The Garden City pool has been opened for the winter on Mondays and Wednesdays from 5p.m. to 9 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. It will be open on New Years Eve from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
There is a $3 charge for swimming in the beautiful pool! Or you can buy a family pass for $75 which gives you 150 swims!
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Paddle Boats...Summer Will Come
Anita Weston, Reporter
Rich Civic Times
GARDEN CITY- December 13,
2012. Lance and Jackie Bourn reported on their business that was allowed to
operate in the Park last summer. They
would very much like to renew this license for the coming summer. They would like to get started on advertising
for the next season. As part of the
agreement for being able to rent the paddle boats, they agreed to clean that
section of the beach and keep it clean.
They also cleaned the rest rooms twice a day, trimmed the trees, and
cleaned the boardwalk.
They discovered that they
needed to have the paddle boards on the beach and use that location for the
rentals. As a result, they put up a
canopy and stored the paddle boats in the restrooms each night.
The found that about 85 percent
of the people who rented the paddle boats had never used them before. They found themselves in the teaching
business as well as the rental business.
They tried to make sure that everyone had an enjoyable time. They had a great number of people on FaceBook
who said they enjoyed their experience.
They noted the business was not a big money maker, but that they would
really like to follow through and try again this coming summer.
Several of the Council
Members indicated that they had given this opportunity to the Bourns, but the
whole idea was based on the plan of allowing a bidding process to be held in
order to determine who had the opportunity to use that location after the first
year. They asked the Bourns to wait
until next month so that the Council Members could listen to the minutes from
last spring to make sure they followed through on what had been decided in that
previous meeting.
New Well for Garden City
Anita Weston, Reporter
Rich Civic Times
GARDEN CITY –December 13,
2012. Zan Murray, the City’s Engineer,
reported that he had been working on making arrangements to get a well in the
new park. It was his understanding that
the City needs a secondary water source as well as redundancy in the City’s
water system. He and Riley Argyle have
found three or four drilling companies that would be willing to bid on this
project. Most drilling companies charge
about $80 to $100 per foot along with other expenses. Mr. Argyle has obtained a permit to drill to
the depth of 200 feet. This would be
just to drill for a test well and will cost about $50,000 - $100,000. Mr. Argyle reported that there was a lot more
involved in getting a culinary well than was expected.
There is a leak in the
pond. There is a leakage test that can
be run on sewer ponds to determine where a leak may be. The workers thought they might use this
method to determine where the leak was in the fish pond and hopefully be able
to seal it off.
The Mayor informed Argyle and
Murray that in just the past couple of days, two new grants have come through
dealing with culinary water for Garden City.
One grant was for $40,000 from the State’s Drinking Water Division, and
the other was also for $40,000 from a CIB (Utah Community Impact Board)
grant. Since these funds have just
become known and available, the Mayor felt that these funds should be put
towards doing a water study to make sure that the well will be placed in the
best location to give the Community the necessary needed water. The study could also cover how the water is
to be handled along Third West and make sure that the best decisions will be
made prior to drilling.
If a good well can be drilled
that will produce enough water to handle the City during the winter months, it
may be possible to shut down the water treatment plant during that time
period. This would save around $4,000 a
month in electricity and heating costs at the water treatment plant alone. This would not reduce or change water
bills. The water treatment plant must
still be paid for. However, it would
allow the city to put the savings to good use in other ways that could benefit
everyone in the community. The Mayor
also informed the Council that he is trying to get the current 4.5 percent
interest rate on the loan for the water treatment plant lowered to 2.5 percent
interest. This would save the City money
because the loan is over a 30-year time period.
Garden City Public Works Report
Anita Weston, Reporter
Rich Civic Times
GARDEN CITY – December 13,
2012. Riley Argyle, Garden City Public
Works, noted that he had been working with JUB on the new well design. He noted that the highway bathrooms are all
but complete. One fan needs some
additional work and there was a manufacturing defect in the lights. He asked that the City hold back enough
liquidated damages to take care of these items but felt the contractor could be
paid the majority of the contract price.
The Payne Spring project has
been completed. Ted Wilson got his meter
in place and the City has finished up all the work they agreed to do
there. Everything there seems to be
working really well and the spring seems to be producing more water than
expected. Mr. Argyle indicated that
every gallon from the spring helps the City.
There is another well that
might be beneficial to the City. It is
located near the Idaho line. However,
the city needs to get a camera and check the well out to see if there are
perforations and how deep it goes. It
will cost about $1,000 to check this well out.
Argyle has been working with
the Paul Corporation. He indicated that
perhaps the City could save about $1,000 to $2,000 a month if the filters were
cleaned quarterly instead of monthly. Currently
the water going through the filters is really clear. It is only in the early spring when there is
a bit of cloudiness in the water. Since
that is the case, less cleaning is certainly a possibility.
Landscaping around the water
treatment plant is all most complete.
There is still a bit of light cleanup that will be needed to finish it
up.
Third West will have a water
line going south along that road. This
needs to be engineered to determine its exact location and should be included
in the new water study.
