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Show 4irttrt' - i95jrase UTAH PRESS ASSN. 467 E. 3RD SO. SALT LAKE CITYr TlT8B-fl4- vn fite 1 USPS 3255-800- (wi1 leDKLlUCoj J ' 0 m J ruuiWVSfc) VOLUME 82 NO. 8 THURSDAY, DECEMBER S, 1 Mdu Ysf Ms"l!d wqd Ppsasss MAGNA, UTAH 988 84044 IM Magnas shrinking border KIM FOLSOM Magna Time Assistant Editor This will be the first segment In a series of present plight and hiture course. What happens is up to you. articles on Magna'f Magnas got a problem and its go- ing to get worse. Magnas borders are unprotected because as an unincorporated area Magna cannot protect its borders from adjacent cities. If any industrial or commercial development is done within a half mile of a citys border, the developer by law has to petition the adjacent city for annexation. To protect Magnas borders there are few alternatives according to deputy county attorney, Kent Lewis. The majority of property owners in the proposed annexation area can reject the petition to apply for annexation. Affected parties can voice their protest at an annexation hearing in the adjacent city. A taxing entity can protest the annexation such as the Magna Water District or Salt Lake County. Magna can incorporate or the community can try to seek legislation that will change present law so it will protect boundries of unincorporated areas. Community leaders can urge Salt Lake County Commissioners to try to negotiate boundries with surrounding cities. The county is also looking at the township concept that is used in Nevada to protect unincorporated areas. Mr. Lewis does not endorse any particular course of action, that he mentioned. There are problems involved with each course of action. Property owners can reject annexation but the interest of Magna and the property owners dont always go together, as in the case of the Hercules annexation) to West Valley City. If one major property owner is adjacent to the city his pro perty could be annexed withput the approval of surrounding property owners. At an annexation hearing in the city that wishes to annex a certain area, protests to the annexation can be made. But if the city in question really wants the land development in its bonders not much can be done here either. Protests from taxing entities due to loss of revenue are probably the best method of protecting the unincorporated area but .even these are a weak defense against the legislatively protected cities. New legislation would be the best way to firmly protect the unincorporated areas from the big city munch men. Unfortunately most of our Utah State Legislature comes from cities and has shown a reluctance in the past to change the present law which is weighted heavily toward the cities interest. The township concept would have to be approved by the legislature. Any serious effort to change the law would have to get a lot of press to have a chance at passage. The major problem with negotiated boundries is that to get them we would have to give up something because Salt Lake City and West Valley have no ' reason to limit themselves withput cpmpensation. And if that is not bad enough Magna has to go through the county to even propose negotiations on boundaries. Incorporation could be the only thing that will save Magnas identity. But there are many pitfalls to the incorporation of Magna. As it stands now Magna does not have the industrial or business tax base to properly incorporate. We have the choice of incorporating like Draper who was in a similar situation with no real tax base and a fear of being overtaken by San- - v . '&&! ' t' dy City; or Magna could build up a tax base and then incorporate. But because of the one half mile boundary law, we make any industrial or commercial property development on Magnas boarders prime pickings for annexation to ajacent cities before we could incorporate. One example of this could be the property on the northeast corner of 8400 West and 4100 South facing Hercules. When this property is developed the owners automatically have to petition to West Valley for annexation. We cant really look at West Valley City as die bad guy in Magnas plight. According to West Valley Assistant Attorney and Planner Gary R. Crane, West Valley has no plans to annex any of the Magna area at this time. He pointed out that out of 26 petitions for annexation to West Valley only two were accepted. The Reams area annexation was one that was rejected. West Valley has not had the reputation of land grabbing unlike more agressive cities but administrations change so Magna is not safe even with this knowledge. If Magna has anything to blame for its present plight, it is the commuity in fighting and lack of direction. Magna has let others from outside set its course. Now is the time for all in Magna to work together for the future, that is, if they want a future for Were use to being buried in our work at the Magna Times but on December 26th, Magna Times Assistant Editor Kim Folsoms car was buried in a foot of snow in less than six hours. New Director for Magna Recreation Center Magna. KIM FOLSOM Magna Times Assistant Editor Michelle Nekota will be the new director of the Magna Recreation ; Center. She is originally from Honolulu, Hawaii, where her father ljas just retired as director of Parks and 'Recreation for Honolulu City. She came to Utah on a scholarship to play volleyball at BYU. . Magna community and develop the Award in 1983. She then did some post graduate work at Utah State University and was the assistant volleyball coach for the Aggies. Currently Michelle is working on her The Utah Travel Council has just MBA at the