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Show CQl Review -- Wednesday, June 4, 1986 -- age 2 North county has strong candidates for commission There is a good chance north Utah County will have elected representation in the Utah County Commission this year - representation the area lost two years ago when Oneil Miner defeated Keith Richan in the Republican primary. That issue could be resolved Saturday, when the three Republican Candidates for the four-yea- r commission seat will be pared down to two, or one. Two of the can-didates, Malcolm Beck and Robert Warnick, live in American Fork. The third, Keith Haslem, is an Orem resident. If delegates at the convention give any one of the candidates 70 percent of their support, that candidate will avoid a primary election contest, and will face Democrat David Greenwood, also of American Fork, in the general election. If no candidate can get 70 percent of the delegate vote, the top two vote getters will run against each other in the August primary. In other words, if Haslem is the odd-ma- n out Satur-day, the northern part of the county is guaranteed representation. And Warnick and Beck both look like strong can-didates for the Republican county convention. Warnick has an impressive list of qualifications, in-cluding a masters degree in public administration and service as an elected state and city official, an ap pointed city recorder, a registered lobbyist and a current member of the county commission. However, his last five months as a commissioner have brought Warnick the type of county-wid- e exposure needed to dominate the convention and primary elec-tion. Warnick's campaign is well organized. He says he's contacted over 70 percent of the 1,000 county delegates, personally seeking their support and has been well received. But as an appointed, rather than elected, com-missioner, Warnick lacks the advantage of demon-strated public support to back up his private con-victions. Nevertheless, Warnick is eloquent and has worked hard to meet with every community in the county during his few months of county service. Beck, on the other hand, had 13 years of exposure as the high-profil- e Mayor of American Fork, where he proved to be a tireless worker and held what many consider to be the most efficient city council meetings in Utah. In his role as Mayor, Beck served on countless county and state committees, and demonstrated a remarkable ability to grasp and manage detailed information. And he has never hesitated to take a stand on any issue. This election is no different. Beck has outlined some strong points for his candidacy --- criticizing the raises commissioners gave memseives last year and blastin the current practice of hiring high-pai- d administrative assistants to do work Beck says the commissioner should be doing. Beck is promising to clean house if he is elected and if he can get support from a fellow commissioner. Beck ruffled some local Republican leaders' feathers in the area two years ago when he supported Democrat Ted Wilson over Orrin Hatch; that's a decision he still stands behind and is willing to defend. Nevertheless that may hurt him in the Republican Convention, where party loyalty is important. But it's his attitude gives Beck a certain grass roots appeal - and a possible edge in the voting Saturday. In this three-wa- y race, Haslem would have to be considered the weakest candidate, since he is a relative newcomer to Utah County politics. And that's good for the northern part of the county. It was demonstrated two years ago that local voters can no longer rely on any "gentleman's agreement" to ensure geographical representation at the county level unless our form of county government is changed. The best course for our area is to put forth strong candidates, like Warnick and Beck, and rely on the voters to make the right decision. This is the process that will begin Saturday. School year shorter than ever By MARCELLA WALKER p.g. blab For all you mothers who have just barely survived the past few days when school has been out for the summer, may I say, "Join the crowd." Last Friday when the Downtown Park was full of a few hundred junior high school kids, with a few sixth graders and a few high school kids thrown in, it hit with a bang that this was a very short school year. As the shaving cream, squirt guns and water balloons made mayhem in celebration of the end of school, the quiet of the morning was seared with the knowledge that as parents we are faced with another three months of finding stuff for the kids to do. How coud kids who were so glad to be out of school for the summer get bored and be ready to go back'jto' school ( "but just to see my friends" ) in just two or three weeks? That is the way it will be, you know. I saw a very harrassed-lookin- g Arlene Jense down town the af-ternoon