News Around Town - August 5, 2011

Escalante City Council held the first meeting for this month on the second of August 2011.

Escalante Canyons Art Festival : A number of public comments were presented including a description of the Escalante Canyons Art Festival scheduled for September 23^rd and 24^th. The council and the community were encouraged to participate by in this community-enhancing event. The vendor spots are nearly filled up. Many, many artists have already applied. The line-up of speakers is excellent and includes the opportunity to view the night sky following the Keynote address (BYOB- bring your own binoculars—or telescope) and the Festival has a Facebook page. If you would like to donate a few hours, please call Karin Simmons, 616-1075, (vendors and old gym silent auction), Pam Chambers, 826-4425, (volunteer coordinator) or Marty Henry, 826-4640, (Festival Food coordinator). This year’s Festival may be the best yet.

Lights: The night skies were again an issue as a citizen asked for City Council support in his plan to contact the management at Wells Fargo Bank regarding shielding the sodium vapor lights. The lights were described as inordinately bright, detracting from the beauty of our town. Indeed, lighting is a security issue, but shielding the ‘up’ and ‘sideways’ projection might be a win-win opportunity.

Flooding: Three citizens addressed concerns about flooding after last week’s heavy monsoonal rains. One citizen asked for help from the city to dig out an old irrigation canal which floods his property. Most of the run-off comes from City property. City Council voiced concerns about using City Services on private property and would check the City Ordinances. It was mentioned that digging the old irrigation canal would be much cheaper than grading City property, but may not be legal. This citizen will be contacting Greg Allen in the near future. Another citizen voiced concern about flooding coming from the private Cottam Road and adjacent properties. This individual stated that he is tired of the water swamping his land. Mayor Taylor will be meeting with the affected individuals. A third individual voiced concerns on behalf of her mother.

Planning and Zoning presented two projects. A fence was proposed in Moqui Gardens and a shed was slated for construction in midtown. The Council passed both petitions. Among the Scheduled items at City Council, a water meter was issued. In the course of this discussion, the Council stated that it was determined to collect monies for new water meters within 30 days of approval. City employee Porter will be presenting information about a backhoe lease option at the next council meeting. The city has taken in a number of dogs that are part of a pending legal issue. There is a need to provide Officer Dunton, who is sheltering the animals, with kennels. Two kennels were authorized. Funds will come from the police department budget.

Open Seat on Planning and Zoning The city announces an open position on the Planning and Zoning Committee. If interested, please contact Mayor Taylor (616-7396) or Greg Hughes (826-4576).

Council Reports included the announcement that auditors will be in town this week. Money for Class C roads may be legally used for drainage problems. Additional monies will be needed for the next chip-seal project as the cost of chip-seal has increased by 400% due to the increase in the cost of oil. The Fire Department’s fundraiser was successful, earning nearly $2,000. A new stove and refrigerator will be purchased. Councilman Graham described problems caused by lightning. On July 19^th, he and a City employee went to our well. There was no power to the equipment due to a destroyed variable frequency drive. Although insurance will pay some portion of the repair, the cost will amount to over $13.500.00 Meanwhile, availability of water meters will be limited. Councilman Hughes will be visiting local restaurants in order to confirm installation of grease traps. There has been another plug in the sewers, this time running along 100 West from 100 North to 400 North. Recent storms have caused bubbling in the sewer ponds. City workers will evaluate this situation. On a positive note, the new ditch in Moqui Gardens and the improvements at the dumpsters have enhanced drainage. Councilman Allen reports that a few citizens have talked to him regarding the airport light. He stated that “not a whole lot” of people are informed and/or have concerns about the airport light.

Around Town

The Union of Concerned Scientists issued a recent report about Farmers’ Markets. Local Farmers’ Markets create jobs, keep money in local economies, promote community development, can reduce the environmental and public health costs of food and improve the diets of their patrons by providing fresh seasonal produce. People who shop at Farmers’ Markets are (more) likely to patronize local businesses, as well. The Escalante Farmers’ Market is up and running and provides produce and local crafts from peaches to pottery. Please feel welcome to visit or participate in the Escalante Farmers’ Market, open each Saturday from 9:00 a.m. until noon. For more information, contact Nicole Croft at 826-4049.

As Federal and State funding for human services declines, communities must step up to take care of their own. As a follow-up to a previous story about Billy, a young man who experiences more challenges than the rest of us, the Newsletter describes the current situation. Billy has two mentors, Rose and Mark. Rose became aware of the increasingly sub-standard conditions (described elsewhere as a wet cardboard box) in which Billy lives. She approached Mark regarding availability of his recently purchased trailer. Mark indicated willingness, in these circumstances, to sell the trailer for less than ½ the cost and stated that he would help with the labor involved in setting it up for Billy. Rose set-out to raise money. The two mentors thus divided-up the necessary tasks. Rose has raised approximately $1,400. Billy will hold complete title to his trailer once the projects are completed. Please consider donating now or for the second time if you can. For more details, please contact Rose at 826-4474. Donation jars located at Griffin's and Cottam's.

From the Mayor’s Desk

I received a letter the other day from a concerned citizen. They mentioned their concern over some of the over-grown weeds around town. I informed them that I thought our staff was doing a great job trying to keep things mowed. They said it is much more than that. I then told them that I couldn’t control people’s private property. All we can do is to keep track of our own, trying to set a good example. Escalante is such a beautiful place. It is one of my goals that we work together to build great community pride. Let’s work to clean up our yards and sidewalks. Let us have pride in who we are and where we live. It can only be a positive thing as we strive to beautify our city.

I thought the 24^th of July celebration went very well. I hope you had a good time, too. It is always wonderful to see old friends and family come home for the festivities. All the activities seemed to be well attended, and everyone was having a great time. Way to go Escalante! You once again did an amazing job. Remember we live in a wonderful place.