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Show Line Maryvale old for scrap BY PAT MELLOR The Marysvale Line of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad has been sold for scrap. Last week the D&RG sold the line, e whose length served the 180-mil- counties of Sanpete and Sevier until flood and slide damage closed it in 1983, for approximately Sl.l million. Purchaser of the lines materials was A & K Railroad Materials. The Denver and Rio Grande retains the land on which the railroad was constructed under the terms of the sale, and will proceed to sell that land after the salvage company is through hauling the line off, John Walker, chief counsel for the D&RG in Ephraim Mayor Bob Warnlck Is at tha controls of backhoo as thay propara to demolish old building preparatory to construction of a new food store In Ephraim. Principals In the company, Sanpete Shop and Sava, Inc." are Grant and Louise Stubbs, left; Barbara and Chris Alexander, center, and Allan Sharp, right. New Denver, grocery store to make debut in Ephraim full-lin- e Sanpete Shop & Save, Inc. util be the name of a new food store to be constructed soon in Ephraim. Ground-breakinwas held last Friday at 1st North and Main Street, where the new business will be located, t the stte,of,afomeLVrvice.. station. g Owners in the corporation which will build and operate the store include Mr. and Mrs. Grant (Louise) Stubbs, Ephraim , Mr. and Mrs. Chris (Barbara) Alexander, Ephraim, and Mr. Allan Sharp, Orangeville. Contractor for the construction will be Maple Leaf Industries of Ephraim. will handle the Blankenship-Barto- n demolition. The building will be approximately 6,000 square feet and the store will handle a full line of groceries, including produce and meat, Mr. Stubbs said. They will carry a full d selection of food and items, stated. Walker said two factors weighed heavily in his company's decision to sell the line for scrap: "The main thing is, they (A & K Railroad Uxate a solid purchaser for the line. At that time, the Denver and Rio Grande announced that it would call for bids on the line. Prospective purchasers could still bid on the line, working directly with the Denver and Rio Grande rather than with the State, whether they desired to operate the rail line or scrap it and sell the salvaged materials. The permanent closure of the rail line has impacted several communities in Sanpete and Sevier Counties, although in some respects the economic impact in Sevier has been lessened by the formation of l trucking companies which haul Sevier's products, primarily long-hau- coal, to other rail points, etc. Sanpcic County, whose coal resources lie largely undeveloped, has experienced a negative economic impact that brought unemployment into the 20 figures last winter. Sever.il businesses in the county have dosed ut direct or indirect as a result the rail line's loss. Sanpete County will continue to suffer for the loss of the railroad in other ways: without a rail line, and with no major Interstate routes through the county, fewer prospective businesses from outside the area will be interested in relocating, the availability of a despite dependable work force. Farm Bureau Talent Find Winners: Materials) guaranteed the money up front. The second thing is they agreed to have the job completed within 540 as well as deli food services and gasoline. There will be extended hours and holiday shopping. We selected a downtown site to more convenient access provide particularly for those who enjoy walking. However, there will be parking available,'' Mr. Stubbs said. off-roa- d It is anticipated that completion of the building wilf be in late fall 1986. days. Some of the land on which the line was constructed is owned by the federal government, Walker added, will sell the but his firm areas now in its posprivately-owne- d session. A spokesman for the salvage company said scrap taken from the line that is salvageable will be sold, mostly to other railroad companies the track. that can e re-us- non-foo- sale marks the end of a struggle by the economically depressed areas of Sanpete and Sevier Counties to retain their only rail service. The Personnel problems dominate commissioners meeting BY PAT MELLOR The Sanpete County Commission enjoyed a light agenda Tuesday, and devoted much of its time to ironing out personnel problems. The commission noted that Deputy County Attorney Curtis Jensen had resigned to enter a law practice with two other attorneys in St. George. County Road Supervisor Gene Bardsley has also resigned, and the Commission debated whether to advertise this position. Ultimately they determined to consult first w ith a member of the road crew to determine whether he would accept the position before placing an ad in the' newspaper seeking a new road supervisor. County grader operator Bruce Allred of Mt. Pleasant will retire next month, the commissioners noted, and Commissioner Keller Christenson advised that two other men serving in the present road crew had expressed interest in that position. Commission Chairman Wendell McGarry suggested that the county formulate an employee policy, saying there appeared to be a certain element" the among county that were to given employees insubordination. McGarry asked County Attorney Ross Blackham if a supervisor in a county department could at present lay off a worker for a week without pay for insubordination. Mr. Blackham responded that other agencies had suspended employees without pay for cause, but he added that