The snow fence along First
West really helped in the snow storms that have blown through so far this
year. Snow fence was also placed along
700 West and in Buttercup. The radios
are in the trucks. The broken heater at
the plant has been replaced. The new
truck has arrived and is really nice. A
new GIS unit needs to be purchased so that the City can continue to get all the
water and electrical locations mapped.
There are still two meters
that need to be placed on homes on the Idaho side. These two will require excavation
and checking and will have to wait until spring to finish up that work.
Agreements have been signed
with Elk’s Ridge. It has taken a lot of
time and effort to get the needed information as to who owns what in that
area. The City does now own the property
where the water tank is located.
Garden City Audit
Anita Weston, Reporter
Rich Civic Times
GARDEN CITY – December 13,
2012Tiffany Wahlberg presented the results of the City audit. She noted that the audit was late because
there were some changes that had to be made prior to completing the audit. She reported that the net assets are up as
well as the unrestricted assets. There
were several inter-fund transfers and some large adjustments that put the City
over budget in some areas. Mrs. Wahlberg said she would be spending some time
in June this coming year with the City Clerk in order to make sure the needed
transfers and changes were made prior to the end of the fiscal year.
Public safety money is sent
to the County Sheriff’s Office and needs to be shown as a payable. The City also needs to budget for the
depreciation for the water treatment plant.
Some motions also need to be made during June in order to make sure that
all adjustments are in order.
Mrs. Wahlberg noted that the
City is in good shape, and the City has done very well in staying within their
overall budget.
Sign Ordinance in Garden City
Anita Weston, Reporter
Rich Civic Times
GARDEN CITY- December 13,
2012 Andy Stokes, the Garden City Enforcement Officer, requested that the
Council Members read through the updated sign ordinance. The original ordinance was written in general
enough language that it wasn’t possible to enforce. The updated one will allow Mr. Stokes to
approach business owners requesting that they pull their signs into compliance
with the City’s ordinance. Mr. Stokes
noted that the ordinance allows for higher signs in the downtown area while
signs will have lower profiles along entrances into town.
One Council Member asked why
a contractor was required when signs were built and put in place. Mr. Stokes noted that the City does not want
to be responsible for signs that are not properly grounded and have a
possibility of falling. Mr. Stokes
indicated that there are a lot of illegal signs in the city, and temporary
signs are currently almost impossible to track as to the length of time they
have been in place. All of these items
have been addressed in the ordinance.
Garden City Council
Anita Weston, Reporter
Rich Civic Times
Rich Civic Times
GARDEN CITY-December 13,
2012. Council Member Bess Huefner informed the Council that the Bear Lake
Community Clinic has filled out an application for a CDBG (Community
Development Block Grant) Grant for dental equipment. The City will need to hold a public hearing
for this grant and sign the application because the Clinic is within the City
limits.
Council Member Pat Argyle
asked the Council to approve the appointment of Robert Peterson, Kathryn
Warner, and Jeffrey Probst as members of the Library Board. The was done.
She reported that a class at the pool was canceled after only a class or
two. She asked that the people who had
enrolled needed to be reimbursed for the cost of the class. She also asked that anyone with a punch pass
be able to use it even if there was an expiration date on the pass. The Council approved allowing anyone with a
valid punch pass be allowed to use it regardless of the passage of time.
Council Member Darren Pugmire
reported that the top soil at Heritage Park has not been moved. He noted that the time given to the
individual who was going to move this soil has expired. He suggested that the City let that
individual know that the soil reverts to the City and will be used by the City
for some of their projects.
Danny White, the City
Manager, informed the City that approval had been given to the City to put up
the new city lights within the UDOT easement.
He noted that all the requirements that had been demanded by the State
for these lights has been met, and these lights will be placed as close to the
sidewalks as is possible.
New Canal Easment Rules
Anita Weston, Reporter
Rich Civic Times
Rich Civic Times
GARDEN CITY –December 13, 2012. George Peart, Building Inspector, reported
that there are currently 14 new homes being built in the City. Mr. Peart expressed concern with the homes
that are close to the canals. He noted
that the State of Utah has changed requirements in building next to a canal and
that 100' from the center line of the canal is the new law. He suggested that the Planning and Zoning
Commission become aware of the new laws and make sure that canals play a larger
role in whether or not permission be given to subdivisions and developers.
Mr. Peart reported that
currently in Rich County canal easements are not platted. He suggested that these canal easements be
platted so that everyone is more aware of how much space needs to be left to
provide canal safety. Mr. Peart also
noted that the canal companies need to play a much larger role in keeping
people informed of the current laws concerning building next to a canal. It was decided that the canal companies need
to have a signature line on subdivision plats for the canal company’s officer
to sign off on such building plans.
Mr. Danny White said that he
has created a map that shows the high risk areas in Garden City. He noted that there are several sensitive
land areas that should be considered when development is suggested. He encouraged the Planning and Zoning people
to become aware of the most recent water laws passed by the State.
Mr. Peart also reported to
the Council that he is currently working on a commercial building inspector
license. The Council encouraged him to
continue to work in this direction because it will be most helpful in this
area.
