young men for the selective serice. All that is required is for those who must register to bring some form of identification to the post office and fill out a form. If you need more information you can contact the selective service at 600 E. Street N.W Washington, D.C. 20435. 21-2- 6. |