he was uncertain what the county's policy was in this regard, or whether the county even had a policy. "We need something," McGarry stated. "We have to hire a new road supervisor now. We lose good people because they dont have authority or control." Commissioners Newt Donaldson and Keller Christenson agreed that the county should formulate a comprehensive employee policy, and stated that they would seek written policies which have been adopted by other areas to use as a guideline for theirs. Landfill update Sanpete County is still working on the acquisition of land for a landfill. Commissioner Donaldson stated. Meanwhile, the county is in the process of submitting the final contract papers on its funding for the landfill, and will send County Auditor Jay Alder to a briefing session in Salt Lake so that he will be familiar w ith the process of administering the (Continued on rage 2) School enrollment down enrolled in the program for handicapped children. This year's small decrease over 1985, of course, is significant in terms of financial support, since the states contribution to the districts is based on the number of students in attendance. students BY BRUCE JENNINGS With the South Sanpete Districts six schools now in their second week, total enrollment shows a small decrease over last year. This year are enrolled as 2,306 students with at this time last 2,337 compared year. The main decrease is at Gunnison Valley Elementary, with 550 in classes as compared with 57C last year. Manti High School is down from last year's 355 to 346. The other four schools are at about the same student level Ephraim Elementary has 373 students as compared with 1985's 370; Manti Elementary, 408 as compared with last years 407; Ephraim Middle School, 313, down two from 985s 315, and Gunnison Valley High, up 316 as compared with I985's 312. 1 In addition to the 2306 students in the regular school program, 26 are The decrease, almost entirely on the elementary school level, indicates of young a probable families because of diminishing employment opportunities. By grades these are the present enrollments in the district's six schools: Manti High School 9th, 95; 10th, 90; 11th, 87; 12th, 74. Manti Elementary School kindergarten, 66; first, 72; second, 68; third, 70; fourth, 65; fifth, 67. Ephraim Elementary School kindergarten, 52; first, 67; second, 67; third, 66; fourth, 50; fifth, 71. Ephraim Middle School seventh, 102; eighth, 105; sixth, 106. kinderGunnison Elementary 80; 84; 79; second, first, garten, third, 89; fourth, 73; fifth, 79; sixth, three-yea- r SENIOR DIVISION: Ut, Melody Hansen; 2nd, Lori Nay (not pictured); 3rd, Lisa Bawden. The line was closed at its junction with the main Denver and Rio Grande line in Spanish Fork Canyon in 1983, when the Thistle mudslide and subsequent flood wiped out the junction itself and large stretches of track. During 1983 and 1984, flooding undercut the line in several places through Sanpete County, further driving up the estimated repair costs. The DA.RG restored rail service on the the main line by route through Spanish Fork Canyon over Billie's Mountain, but balked at an outlay estimated as high as SIS million to repair the Marysvale Line. Sanpete and Sevier Counties formed a task force whose aim was to see the rail line restored. The State of Utah joined in the effort and attempted to force the railroad to restore the line, citing the railroad's government-grantemonopoly status because of its operating authority granted by the Interstate Commerce Commission. 3rd, Paula Christensen; 1st, Kristina Bailey and Carolyn Finllnson, 2nd place, see picture below. INTERMEDIATE DIVISION: d The ICC after lengthy hearings determined that while its sympathies were with the economically founderand industries ing communities formerly served by rail, forcing the Denver and Rio Grande to restore service on the marginally profitable line was not justified. The State of Utah appealed that decision, and in a second decision, the court gave the State the option of purchasing the line itself for $1.3 2nd million. place, Michele Sorensen, Erin Harword, Colette Coates and Emily Harward. 66. Gunnison High School seventh, 70; eighth, 54; ninth, 61; tenth, 43; eleventh, 47; twelfth, 41. 1985 was an unusual year for the district, with an increase of 100 students over 1984. Over the past 10 years, with just one or two exceptions, there have been small increases in student numbers each year. Enrollments tend to pick up after the first week or two of school and then decrease toward the end of the year as students, particularly on the secondary level, drop out. About half of South Sanpete District students now ride busses to school. They travel about 920 miles a day on the regular routes. Utah legislators no showed enthusiasm over putting the state into the railroad business, but did agree on a legislative appropriation of $1.3 million for the purchase of the line with the understanding that a private purchaser would be sought to buy the line at that price. One of the stipulations to the proposed sale was that the buyer would have to actually operate the line, not scrap it. At the time the states option was to expire, however, no buyer had been found who showed evidence of having money or adequate financing to operate the line. Two deadlines were ultimately extended before Governor Norman Bangerter was willing to concede that the State had exhausted its efforts to JUNIOR DIVISION: Dyreng. Ut, Mika Inouye; 2nd, Caml Dyreng; 3rd. Holly |