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Show Volume VIII Issue XII THE OGDEN VALLEY NEWS Page 3 October 1, 2003 Letters to the Editor going to be accomplished, and how would they be funded? Would a city be more likely to obtain outside funding, such as grants, than a county? It should be noted in response to this question, that a city can qualify for grants not available to a county. Could a city attract more competition for private services such as garbage collection and telephone services? Would two cities in the Valley have even more influence to attract outside services? Fourth, Eden is the center of the growing recreational industry in our Valley. We are considered the playground of Ogden. Are most of the decisions involving the growth of this industry being made outside of Eden and even outside of our Valley? Has the county, in making its decisions, demonstrated that it is capable and fully engaged in planning specifically for Eden? Do we benefit from these decisions? Is there a better way to make such decisions? Would a city with our own government and our own elected officials be a better way? Could we elect good men and women to govern our city? Do you know of anyone personally who you think would serve well in our own government? Fifth, growth costs—whether we become a city or not—and you get what you pay for. None of us, however, is excited about the possibility of increased taxes. Who is going to pay for the changes? Is it to our benefit to allow the county to subsidize much of this growth? What might we be giving up to the county for this? Do we have the revenue or could we obtain the revenue necessary to support our own local government? A feasibility study would help answer many of these questions. Weber County believes the pre-feasibility study already answered the cost questions. They computed an annual shortfall of $526,555. However, when the members of the Eden Incorporation Research Committee met with the county certain criteria used were found to be unnecessary. Correcting that criteria and still using the county’s figures reduced this deficit by about $170,000 to $355,555. The county recognized this correction and challenged us to find a boundary and other revenue sources that might make this work. After much effort and some difficult decisions, we reduced the boundary and the annual deficit to a conservatively estimated $70,927, again still using the county’s figures. This would cost each property owner an average of about $50 a year. It is believed that a feasibility study might even reduce this to zero. I would therefore like to encourage the citizens of our community to sign the petition to request Weber County perform a professional unbiased “Feasibility of Incorporation” study. The cost to the county is minimal, less than one dollar per taxpayer. Will we ever really know if it is feasible and desirable to incorporate Eden until this is accomplished? I feel that the answer to the question, “When is the Right Time” to consider incorporation, is NOW. Jim Ormsbee, Eden Steering Committee for Research of Incorporation Flu Shots will be available at the Ogden Valley Branch Library on Thursday, October 16, from 1:00 until 3:00 p.m. Call the library at 745-2220 to sign up or for more information, call Applegate Homecare at 394-3250. Why You Should NOT Sign the Petition to Incorporate QUALITY OF LIFE JEOPARDIZED! Our community character, our rural lifestyle is already in place. If you wanted a community with more development, you should have moved elsewhere. Sponsors want to promote business, growth, and development. Though we all support our Valley businesses, we only encourage business development within the already established parameters of the Valley Master Plan. We moved here to see the stars, trees, and open space; NOT billboards, neon signs, and halogen lights. Let business evolve to meet the needs of the community, verses forcing community development to fit the needs of business developers. THE NUMBERS DON’T ADD UP! The county gave an initial estimate of a $526,000 deficit if the community incorporated. Sponsors gerrymandered borders until they could manipulate the figure to a $67,000 deficit. The discrepancy between county estimates and the committee’s proposed budget are too huge to ignore. Any increase is too much, especially when services will likely be diminished to cut costs. Communities incorporate 1) when they desire and are willing to pay for more services, and 2) when they fear and hope to prevent annexation by an already existing city. Neither is an issue in the Valley. DEMOCRACY AT ITS WORST! Sponsors lobbied large landowners. These people care about their community. They listened, asked questions and, in the end, decided that they were opposed to the incorporation movement. The steer- ing committee again gerrymandered the borders to eliminate them from the vote. DESPTE THEIR INSISTENCE TO BE INCLDUED, THESE PEOPLE WERE LEFT OUT OF THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS. People who are involved and contribute to our community—long standing families and newcomers—HAVE NO SAY in what happens to their community, and are no longer part of “our Eden” as the sponsors so poetically put it. To make feasibility numbers work, Snowcrest Jr. High and the LDS Stake Center, both hubs and the heart of our community, were left out of the proposed city. The intent was to explore options for Eden. Volunteers on original committees were pushed out when they began to feel incorporation was not the best option. Volunteers who wanted an honest evaluation of township vs. incorporation were told to go elsewhere. TAKE ACTION! Remember, only the people within the gerrymandered borders will be allowed to vote! If EVERYONE IN THE COMMUNITY DOESN’T GET TO VOTE, we should not allow this group of five to force the county to spend between $40,000 and $50,000 on a feasibility study. Call the sponsors of the petition for incorporation, and tell them to stop the process! Sponsors are: Steve Clarke 745-1348 Paul DeLong 745-9639 Jim Halay 745-0134 Dick Manley 391-1800 Jim Ormsbee 745-1677 Dave Holmstrom, Eden Rich and Kathy (Granath) Peterson, Eden Wayne Pack, Eden Lisa and Dick Arbogast, Eden GOLF COURSE LIVING SKI MOUNTAIN VIEWS TRAPPERS RIDGE DECORATED MODELS OPEN!!! Visit the new decorated model and choose from six unique floorplans offering two to five bedrooms, each with attached two car garages. Freestanding homes with common area maintained by the HOA. Built by Watts Enterprises, one of Utah’s premier homebuilders. Priced from $209,900 THE CASCADES AT MOOSE HOLLOW These townhome style condominiums offer 3 & 4 bedrooms with attached two-car garages. Master suite lockouts available with optional rental management. Unfinished basements offer room to expand. Built by Lewis Homes, developer of the very successful Moose Hollow Condominiums. Completion anticipated summer, 2003. Priced from $320,000 MOOSE HOLLOW Be a part of Wolf Creek's most successful condominium community. Rustic mountain design with 2, 3 and four bedroom floorplans available. Optional nightly rental management program and terrific on site amenities including pool, spa, sauna, locker area, volleyball, barbecue & picnic areas. Priced from $199,000 Build your own mountain home. Homesites available from $59,900. All information subject to change without notice. VISIT OUR REAL ESTATE OFFICE IN THE WOLF CREEK RESORT CLUBHOUSE OPEN DAILY 11 AM- 5 PM 3900 N. WOLF CREEK DRIVE, EDEN, UTAH (801) 745-2218 Toll Free (877) 492-1061 ext. 212 |