University of Phoenix. Michelle has been with the Salt Lake published its 1989 Utah Travel Guide. The publication is a comCounty Recreation for the last 3 years of which Vh years have been at the prehensive source of information on all aspects of travel and tourism in the Central City Community Center and state. one half year has been with the sports It contains 101 color photos, 14 district. Before coming to Utah, she worked for the Honolulu City Parks regional, state, and city maps, descriptions of Utahs 14 national parklands, and Recreation. She is excited about taking over the listings of 422 public and private campgrounds in the state, and a section on Magna post and working with the the services and accomodations in 198 various community organizations. Utah cities and towns. Michelle wants to be involved in the The Travel Guide includes an exMagna community and develop the panded write-u- p on the states national Magna Recreation Centers programs forests and B.LM. lands, and a new in a way that best helps the needs of section on Utahs state parks. the community. One thing she would There is detailed information on the like to do already is to tie the recreaevents and attractions in Utahs nine tion center more closely with the travel regions and general information Magna Community Action Center on the states history, climate, liquor programs and help out the CAP in whatever way she can. laws, and recreational opportunities like skiing, river running, camping Michelle worked with the Salt Lake and backpacking, hunting, fishing, City School District in developing an afier-schoAdventure Program to boating, and jeeping. Also included is a 1989 Utah Calendar of Events. help kids who were out early on FriCopies of the 1989 Utah Travel day and needed constructive activities Guide are available, free of charge, at to finish the day. She also is proud of the offices of the Utah Travel Counthe fact that she developed a county cil in Council Hall on Capitol Hill and wide sports program in volleyball at the offices of Utahs nine travel enlarging the program from 12 to 128 regions around the state. COPPER DAYS MEETING SET FOR JAN.18 - yv'S Utah Travel Council Travel Guide Out 88-pa- The old and the new Bingham and Garfield track in foreground, with part of Coonville in the background. Coonville XXIV Roots and Old T.R. , ol by W. Kent Goble Times Feature Writer Magna The census of 1880 for Pleasant Green precinct lists only 180 persons. The vast majority of these resided in the twin villages of Pleasant Green and Coonville; perhaps forty households in all. Until 1877, they had relied upon the jurisdiction of established wards in Salt Lake City, almost twenty miles away, for their ecclesiastical administration. Of course, almost without exception, residents in Salt Lake Valley in those days were at least nominally Mormons. Being nominal in those days rated your being counted in the apostate category. And having no affiliation at all fell under the appelation of gentile. Strange, but true. What does not seem readily apparent, until records are examined, is the fact that many who later came to call Coonville or Pleasant Green their home were the first neighbors in the old sixteenth ward in Salt Lake City during the 1850s. The Wolstenholmes op Sixth West Street, the Reids on Seventh West, and Peter Reid on Third West. William Derr south of Union Square and opposite Abraham Coons lot on the west side of the road next to the old log meetinghouse. On the south side of the meetinghouse, the lots of Daniel Spencer and Frederick Kesler. To the northeast, the adobe rock schoolhouse. Next door was William Walker. Across the street was Sutton property, next to John Boucks place. Other names familiar to the oldtimers of Coonville and Pleasant Green included John the Baptist Cottam, the Days, and the Parrys. Also, Henry Cumberland, who had been in Carson Valley with Abraham Coon; Alex and Hyrum Bouck, Priscilla Kimball, Mercy B. Thompson, Shadrach Roundy, Joseph Fielding Smith, David Wilding, John and James Haslam. Not to mention the likes of Dimick B. Huntington, George 0. Riser, William C. Staines, Benjamin Rolf, Elnathan Eldridge, Heber C. Kimball, and George W. Mousley. Friendships first established in the sixteenth ward flourished later. Ties developed in the 1850s became the roots from which the foundations of the pioneer villages of Coonville and Pleasant Green were established. And, in many instances, friendships were later bonded into permanent relationships by marriage. Most of the families had weathered the persecutions in Missouri and Illinois. The Perkins and Coon families, for instance, had lived on the Crooked River in Illinois, east of Nauvoo. Their homes were burned by mobbers and they were driven from their farms. Some three decades later, they were again neighbors, the Perkins in Pleasant Green, the Coons in Coonville. CONTINUED ON PAGE 5 Sheriff is watching for Drunk Drivers This holiday season. Sheriff N.D. Pete Hayward is again placing special emphasis on the apprehension of alcohol or drug impaired drivers. A special team of deputies schooled in drug recognition will be working the streets to identify drivers who abuse drugs while driving. Citizens who observe suspected drunk drivers should contact the Salt Lake County Sheriffs Office, or other appropriate agency, to report the location of the driver, the description of the vehicle, and the physical description of the driver so that Sheriff's Deputies may take action to get these drivers off the street. During this holiday season, many of us will be attending parties where alcohol is served. Of the 