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Show HOflG & SONS BOOKBINDERY " T - 17 RAIL ROAD STRFT R " " Vol. 7, No. 11 Wednesday, March 13, 1985 50 cents a single copy Contractors lobby against sewer hook-u- p rate increase By MARCELLA WALKER Several local contractors asked Pleasant Grove City Council Tuesday to not increase the sewer hook-u- p fees in order to encourage building in the community. In a public hearing to discuss raising sewer rates and hook-u- p fees, the contractors suggested that the present hook-u- p fee be lowered and that monthly customer rates be raised instead. The public hearing was held as a result of notification from the Timpanogos Special Service District that the four cities fees to the District would be raised by 15 per cent beginning April 1. In addition, the city operated the sewer system at a loss of about $16,000 last year. Mayor Holdaway noted that the sewer is expected to support itself as the city does not have the funds to subsidize it. The city engineer said he an-ticipates a shortfall of ap-proximately $58,000 in the sewer budget this year. The city paid $334,000 to the Timpanogos Special Service District this year out of a total budget of about $492,000. The sewer fund contributes about $54,000 per year to the general fund for services ren dered such as auditing, collecting fees, attorney fees, etc. This leaves only about $100,000 .that the city has control over and it goes for salaries, equipment, etc. The users in Pleasant Grove presently pay $7.50 per month basic rate plus 50 cents per 1,000 gallons of water used. The rate is based on meter readings during the winter months when water is not being used for lawns. The average user pays about $10 to $12 per month for their sewer bill. , The city engineer has suggested that the basic rate be raised to $8.50 per month plus 65 cents per 1,000 gallons. He also recommends that the sewer hook-u- p fee be raised from $1,000 to $1,400. The rate increase would mean the average user would pay about $1.90 per month more than they are now. The raise in rates would not put the city out of line with neighboring cities rates. However, the hook-u- p fee increase would make Pleasant Grove highest next to Alpine. One contractor said that he has several lots in Pleasant Grove but has not built on them because of the hook-u- p fees for sewer and water. .; Another contractor said that since there are many properties in Pleasant Grove just sitting because of the high hook-u- p fees, the city could encourage growth by raising the monthly rates a little more and not changing the hook-u- p fee, or better yet, by lowering it a little. Bill West, a contractor, stated that the total building permit fees in Pleasant Grove come to about $2,700 whereas the average in Utah County is $1,820. Alpine is the only one higher, he noted. He said that builders cannot continue to build here unless some help is given. He noted that building lot prices in the county are directly reflective of what the building fees are. If the hook-u- p fee were lowered to get the city nearer the average more people would build here and the difference would be made up. Stan Boyer asked if a study could be done to see what the actual im-pact is on a city when a new home is built. If the impact is great then perhaps the hook-u- p fee should be raised but if it is small then the city could consider taking money from the general fund in order to en-courage growth. Councilman Dell Young said he would like to know what the neighboring cities are considering doing with rates in the near future. Many are contemplating raises and if they do Pleasant Grove might not be so far out of the ballpark afterall. The engineer noted that the city has to do something soon since the District's rates will go up in April no matter what. He said the increase in user rates most directly impacts the ones who are on a fixed income. Mayor Holdaway said that in years to come the cities using the Timpanogos Special Service Treatment Plant may have the lowest rates in the state because the plant was on line early and other cities will just be developing and paying for theirs. The council was asked to consider other rate increase proposals before the next meeting so that a decision can be made. These suggestions included leaving the hook-u- p fee at $1,000 and raising the basic rate to $8.50 per month and 72 cents per 1,000 gallons; or raising the base rate to $9 and 65 cents per 1,000 gallons. These suggestions would be a $2.65 per month increase to the average user or about $14 per month total on the average bill. " ; 'I I I ' " ' - ' ' -- ..,. . . f