| OCR Text |
Show Volume XXV Issue VIII The Ogden Valley news Page 3 June 15, 2018 Letters to the Editor Weber County Needs Good Men & Women: Vote for Commissioner James Ebert Today, when it is hard to distinguish between fact and hearsay, the best we can do is look to our own personal experience to decipher the truth. We have personally witnessed the integrity we believe Commissioner James Ebert brings to the business of the people. In our dealings with Commissioner Ebert, he has shown a concern for the broader communities of citizens he represents. We appreciate a man who stands up for the right and not personal gain. One example occurred during the Ogden Valley Master Plan update. Hired consultants, Ogden Valley planning commissioners, Weber County planning staff and citizens worked diligently for two years crafting a document that thoroughly addressed Ogden Valley’s growing concerns with population density and its accompanying pressure on roads, air and water quality, and open space. In the past, the county gave developers a “bonus” of extra building lots if they cluster houses. The committees who worked on the master plan update removed these bonuses as they are essentially a “gift” to developers, and significantly increase density in the valley. Bonuses also increase property value to large landowners who sell their property for development. On August 30, 2016, the Ogden Valley Master Plan went before the Weber County Commission for final approval. Several large landowners were present who barely participated in the numerous planning meetings leading up to this point, perhaps rightly expecting that they could exert their influence at the last minute without regard for the citizen process. One of them, a politician with real estate and large landowner interests in Ogden Valley, took Commissioner Bell aside for a back room discussion. Another was a relative of Commissioner Gibson, who should have acknowledged this conflict and recused himself. Not surprisingly, Bell and Gibson voted to keep the bonus for developers, throwing the largest collaboration ever between valley citizens and experts “under the bus.” Commissioner Ebert vocally opposed this vote that undermined citizen faith in the process, and voted against keeping the bonus. He honored the process as he has on other occasions. Weber County needs good men. Vote for Commissioner James Ebert. He has our utmost respect. As an incumbent County Commissioner running for re-election, I am often asked what my accomplishments have been during my term in office. This is certainly a fair question. Where should I start? My first week in office, Ricky Hatch Clerk Auditor and Scott Parke Weber County Comptroller, informed me that the county was financially unsustainable in its current financial model and “would be bankrupt in three years.” During my first year we cut the entire county budget by 1%, reviewed the general fund to locate possible savings, and hired an internal auditor to identify financial controls and look for inefficiencies. We live streamed all commission meetings, provided a means for the public to obtain instant financial information and access to commission packets, moved hidden budgets to appropriate budget line items, and streamlined the GRAMA process. The second year, we made policy changes to employee benefits that eliminated $23 million in long-term liabilities, eliminated $1.3 million in subsidies to transfer station and sheriffs contracts, created a poverty initiative, and oversaw completion of the South West Branch library, $1 million under budget. Dave and Sharon Holmstrom, The third year saw the creation of an ecoEden nomic development plan, the hiring of a new Human Resources and IT Director to assist with increasing efficiency, and the completion of the Main Library, also $1 million under budget. I worked on issues regarding Pineview, transportation, and the impact that events have on the upper valley. While the tax raise has created a lot of even frightening, to these workers when they suddenly encounter cyclists riding on the wrong fodder for criticism, it is important for you to side of the barrier. “Many very dangerous processes are carefully choreographed to safely complete this work, but when cyclists ride on the wrong side of the barrels, it is unexpected and could result in serious injuries, possibly even death.” Saunders said an open lane is being maintained in both directions to keep traffic flowing during this project, and urges cyclists to use the designated traffic lanes. “When the Trappers Loop project is completed, we believe this will be a roadway that will be not only more effective in moving more traffic, but it will be safer for all of the cyclists who use it, too,” Saunders noted. “Please cooperate with our desire to complete this work in the safest way possible, so that everyone—workers, motorists, and cyclists—can get home to their loved ones safely each and every night!” For more information about this project, please contact the project team at udotregion1@utah.gov or call 801-904-4075. Cyclists Asked to Stay out of Barreled off Lanes on Trappers Loop Highway As reconstruction moves forward on Trappers Loop Highway this summer, representatives of the UDOT project are asking cyclists to please ride safely through the construction zone. Vic Saunders, UDOT Region One Communications Manager, reports that crews on this project have been repeatedly surprised to see cyclists riding within the area barreled off from traffic. He said riding this way is very dangerous for cyclists as, workers are not expecting to encounter them inside their safety barriers. “We put these barrels or other barriers up to provide a safe space for our construction crews to work, where they can rebuild the road while lanes are open for traffic,” Saunders said. “But these crews are not expecting to see anybody but other construction workers, who have been trained how to safely get through these areas and understand the work going on inside of those barrels.” Saunders added that it’s very unsettling, Ebert Runs for Re-election to Continue Positive Change Occurring in Weber County understand the justification for it. By my second year in office, every Weber County elected official and department head had contacted me regarding the alarming rate of attrition in their departments. The sheriff’s office lost 52 deputies over a two-year period; the county attorney’s office had lost so many attorneys that there was concern about having enough experienced attorneys to prosecute high profile cases, and the assessor’s office, planning, engineering, inspections and operations were severely understaffed and falling behind industry standards. Market studies reflected that there were serious compensation issues in Weber County. We were rapidly becoming a training ground agency. The sheriff’s office estimates it costs $30,000 to $40,000 to train a deputy. If we lost 52 deputies over a two-year period, 1.5 to 2 million dollars in sheriff personnel costs were lost. These are hidden costs that aren’t budgeted for. In addition, Weber County did not have a capital expenditure line item in the budget. This meant all capital projects had to be bonded for. The save and spend as you go model was not a viable option. Of the tax increase, $5,288,638 (72%) went to employee compensation and $1,562,000 (22%) went to capital projects. Of the employee compensation, 63.7% went to sheriff office raises and 36.3% went to other county raises. Gage Froerer is incorrectly stating that the raises disproportionally went to administration. Of the $5.29 million in employee raises, $3.3 million (82%) was given to employees earning less than $62,400 per year. The largest percentage went to employees within the LETTER cont. on page 9 |