297 people killed on Utah highways in 1987, 82 deaths were alcohol related. About 44,000 people die each year while driving in the United States. Alchol is a factor in at least one-ha- lf of 'nose deaths. Just one drink can affect your ability to drive. Driving skills are often seriously unpaired long before legal limit is reached, especially for young adults who have a lower tolerance to alcohol than other groups. In Utah, a driver is considered to be under the influence at .08 or above. Surveys show that the chances of a car accident increase 1 Vt times at .05 , 2 times at 7 times at .10, and 25 times .06, .15 at v If you are planning to party, plan ahead. Appoint a designated driver, call a taxi, or plan to spend the night. If you are providing your guests with alcohol, YOU could also be held liable for injury caused by guests after leaving your residence of place of business. To be a true friend, you should offer to arrange transportation if your friend has had too much to drink. If the driver insists on drinking, take the car keys away. When a friend is too drunk to listen to reason, its up to yo to take control. There is no quick solution to sobering up fast. It wont help to take a cold shower, drink black coffee, or walkout in the fresh air. Only time will help. Please, dont be or cause another person toe a statistic. Plan ahead and have a safe holiday season. . ' -- ' ' q M Michelle Nekota Is the new director of the Magna Recreation Center. She looks forward to getting Involved with the Magna Community and working with the various community organizations in her new position. teams that play all year round. Another project that Michelle has put a lot of time on is the Salt Lake City and County Recreation Tournament for the Homeless. Each player who participates in the tournament has to bring in a can of food for the homeless. Michelle has the experience and the enthusiam to make the Magna Recca-tio- n Center program even more exciting than it already is. Welcome Michelle to Magna! Brockbank on Drug Free List KIM FOLSOM Magna Tunes Assistant Editor To help correct the teenage drug epidemic in America the United States Department of Education started a Drug Free Program in the Schools around the nation. Only 100 schools nationwide are chosen as exemplary drug free schools. Last year North West Intermediate School was chosen from Utah out of an allotment of five schools that could be nominated. Brockbank Junior High was also among the schools nominated last year out of the hundreds of Utah Schools who participated in the program. This year they are again among the nominees for the Drug Free Award. Mary Lou Bosich, Specialist for Substance Abuse Prevention and Educational Programs for the State of Utah, believes that Brockbanks program looks even better than last years. She also noted that national inspection teams will be going through nominated schools from January 16 to March 16. The schools have already been judged by a local panel made up from parent groups, community groups, education, and law enforcement. The effort by Brockbank admistration, teachers and students is one that is worked on each and every day. It is quite an honor for the Magna community to have Brockbank nominated two years in a row for the Drug Free Award, and hopefully this year Brockbank will gain the recognition that the school deserves. Brockbank Junior High School Drug Abuse Prevention and Drug Free Statement Principle I: All students have a right to anend school in an environment conducive to learning. Since alcohol and other drug use is illegal, contagious, and interferes with both effective learning and the healthy development of young people, the school has a fundamental legal and ethical obligation to prevent educational environment. drug abuse and to maintain a drug-fre- e Principle II: Given the extensive abuse and the formal and informal promotion of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use in our society, the school has an obligation to provide drug education united integrated within the standard curriculum at all grade levels. These units are necessary to prepare students to decide against drug and alcohol use. Principle III: Drug education must be based on accurate and scientifically valid information concerning the health and developmental hazards of all abused drugs, including such socially sanctioned substances as alcohol and tobacco. Principle IV: Drug policy guidelines must be clear and unambiguous. They should be communicated formally to students, staff members, and parents, every year, in writing, as part of the code of conduct. Principle V : Policy guidelines must be legally sound and consistent with the environmem conducive to right of all students to be educated in a drug-fre- e learning. Principle VI: Policy guidelines must be applied uniformly. Principle VII: Whenever, pssible, support for the policy should be obtained from parents, teachers, other community institutions, and the students themselves. Principle VIII: Although parents have the ultimate, primary responsibility for their childrens drug use, individual differences in parental standards regarsetding their childrens alcohol and drug using behavior in tings cannot be permitted to compromise the environment. Schools cannot respond to the least common denominator. Even if parents tolerate their childs illegal drug and alcohol use, the school cannot do so, either legally or ethically. Developing a prevention program that integrates classroom behavior is not an easy task, but school policymakers with the courage and commitment to will hr hr;H:rr Hrip.fw rVri treet fhv |