i ; f ) v i ' ,.v i 4 i Robyn Steed, right, pins a daffodil on Mayor David Holdaway. The city council has proclaimed March 15 and 15 as Daffodil Days in Pleasant Grove for the American Cancer Society. Daffodil Days set The Pleasant Grove Unit of the American Cancer Society has selected Thursday, March 14 and Friday, March 15, for their Daffodil Days. A force of volunteers will be bringing this first spring flower, the flower of hope, to residents of Utah County as a major fund-raisin- g effort that signifies the start of the local Crusade against cancer. Donations collected from the flower sale will be used for cancer research, education and service programs of the Utah County District. Thousands of beautiful field grown daffodils will be coming into the area from the West Coast as part of a special shipment for Daffodil Day in Utah County. The daffodil is selected because it is one of the first flowers of spring and represents a symbol of hope for cancer patients. These fresh cut flowers will be sold at various locations throughout Utah County. Businesses and em-ployers will be encouraged to make advance order for distrubtion to their employees or as gifts to hospitals, nursing homes or homes for the aged. Residents, oppose zone change By KALYN SECRETAN The Lindon City Council room was filled to the brim and the crowd overflowed into the hallway on March 6 as neighbors came out in full force to protest a zone change. The zoning change was requested by Zion's Bank and Boyd Jensen of Quintek. Mountain West Marble and Tile also wanted to relocate in the area and were the only ones to have ,. representative at the meeting. Mike Marchbanks was the spokesman for the citizens group and he had prepared a video presentation for the Mayor and City Council and interested citizens to view. Mike represented all the citizens who live in the proposed zone change. The parcel of land in question was made up of 17.9 acres and residents surrounding the area want to keep it zoned residential. Basically, most people take pride and ownership in their property and feel a manufacturing district would lower the value of their property, he said. Twenty-on- e acres have already been set aside as an Industrial Park between the Railroad and the In-terstate. Industry was shown on the video as an eyesore to the city. Many businesses are folding up and many are displaying "For Sale" signs, leaving an unsightly mess. Land-scaping promises of trees, scrubs, etc., have been made in the past but has not come to pass. A car lot came in without anyone knowing and has been a problem to remove, a burned down building is an eyesore and many businesses were U;L.2ished years ago before zoning. ' came into effect, he reported. The present site of Mt. West Marble and Tile was shown and citizens were concerned about the outside appearance and possibility of toxic odors and tailings. The Council felt this is the best offer they have had for the property use and many clients have been interested in the property and been turned down without a hearing, it is the third time citizens have fought against proposals for the area, recently objecting to a trailer court going into the area. Some citizens ask why do we have to accept anything but housing? The council reminded them we have to deal with offers that come, people who are willing to buy the parcel of land. Citizens have committed to be totally involved until the property use is decided. The only citizen for the change was the representative from Mt. West. He felt his move to the area would be beneficial and increase the value of the citizens property. He noted problems with his property now located in the In-dustrial Park. The property is on a slope, the park is in the middle of a ., moat and there are ,problems v'i.t.h, water, streets and sewer. He has invested in new modern equipment and cannot stay there. He visualizes a building with retail and wholesale outlets and a showcase. The plan submitted by Zions Bank included four-plex- and apart-ments as a buffer zone. It was noted that at present lots have to be sold as one-ha- lf acre plots and young couples have to leave the area to find housing. Cities cannot exist on residential revenue alone, it was noted. It is a major problem because businesses would rather locate in the city than in the eyesore In-dustrial Park. The vote was taken and the request for the zone change was denied. In other council business, the Parks and Recreation reported the school district is allotted recreation money from each student. Part of the money has been received by Pleasant Grove and Orem depen-ding