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Show The Ogden Painting by Steve Songer of Huntsville. Valley news Your Community Newspaper July 1, 2016 PRSRT STD POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 11 EDEN UT POSTAL PATRON EDEN-LIBERTY-84310 HUNTSVILLE-84317 OGDEN CANYON- 84401 HCR 843AO Our Parks Are Our Heritage…. Huntsville Town Park has been around since about 1861 when early founders hired a surveyor to lay out the community center, including a formal town square. Through the years, residents of Huntsville have paid taxes to develop and maintain the park throughout its history. Liberty and Eden Parks have a similar history. Liberty Park was donated to the Liberty Town Center in 1884 by John Marshall and was developed and used in conjunction with the LDS Church until 1974, when it was given back to the community for a park. Eden Park was established after Elizabeth Shaw Stewart donated the eight-acre square where today’s park is centered, and a two-acre parcel where the Eden fire station is now located. Prior to the fire station, the Eden school once stood there. After it was demolished, the property was used as an informal park area. Because there was no Eden town proper, the LDS Church became the custodian of the property until the Eden community could develop it. In the 1980s the State of Utah went to the Church and told them that they needed to develop the property or sell it. Church officials, in turn, told community members they needed to develop the 8-acre land and take it over. The land was “deeded” to Eden as a subdivision of Weber County. To receive and operate the parks, Weber County created the Eden Park District and Liberty Park District and appointed boards to manage the parks. Eden’s district collected an annual $10 tax fee from each Eden domain. Eden’s first park board was established in the mid-1980s. They created a master plan for the new park, and in 1988 development of the park began, with the horse arena being the first addition to the new park. Since then, the three parks have operated PARKS cont. on page 12 Photo by Norm Hall. Weber County Commissioners Present and Vote on First Reading of Resolution Addressing Overnight Watercraft on Pineview Reservoir By Shanna Francis Weber County Commission members Matthew Bell, Kerry W. Gibson and James Ebert met at their regularly scheduled Commission meeting on June 14, and presented and voted on a first formal reading of a resolution to amend the overnight watercraft and use ordinance as a means of addressing issues related to increased recreational use at and on Pineview Reservoir. The resolution was generated in response to community concerns regarding the level of noise from the reservoir, especially after 10:00 p.m.; garbage and refuse left on the beaches; inadequate restroom facilities; and unsafe parking along the highway surrounding the reservoir, especially near popular beach sites in and around Huntsville. In response to community complaints, the Weber County Sheriff’s office was initially asked by the commissioners to come up with a solution or idea to address the problems. The first suggestion was to adopt a vacating and hard closure ordinance that would prohibit overnight anchoring at the reservoir from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. This idea was deemed cost effective, would address officer safety concerns, and control nighttime noise levels and, possibly, the large amounts of garbage and debris commonly found strewn along the beaches and around overflowing receptacles. Due to the strong public outcry against this recommendation, discussions between the U.S. Forest Service, Weber County Sheriff’s Office, citizen and boating groups, and the County Commission—along with input from the general public—the county agreed to look at other alternatives and a workable compromise for “a win-win solution for all parties—property owners and community members who live around the reservoir and recreationalists,” the commissioners explained. Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest Service, Ogden District Ranger Robert Sanchez expressed his perspective. Addressing the commissioners, he stated that it was a well-known fact that the reservoir has seen a large increase in use. He suggested that the different groups work together to improve the situation, and talk about some of the challenges and find some ways to deal with the multiple uses at the reservoir. He focused on management issues, and PINEVIEW cont. on page 9 Motorcyclists Seriously Injured in Accident on SR 39 near Pineview Dam: Huntsville woman critically injured By Shanna Francis Two motorcycle riders on a single bike were injured, one critically, on Friday, June 10 after a mid-sized sedan made a left-hand turn in front of the riders on SR 39 in Huntsville near milepost marker 15, just east of the dam at Pineview Reservoir. At about 7:02 p.m., the eastbound vehicle, attempting to turn into a pullout area along the reservoir, veered in front of the westbound motorcyclist driven by a 51-year-old male who was carrying a 59-year-old female passenger on the back of the bike. Lt. Jason Talbot with the Weber County Sheriff’s Office reported that the couple was from the Huntsville area. A mid-sized sedan was struck by a motorcycle Neither was wearing a helmet when the accident traveling full speed on State Road 39, just east occurred. The female driver of the car, a minor, and of Pineview Dam, when the car made a left-hand ACCIDENT cont. on page 2 turn in front of the bike. No Fireworks Restrictions Ordered for Ogden Valley during July 4 Holiday By Shanna Francis Weber Fire District Fire Marshall Brandon Thueson states that no fireworks restrictions for the upper Ogden Valley have been implemented, thus far, for the July 4 holiday. Good news for this year’s patriotic revelers. However, Thueson did state that he is guessing that with current conditions and the way things are trending, there may be restrictions by the middle of July—a disappointment, perhaps, for those wanting to see sparks fly during the Beehive State’s birthday party come July 24. Thueson explained that restriction decisions are not subjective, but based on scientific data to see if they are warranted or not. He stated, “When we do implement restrictions, the decision to do so comes from collected information based on science—not opinion.” He added that the Fire District monitors fire hazard data almost daily. Particularly, they are constantly measuring the moisture content in a variety of fuels, beginning with those rated as light FIREWORKS cont. on page 7 Weber County Sheriff’s Office Introduces the New Dog in Town Say hello to “URL!” Utah’s first Electronic Detection (ED) K-9, or what some may jokingly refer to as Utah’s first “porn dog.” URL is a 16-month-old black lab that was recently acquired from Jordan Detection K-9 in Greenfield, Indiana. He is only one of nine certified ED K-9s in the country, and the only one in the Western States region. URL comes from the same trainer as Bear, the ED K-9 who played a key role in the arrest of Subway pitchman, “The Subway guy,” Jared Fogle. Specially trained to sniff out electronic storage devices such as thumb drives, cellphones, SIM cards, SD cards, external hard drives, tablets and iPads, URL offers a unique set of skills to aid investigators in fighting crime. Whether it’s child porn, terrorism intelligence, narcotics, or financial crimes information, URL has SHERIFF cont. on page 16 Valley Students Compete at Utah Jr. High School Rodeo Finals Forest Resource Advisory Committee to Meet June 28 The Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest opportunities through projects that improve the Resource Advisory Committee will conduct a meeting June 28, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. in the Forest Service office located at 857 W. South Jordan Parkway, South Jordan. The purpose of the meeting is to review and recommend Title II project proposals for Forest Service approval. The meeting is open to the public, and public comments will be accepted. Title II funds are authorized through the Secure Rural Schools Act for the purpose of making investments and creating employment maintenance of existing infrastructure, enhancing forest ecosystems, and restoring and improving land health and water quality. The Secure Rural Schools Act authorizes the use of Resource Advisory committees as a mechanism for local community collaboration with land managers in recommending projects on federal lands or that will benefit resources on federal lands. For additional information, please visit <www.fs.usda.gov/main/uwcnf/workingtogether/advisorycommittees> Notice of Public Hearling for Proposed Ogden Valley General Plan Wednesday, June 29 at 5:00 p.m. Weber Center Commission Chambers, 2380 Washington Blvd., Ogden See article on page 3. Above, Gracie Stickler of Huntsville is seen barrel racing at the Utah Jr. High School Rodeo Finals held May 27 thru May 28. Gracie is riding Strider, a quarter horse gelding. While Gracie started barrel racing only two years ago, she finished the season with a 10th-place statewide standing. See page 15 for more photos and the story. |