school got out and I told her she looked relieved. She replied, "Did you see all those kids today?" I nodded my head, knowing just exactly what she meant. As mothers begin a three-mont- h seige of trying to keep from coming unglued, the teachers will reinforce themselves for the onslaught coming up in just three months. What is a short period to the teachers, seems an eternity for many mothers. Some mothers tell me that they love having their kids out of school for the summer and look forward to having all kinds of comradery with them. Others just moan when asked the house, how to make the time pass so that they would be back in school again. Each new day I would rise with a new plan, some new ideas, a positive feeling that me and my kids would have a grand day. It did not take long, however, before I was mumbling to myself, looking for an excuse to leave home, and trying to get the kids outside in the healthful sunshine when they did not really want to go. I would hire a baby sitter, or when the older kids were old enough to tend, leave and go to BYU's Education Week where a variety of instructors would tell me how to be the best parent in the world. The longer I sat there the more guilty I'd feel and soon I could not wait to hurry home, throw my arms around those children of mine and tell them how much I loved them. I did love them, with all my heart. This did not diminish the wish that they could either get along really great together or school would start soon, which ever came first. I took classes in how to get them to get along well together. I listened to the Mother of the Year on numerous occasions. I heard every plan ever concocted by a desperate mother, I tried several of these plans. Some actually worked for one or two days. I honestly believe that some of those grand mothers lied to us. Why couldn't I get their plan to work? If I couldn't, I'll bet they couldn't either. No one could have kids that well behaved and well trained, could they? What ever the case, I never could get it to work. I fluctuated con tinually from frustration to desin for perfection. The poor kids had t have been confused. I was confused It didn't help a lot for them to tur: into teenagers. Unless they had a jo! which took up a lot of their time they were soon bored to tears. They can't take the car becausei is too costly for gas, let alone Hi wear and tear on the car. They won' take lessons anymore because il not cool. They won't go do good deeds In people because it is embarassing They won't do good deeds for theii parents because they just won't. They won't work for their parent because it is no fun. They would the same job for someone else, ever though their parents would pay fa just as much to do it, because toil would be a "real" job. "' They sleep late in the mornings, stay up late at night, and beg fortk car in between. They have no friends. They can'l find a soul to do something with aw when you as a parent offer to di something with them, they about from the awfullness of it all. You can't go on a vacatioi because some have jobs and yoi dare not leave them alone. Tin others feel bad because you are u) going on a vacation. So you plan ' weekend in the mountains but tha1 does not work out either because u one wants to go except mom am dad. As you contemplate the vexations joys and triumphs of the coming summer months, may we wish yoi success of every kind. As & alternative keep a lot of Excedrii handy. of summer plans, and throw their hands in the air. I used to be a mixture of both. At the first of the summer I was gung ho and eager to spend days(with my children. They signed up for swimming lessons, ceramics class, tumbling class, and went swimming every afternoon. For about two or three weeks it was great. Then the lessons were over. No, they did not want to sign up for another class. No, they did not want to go play games at the park. No, they did not want a picnic. No, they did not want to go play with their friends because they were not home, or they were mad at them, or they were bored. Then is when summer became hard for this mother. The battle then raged on how to keep them from fighting, how to keep them from watching too much TV, how to keep them from hurting each other, how to keep your sanity, how to get them to do chores, how to get them out of Guest editorial It's time for this area to accept it's role in Utah County's growth Single famiry ("for-sale- " type housing) building permits in Salt Lake County for the first quarter of this year increased by 49.7 over first quarter 1985, from 656 to 982. First quarter building permits historically represents about 22 percent of the total year's production. Consequently, building lots are . currently absorbing at an an-nualized rate of about 4,463. Based on this absorption rate, our current inventory of about 