on the school students attend. The committee will request funds be distributed to the area where the students live. Water rates should be checked every three to four months. Hates were raised to meet needed costs but' they need additional lunrts lo provide a cushion. Water lines need to be changed and water needs to be checked frequently for excess chlorine. The Streets and Sidewalk Dept. will check which streets need the most attention and submit a priority equipment list. Water shut-of- f days will be on Monday or the first of the week instead of Friday. Bills should be in home owners name rather than renters. A zoning change was applied for by Shauna Hatch who wants to have an indoor arena in an existing barn, 23 of the area was zoned com-mercial and 13 It was moved and seconded that just the barn be zoned commercial and not apply to the whole area. MAG supports PG block grant By MARCELLA WALKER The Mountainland Association of Governments (MAG) has given its recommendation to a Pleasant Grove City request for a Community Development Block Grant to extend the sewer further into north Pleasant Grove. Mayor David Holdaway told the city council Tuesday night that MAG had approved $125,000 funding for the city. The recommendation must now be approved by HUD which administers the funds. Last year the city recieved $150,000 which was used to extend I the sewer along 1300 West to 1100 North. If the funds are approved for lh's year the city will extend the sewer line from 1800 North and 600 West on toward the north as far as possible. The city council has expressed its deep concern about the high ground water in that area and the health hazard that has resulted from overflowing septic tanks. The mayor said that if the grant is approved the work will begin earlier in the year so as not to run into bad weather in the autumn. He noted that MAG had $819,000 available for the three country area. The city had asked for $173,760 to extend the sewer. He also told the council that some block grant money may be available for weatherization and repair of low income housing in the city if there is a need for it. Sheriff candidates await decision Interim Utah County Sheriff David Bateman Thursday received the nod from the Utah County Republican Parly Central Com-mittee last Thursday evening for the position of sheriff. The central committee gave Bateman 111 votes in his bid to succeed Sheriff Mack Holley who resigned from the position Jan. 31. Also having their names placed in the running for Sheriff were American Fork Police Chief Randy Johnson, who got 57 votes, and Pleasant Grove Police Chief Michael Ferre. who had 23 votes. II. Toby Bath, a former Orem police officer, and Bart Lower, an area citizen, were eliminated from the race. Brent Morris, administrative assistant to the Utah County Commission, said the three names were brought to the commission office Friday. He said he doesn't know how soon the final selection will be made by the commission. Two votes were taken at the meeting of the Central Committee. The first balloting narrowed the field to three men. The second vote was to determine which candidate was most preferred by the delegates on hand for the selection. Raylene Ireland, county Republican Chairman, told the delegates they were being asked to vote this way so party leaders could tell the commissioners the partys' preference for the position. "We hope the County Commission will take that into consideration," she said. Bateman was nominated at the meeting by Sheriff Holley, who said "Utah County is a conservative county that needs someone con-servative as its sheriff. Dave Bateman is that man." His nomination was seconded by former party chairman LaVorn Sparks. Chief Johnson was nominated by former state representative Neal Evans with the nomination seconded by American Fork city ad-ministrator Robert Warnick. Each candidate was given the opportunity to tell his qualifications and why he wanted the appointment. Johnson cited change as the reason he should be appointed as Sheriff. "Any organization can benefit from new ideas." he said. Chief Ferre was nominated for the position by Utah County Attorney Noall T. Wootton. County treasurer Stan Walker seconded the nomination. He was portrayed as being "hard on crime." Mrs. Ireland expressed pleasure at the large delegate turnout for Hu-mecting, saying the turnout was one of the lxst in recent years by central committee members for a year meeting. ! PG-Lind- on eyed as possible GM site By MARCELLA WALKER N A 960 acre parcel of land on the fteant Grove-Lindo- n border Wow Geneva Road has been 8 Proposed by UVIDA