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Show TheEmeryCountyReview.com Region Ready Speed Racers Volleyball team set to take on region foes Derby pits wheelbarrow against bathtub C1 B1 REVIEW Emery County The Volume 2, Issue 37. 75 Cents Tuesday, September 9, 2008 Local News, Local Voice, Locally Owned Sitterud reinstated Commissioner returns to office, pleads guilty to misdemeanors James L. Davis Volunteers pitch in to help with the completion of the miner’s memorial in Huntington. Photos by Josie Luke Digging In Volunteers help to complete miners’ monument Josie Luke S ometimes miracles happen because good people respond in difficult situations. Such a miracle occurred as Emery and Carbon county residents responded to requests for assistance in completing the Huntington Miner’s memorial in time for the unveiling and dedication scheduled for Sept. 14. Literally hundreds of volunteers have spent countless hours completing the memorial, work on which had been plagued by delays. “I don’t think ‘thank you’ is adequate,” said Huntington Mayor Hilary Gordon. “I don’t think there can be enough said about how grateful we are as a city for the generosity of so many people. There are a lot of people on the program who will be recognized, but there are so many we cannot recognize. I hope they will receive their ‘thank you’ when they go up and see what they have helped to accomplish.” “It will be a lasting project that the families who lost so much can have access to to remember those who died. That is just priceless.” The many projects have been spearheaded by Councilmember Julie Jones, who earlier promised, “Whatever it takes, we will get it done.” Gordon revealed that Jones has been “practically living there,” supervising workers and volunteers, from church groups, to those working on Eagle Scout projects. With sod laying set to be finished by Thursday, organizers will begin setting up for the ceremony, which will indeed occur on Sunday. The unveiling will take place during a special program, scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. at the memorial site. Organizers will set up chairs and bleachers to accommodate as many as wish to attend. Gordon stressed, “Everyone is invited.” Drew Sitterud was reinstated as an Emery County Commissioner on Sept. 2 following a hearing where the three felony counts of misuse of public monies were dismissed. Sitterud was charged with two misdemeanor counts of wrongful appropriation, which he pled guilty to. Sitterud’s attorney, Sonny Olsen, said the commissioner pled guilty to the misdemeanor charges as a way to put the matter behind him before the upcoming election and to do so in the most cost-effective way for the county. “It is true there was a period of three or four months that I received reimbursement checks and I did in fact not sign them over to Emery County. They stacked up on me as I was attending to various county related matters, particularly the voting machine nightmare in January 2006,” Sitterud said in a letter to Emery County citizens (see Page A5). “Another basis for me not immediately signing the checks over to the county was the fact that, at the time, there was no policy on reimbursing mileage to the county. In short, I did not know who to give the checks to, what amount should be reimbursed, and whether I was being taxed for money I ultimately was not receiving.” “Two years later and the county still does not have a policy on travel reimbursements. This same thing could happen to anyone else today. There is still no way for anyone to know who to pay, how to pay or where to pay travel reim- bursements,” Olsen said. Emery County Clerk Auditor Brenda Dugmore confirmed that the county still has not addressed a travel reimbursement policy. Following Sitterud’s guilty plea Olsen s a i d they h a d sought t o have s e n tencing be m a d e Sitterud at that time to completely resolve the matter, but the state requested a presentence hearing and Judge Douglas B. Thomas ordered a presentence hearing. Olsen said the judge indicated a presentence hearing would help Sitterud. “We believe after the court hears our side of what really happened he’ll be very lenient on his sentencing,” Olsen said. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 30 before Judge Thomas. Following the hearing Sitterud drove to the county building and asked to be immediately reinstated to his office. His attorney indicated that with the felony charges thrown out the county had no grounds to continue his suspension. He was reinstated on Sept. 2. “He wanted to get reinstated so he could get back to work for the taxpayers,” Olsen said. There have been un- Continued on Page A3. Plan to keep one MK Tunnel open scuttled Josie Luke School enrollment continues to decline in county Josie Luke As the school year is getting underway in the Emery County School District, the School Board had a number of issues to discuss at the meeting held Sept. 3 at Castle Dale Elementary. Among the many topics discussed were enrollment numbers, a requirement from the state board for a resolution on vending machines and other food served during school hours outside of lunch and breakfast provided by each school, and a report on the governor’s task force on testing. Superintendant Kirk Sitterud reported that enrollment, though still lower than last year, was better than they had reported on the first day of school. Initially the enrollment had been down by 41 students from the previous year, but by Sept. 2 had grown by 17 students, to a total of 2231. The enrollment numbers are still a major concern for the board. At their height, 16 years ago, enrollment was at 3429. Since then, the numbers have continued to fall, and with enrollment now at 2231, there has been a total decrease of 1198 students. On the positive side, enrollments are rising in the younger grades, but with the enormous decrease in the secondary system, Sitterud revealed the problem now is “balancing staffing.” The predicament comes because the Board is hesitant to let go of good teachers in the secondary system which will later be needed when the increased numbers in the lower grades are older. But there is difficulty in balancing that desire with the needs for teachers as numbers in those lower grades increase. Sitterud expressed he hoped they would be able to find a way to balance the two for the time being. The Board also revealed that the State Board of Education is requiring each school district in the state to develop a resolution on the type of food and drinks sold at the school during school hours. This resolution, which must be implemented by January, will affect vending machines at secondary schools and any other food sold during school hours outside of school- provided breakfast and lunch. It will not affect that sold in concessions. Sitterud reported that the state had suggested a resolution which would require all food sold to have a certain nutritional value. Though the board members enjoyed a few minutes of discussion on the various options available, Marie Johnson summed up their responsibilities saying, “This is going to need some real discussion. This is a huge concern to secondary kids, but we need to look at it responsibly, especially with the obesity issues in the Continued on Page A6. The MK Tunnels issue has been batted back and forth between the Bureau of Land Management and Emery County for a number of years. The issue was again reintroduced by the Emery County Public Lands Council with their proposal to the Emery County Commission that they apply for a recreation and public purpose patent in order to keep one of the MK Tunnels open as part of a historical site. At the commission meeting on Aug. 19, the commissioners granted the request and directed the Lands Council to proceed with acquiring the patent, but on Sept. 5, the BLM reported that their solicitor, or legal council, advised them that they could not grant the patent because of the liability involved. Ray Peterson, public lands administrator explained, “Their solicitor called and said they couldn’t do it because it is taking the liability and passing it on to someone else.” The BLM will soon begin the process of reclaiming the tunnels, in concert with the Lands Councils’ plans to develop the area as a historical site, complete with several kiosks, and the council had hoped to preserve the historic tunnel so that those who visited the site would be able to understand the scope of the cold-war project. Yet, even with this complication, the project will continue. “We’re going to do something regardless,” Peterson said. “It would just be nice to have it open.” There is another avenue for the council to pursue, but Peterson declined to comment until more information is available. |
