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Show & aU I SS T &ri ?(T hometown Newspaper ,' ' v:-rV- ; v- SINCE 1915 March 15, 2000 . ?' Ik .mu Monticello Council continues by Anna Adair Electricity w'as in the air and on the minds of many present at the March 8 meeting of the Monticello City Council. As the March 22 deadline for a decision on the ownership of the electrical system draws near, there were many points to be made by citizens and council members alike. With this in mind, Councilman Evan Lowry announced that he has set up a special town meeting to be held tonight at the Monticello High School Auditorium. Lowry will present information he has gathered regarding municipalities and electrical systems, including those which have been purchased on the recommendation of Anton Tone, the engineer who suggested i Monticello purchase their t ah fwpo system. Lowry told members of the public who attended the council meeting that it is the intent of the council to do what is best. He pointed out that a vast number of hours have been spent by every council member to study the issue. Lowry said that they are looking at the decision from every possible angle. Councilwoman Julie Bronson Candidacy filing deadline nears pointed out that after hearing an overwhelming number of negative comments during public meetings held in the previous week, a number of Friday is the last day for can- in the November election. As of March incumbents 13, citizens with positive view didates to file for a host ofelected declared candidates are the be will contested only points have come forward to positions that for three open positions in state discuss the matter with council Bush, Gore win primary With the main presidential candidates already apparently set for the November 7 presidential election, few San Juan County residents participated in the first Utah Presidential Primary, held March 10. Less than 14 percent of registered voters in San Juan County voted in the primary. Nearly 63 percent of county voters in the Republican ballot support George W. Bush in his quest for -- g the presidency. Trailing Bush with 19.2 percent is candidate John McCain, with Alan Keyes gaining 15.4 percent. Of those seeking the Democratic nomination, A1 Gore outdistanced Bill Bradley by a 70 percent margin. Gore received 272 votes to 112 for Bradley. POOR COPY and county governments. Keele Lewis, and Norman Johnson, Johnson have filed for State Representative, San Juan County Commissioner, and San Juan County Clerk, respectively. There are three open positions on the San Juan School Board, with incumbent Paul Mantz declaring a candidacy for another term representing northern San Juan County. Two open seats on the School Board in the Blanding area are open. They are currently held by Preston Nielson and Pete Black. While neither incumbent has filed for reelection, Merri Black Shumway and Lynn Stevens have filed for the Second District seat on the San Juan School Board. Three candidates have filed for a spot on the Utah State Board of Education, including Sue Coles of Price, Earl McCain of Morgan and Richard Ted London, also of Morgan. The filing deadline for elected office is Friday, March 17. members individually. Bronson and other council members made it clear that there are two viewpoints even if one is not as vocal as the other. Councilman Clyde Christensen voiced his belief that a public opinion poll should be held to determine what the citizens want. Other members of the council felt they were being approached by a large number of the community and were getting a good feel for what the opinions are. Bronson also was quick to point out that the council did not look into the purchase of the system because there was something wrong with it, but rather it was their obligation because they were in office at the time the contract came due. If we hadnt looked at it there would be as many people angry that we didnt as there are right now! said Bronson. Utah Power and Light repre- sentatives attended the meeting Sharp answered questions relating to the operation and maintenance of the system. Electric. Tell us your name and cast a vote. j Buy the system j G Stay with Empire Electric Call 587-227- 7 nmslWKEKl Arts & projected attendance at the meeting, it will be held in the San Juan County Commission Chambers rather than the City Office at 7 p.m. Residents Burton and Diana Black approached the council to ask that they reconsider a decision to change the direction of yield signs on 100 West and 100 North. They asked that the signs be left as they currently are for safety reasons associated with the foot traffic of youth pedestrians on the street. The council approved reversing their previous decision. A request for payment was received from Sunrise Engineering for expenses associated with the water system project in 1999. Several hundred thousand dollars of unpaid bills are accumulating. The City states that the bills are for change orders that were not approved by the City. The council seemed to agree that they would be willing to pay for legitimate cost overruns due to additional changes and work on Silverstone, but would agree to pay for nothing else. They will be looking into the amounts associated with that extra work before offering a payment settlement. Lowell and Peggy Young, managers of Blue Mountain Meadows Golf Course, asked about the upcoming golf season. The Youngs are hesitant to sell annual passes and stock up on inventory if the golf course will (please turn to page 2) Confer- ence Center on schedule See page 3 - Blanding City Council news mination on purchase at the March 22 meeting. Due to the w system from Empire Walker was bombarded with questions comparing UP&L to Empire Electric. He guaranteed take over the system operations and maintenance. Walker said that UP&L has one of the highest standards in the nation and it is not their policy to build or maintain anything below those standards. He pointed out that a 10 year study was done for the City of Blanding by UP&L for the upkeep and improvements that needed to be planned for and budgeted in order to assist the city with their maintenance of their system. The electrical system will be a big topic of discussion as the council is set to make a deter- . Let us know your feelings regarding the proposed Monticello City purchase of the electric Council. Kay Walker and Ralph deteriorate if UP&L were to rvn w as anRG? at the request of the City that the system would not r WflWDED deliberations on electric system i .v W' - for san juan county, utah VoL84JJo23 Sheep looking for a meal may miss a spectacular view, , - See page 4 Letters to Editor - See page 6, 7 Stiff fine for elk poaching - See page Cave Man 1 1 cel- ebrates 20 years - See page 14 Mellow Mom See Life in Nutshell, page 20 FAT HERB NY Monticello Blanding Monticello had 8 of snow March 6, 2' March 7, 3 March 9 and 12 March 10. Blanding had 4 March 6, 1" March 7 and 9, and a trace March 8. INDEX NEWS ROUNDUP. LETTERS SOCIETY. SPORTS COMMUNITY NEWS OBITUARIES REAL ESTATE LEGA15 CIASSIFILDS 2 6 8 10 12 16 17 18 18 |