as a possible 3 Sl'e'for a General Motors plant. J rvmn Higbee, president of I m the Pleasant Grove S uty Council Tuesday that the site is of four in Utah County and $; jmong several in Utah which have oeen suggested for the huge Saturn auto Plant. increased jobs by 4,500 inspite of the layoffs at Geneva and most of these have been through small business. He added that in Pleasant Grove there are seven potential business sites, 49 acres and 10 buildings. Richard Bradford, director of UVIDA, suggested forming a joint powers agreement where all in-terested groups in the county could look at tax benefits and costs and work towards a common goal. He said that Utah is still in the 8 nn'ng with 40 other states which 6 SUrV'Ved the f irst cut by GM as PlantSeek a" approPriate site for the i wihte.company has said they do not 1 Use 0ne of tneir Psent 5fs because this auto will be so bJ!Hent they want t0 start with a & new plant. ill6 plantis expected to hire about ! sal!mployees- - a"d Pres. Higbee I lal ,l With one of Utah county's N w0niumdustries cutting back, this J( be a great boon to the county. S 6 caT 1S t0 be released in about piS f?"ld be hy com- - I lnaW'ctUre '0W gaS mileag6' 1 ri2Sa PJ"P0Sal is now being 3 preS fnd readied for the next 3 5S wreiv!ach mayor in the I I'Vim H'gbee also noted that 'Sn0t just working on big 3 orkini GM deal b are also "1 PoUnLrM Sma11 business P" said Utah County has I Rev. Msgr. Dowling, Catholic leader, dies if''' ''" t ! Rev. Msgr. Edward F. Dowling, Monsignor at St. Peter's Mission in American Fork, died at his residence in American Fork on Wednesday, March 6. Monsignor Dowling had served at St Peter's Mission since April of t'lfll. coming here about seven years after church members had con-structed their new building. He was the first full-tim- pastor at St. Peters. He oversaw construction of an expansion of the church, which was dedicated October 28. 1983. and doubled the size of he facility. Plans had been made to observe his 50th anniversary in the Priesthood this June. Born in Ogden. Utah on August 1. 1906 to Mr. and Mrs. Edward Dowling. he received his grade and high school education in Ogden. He entered St. Joseph's College in Mountain View, California to begin his sfodies for the priesthood for the Diocese of Salt Iake City, com-pleting his theological studies at St. Patrick's Seminary, Menlo Park, California. He was ordained to the priesthood on May 30, 1935, in St. Joseph's Church, Ogden, by Bishop James Kearney. Monsignor's first assignment in the diocese was that of assistant pastor of Notre Dame do Lourdes Parish in Price in 1935. In 1938, he was transferred to the Cathedral of the Madeleine as assistant paster. Then in 1943, the late Bishop Duane G. Hunt named him Ad-ministrator of St. Patrick's Parish in Salt Lake City. He served as Moderator of the Knights of Columbus, and Director of the diocesan branch of the NCCW for a while. In Monsignor Dowling was appointed pastor of St. Patrick's Parish, a position he served in until his reassignment in 1951 to St. An-thony's in Helper, Utah. While in Helper, Monsignor Dowling served for several years as Dean of the Southern District of the diocese. In 1966, Bishop Joseph Lennox Federal appointed Monsignor Dowling to be pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in St. Lake City. In addition to his duties as pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes, he wasalso a Diocesan Consultor. In 1958, he was honored by His Holiness, Pope John XXIII, with the title of Domestic Prelate. Monsignor Dowling retired in July of 1980 - only to come out of retirement in April of 1981 when Bishop William K. Weigand ap-pointed him administrator of St. Peter's Mission. He is survived by his sister and brother-in-law- , Jack and Mary Renncr; niece, Mary Kay Case; nephew, Jack E. Renner, and great-niece- s and nephews Amy, Jennifer, Jessie and Justin Case. Holy Rosary was recited Sunday at St. Peter's followed by Memorial Mass, with Bishop Joseph Lennox Federal as the Principal Celebrant. Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated Monday, also at St. Peter's, with Bishop Weigand as the Principal Celebrant. Burial was in Mount Calvary Cemetery in Salt Lake. A Memorial Rosary Wake Service was also held at Notre Dame De Lourdes Catholic Church in Price on Sunday for parishioners and friends of Monsignor Dowling who were unable to attend the rosary or mass in American Fork. In lieu of flowers, the family requested contributions be made to the Monsignor Dowling Memorial Fund to be used for St. Peter's Catholic Church. Itev. Msgr. Edward Dowling |