5,000 lots will run out in 1.1 years, and could lead to a major housing crisis if current trends are not reversed. There is no question that Traverse Ridge will bring problems and challenges to our community (many of which are impossible to even identify at this point). However, I have never witnessed growth without them. While the fate of one project obviously may not determine the economic fate of our community, the attitudes we have towards growth and progress will. While I appreciate the concerns of my mayor and city council regarding the project's impact on our city, those within our community who oppose Traverse Ridge because they are not willing to deal with the problems of growth must prepare to deal with the problems of negative growth. ..problems that I assure you far outweigh questions regarding school construction and road ex-pansion. By ROLAND ROBISON I am a Highland City resident, and as it happens I am also a housing market analyst specializing in Utah's housing markets. In my work I conduct extensive research on an ongoing basis, and my clients include virtually every major developer, lender and municipal bond agency within the state of Utah. I have followed the Traverse Ridge proposal very closely and have some strong feelings about the proposal. Most of my comments will ad-dress conditions in Salt Lake County since most of the residents of northern Utah County depend on Salt Lake County for their sub-sistence, and since most of the demand for Traverse Ridge would obviously emanate from Salt Lake County. I am extremely concerned about two concurrent trends that are developing unbeknownst to many of the people involved in this decision. The first of these trends has to do with the lackluster performance of our local economy. Recently, an alarming "net trend has developed along the Wasatch Front. In fact, net has been experienced for the last three years in a row, and as I speak with the economists from the University of Utah and the state Planning Coordinator's Office, they fear the trend will occur again this year because "there is nothing to turn it around." We cannot hold our economy still without strangling the life out of it, and those who think we can are simply not living in the real world. Most of Highland City's residents (myself included) moved to this area because of its rural, detached atmosphere. In the past we have been very content to allow other municipalities along the Wasatch Front to take the brunt of the responsibility for growth. This is a luxury I fear we can no longer af-ford. Though it may be painful to say, those who cannot live with growth should now seek new frontiers, because the time for us to make our contribution has arrived at a critical time, and if we refuse it we are taking the risk of inflicting serious damage to the area's economic welfare. Besides, the sacrifice is not so great. I must admit that my initial reaction to Traverse Ridge was negative, and even though I have not been retained by the Estes Company to analyze the project, the closer I look at it the more sense it makes. It is the best kind of project we could hope for, it is extremely well planned (a rarety in Utah's housing markets), it is proposed by an extremely reputable developer, and even though most of the residences will be located on the Utah County side of the mountain, most of the socio-econom- ic impact will be felt on the Salt Lake County side. In addition, it offers the potential for significant economic develop-ment on the site itself, which could be of tremendous economic benefit to northern Utah County residents in providing business opportunities and jobs. For these reasons I vigorously support the Traverse Ridge project and encourage the Utah County Commission to approve the project zoning. After studying our nation's economy for several years, John Naisbitt (the author of "Mega Trends"), identified Salt Lake County as having the potential for one of the 10 most vibrant economies in the country. Yet, we are currently not even experiencing enough growth to maintain em-ployment for our natural growth. Opponents to the project who attempt to minimize its economic benefits by relegating them only to the housing industry are missing the whole point. It is a simple fact that national businesses considering the geographical expansion look very closely at housing availability and local attitudes regarding growth and progress before making locational decisions. The comment was made in a Planning Commission Hearing that the industry brought to the Tucson area by the Estes Company was a "fluke." I submit to you that it was not, and that these types of ac-tivities are indeed commonplace in a progressive community. The other trend has to do with building lot inventories. While Highland unquestionably has the highest building lot inventory of any Wasatch Front community, the market demand from Salt Lake County for housing in this location is extremely limited due to geographical barriers and unac-ceptable commute distances. On the other hand, inventories in Salt Lake County have depleted dramatically over the last five years from a level of over 20,000 building lots in 1981, to a current inventory of about 5,000. Mean-while, many lenders and municipalities continue to resist additional development due to the high inventory problems they had during the past recessionary period. Absorption of these inventories is on a collision course with this trend. Ay Chihuahua, this baby's a houseful grassroots J V"l 1 Copyright X ' J 1986 '& k s-!- ;:. I Becky Grass ij J Johnson someone was rocking on her tail. I prayed that no one within earshot would call the A.S.P.C.A. y If the phone rang or someone came to the door she yarked hysterically and ran in circles through the house. If a car drove by, she yarked. If the neighbor's cat took a short cut through the yard, he yarked. But Baby's favorite thing to yark at was the neighbor's Doberman Pinscher. (This should tell you something about Baby's I.Q.) Baby was small even for a Chihuahua and taking her outside for afternoon play was like putting St. Bernard bait on a leash. Most every dog in the neighborhood could have snarfed her for an meal snack. A few tried. We can celled outdoor playtime. Seven days came and went. Am luckily when Aunt Martha return Baby had been freshly bathed, f and still had her hair. Baby leap into Aunt Martha's arms and cneo 'like I had been force feeding liver-flavore- d triangles all week. "I hope Baby's wasn't ao; .trouble," Aunt Martha gushed she was leaving. "Not at all," I insisted. , . Aunt Martha was so impress with the excellent care given Baby that she will probably asH to "Baby sit" again next sumiw vacation. And I can't decide the most excited about it ... my new St. Bernard. I told my Aunt Martha I'd be glad to tend Baby. She was only going to be gone a week. She would supply the dog food. And it would be fun to hear the pitter-patte- r of little paws on the kitchen linoleum. After all, how much trouble could a tiny, black chihuahua be? Baby arrived wrapped in a pink and blue quilt that had her name monogrammed on the side. Aunt Martha handed me the list of in-structions for Baby and a bag of dog food. With a quiver in her voice, Aunt Martha asked me to take Baby into another room and close the door she she wouldn't hear the car pull away. As I lifted the bundle of joy from her arms, I reassured Aunt Martha that Baby and I were going to get along just fine. All she needed to do was to relax and enjoy her vacation. I raised Baby's paw to wave goodbye, then whisked her into the next room. Aunt Martha dabbed at her eyes, sniffled once or twice, then left. Aunt Martha's instructions in-cluded a daily bath for Baby and an hour play time outside. I was to pick out all the liver-flavore- d triangles from her food. ("Baby doesn't like liver or triangles.") And if she should refuse to eat Meaty Morsels, I was to just scramble her an egg. It was important for Baby to eat well or "her hair would fall out." A p.s. at the b ottom of the note in-formed me that Baby was afraid to sleep in a room by herself. Yes, I would bathe Baby once a day. Yes, I would toss her pink, rubber ball around outside for an hour every afternoon. I would even scramble Baby an egg. But I refused to be bunk buddies with a by BECKI GRASS JOHNSON dog that had Meaty Morsel breath. The first two days went smoothly enough. Baby hid behind the living room furniture and growled every time I even looked like I was going to touch her. Occasionally I tossed a handful of Meaty Morsels behind the couch for fear she was losing her hair ... all 36 of them. At night she cried until I staggered from my bed and slept on the couch. Baby not only refused to eat the liver-flavore- d triangles, but Meaty Morsels all together. When I placed a dish of scrambled eggs in front her her, she gave me the look. After emptying the contents of the refrigerator, I found that Baby liked hamburger and cheese bits. On the third day, after her long sulk, Baby was a different dog. She. sat in the living room window like she owned the place, and it didn't take much to set her off. Now the bark of a Chihuahua isn't really a bark. It is more like a high-pitche- d "yark." (That's a cross between a yip and a bark.) And it sounded like DVELirJES and U-JOI- rS'' - FRONT WHEEL DRIVE CARS Diesels 4x4's Passenger Cars Agricultural Constant Velocity U Joints (C-V- ) SPICER, NEAPCO IICFD UNIVERSAL JOINTS NEW & QAYLON PUQH . A RSBctl Name For 0r 20 YwrI Open Monday Through Friday 8 to 5 Saturday 8 to Noon For Free I 768-317- 1 Uhl I SS& Estimates Call I 224.8118 Orem tSST J OREM LEHI I 78 East 100 South .m East State I |