Ice Plunge is Coming
Bear Lake Monster Plunge
January 26, 1013
Located at the Bear Lake State Park
Marina, Garden City, UT
Friday, December 21, 2012
Cisco Sonar - Christmas Bird Count
Bryce Neilson
I am sure that everyone is getting ready for the
Holidays. That means I will once again
be involved in the Bear Lake Christmas Bird Count. Over the last ten years, a small core group
of birders from Cache Valley come over to participate with a few of us from
here. The annual Audubon Christmas Bird
Count is a national event that covers most of North America. It was started years ago by the Audubon
Society in an attempt to develop trend data on regional bird numbers using
volunteer birdwatchers. Different areas
were established and people went out, observed, identified and counted birds.
Bear Laker's
.jpg) |
| Bryce Neilson (Not a Bird) |
 |
| Sawhut Owl |
 |
| Virgina Rail |
 |
| Chickadee |
Dennis Austin, a wildlife biologist from Cache Valley, now
retired, started the Bear Lake Count. He
felt that it was important to document what species of birds were wintering
here at the Lake. Trying to get
participants has been a challenge over the years. There just doesn’t seem to be many bird
watchers here. You don’t need to be a
member of the Audubon Society, just someone interested in birds. The count will occur December 27, regardless of weather. We have done them in the sun, blizzards and
when it is so cold you can barely make it out of the truck. You count the birds in your area, but nowhere
else to avoid duplication. I know that
lots of people feed birds around the lake and in recent years these numbers
have been included. At the end of the
day Dennis collects and tallies the count information and submits it to the
Audubon Society. All of the bird counts
from all over are then combined and published in a magazine.
Obviously the species and numbers change throughout the years with
environmental conditions but every year we see new species, don’t see birds we
had seen before and generally have a
good time, outside, with our binoculars.
It even helps me with my infamous weather predictions associated with
wildlife. We are always looking for
volunteers and we will be happy to train.
Just let me know.
Pictures by Bryce Neilson
Garden City, The Last Town in Bear Lake Valley
Doug Alder, Historian
 |
| Doug and Elaine Alder |
When one drives into Bear Lake Valley from Logan, the first
community one sees is Garden City.
Ironically it was the last village founded. The towns in Round Valley and Laketown were
established by individual families instead of by planned Mormon missions, but
they followed the layout plans of the villages in the north. After they were functioning, the land in the
Garden City area became enticing. It had
less agricultural opportunity because it was not as expansive but a water
project in Fish Haven enticed people to move there. Phineas W. Cook had established a sawmill and
gristmill at Swan Creek. He was an
entrepreneur and innovator. He realized
that farmland in Fish Haven was limited and he began to look south and realized
that a thousand acres was available there.
In 1877 he and his sons began work on the Swan Creek Canal that would
send water in that direction.
Hearing of that possibility, four families moved there. Cook
built the canal to the site and intended it as a profit-making venture. He knew that the land was a bit lower than
the other towns and believed it would be very good for gardens. So instead of having farms outside town, he
set up large town lots to be the site for such vegetable and fruit
gardens. Most Mormon towns had ten-acre
blocks with eight one-acre lots. He set
up the blocks with narrower streets and eight-acre blocks with each family
receiving two acres instead of one. His
predictions were correct. The town soon
became a successful gardening town.
Some had suggested Bellview as the name for the town but the
gardening success led to the name Garden City.
Cook anticipated that the canal could water 800 acres. The vegetable crops grew well. An LDS congregation was organized with
William Wright presiding. Directly south
a similar pattern began in Pickleville.
Later Nathanial M. Hodges purchased land south of that and established
the Hodges Ranch that was expanded exponentially, up to what is now known as
Hodges Canyon and to the lake, where recreational facilities would later be
developed.
Robert E. Parson says: “The history of Garden City is not
one of larger ranches and livestock but rather one associated with small,
specialized operations such as the cultivation of the raspberry introduced by
Theodore Hildt in 1910. Additionally,
Garden City, more than Laketown, became most strangely associated with Bear
Lake itself. . . with the blue waters and sandy beaches of Bear Lake.” (A History of Rich County, p. 108)
Garden City Dance Recital
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| Garden City Dance Recital with Carly England, Sophie Gough, Madison Moldenhaur, Jack Wakefield, Morgan Ward and Miley Wride |
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| Photos by Lauriann Wakefield |
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Look For The Helpers
As we have witnessed a horrendous tragedy in Connecticut, everyone of us is touched by the outpouring of love for those who suffer. My daughter, Wendy, sent me a quote by Mr. Rogers.
"When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping." To this day, especially in times of "disaster," I remember my mother's words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world."
I am reminded of the helpers when we see the outpouring of love for those in our own community who are struggling during these holidays. We pray for each other and we do acts of service. If we continue this, then the world will become a wonderful place. Just look for and be one of the helpers.
"When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping." To this day, especially in times of "disaster," I remember my mother's words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world."
I am reminded of the helpers when we see the outpouring of love for those in our own community who are struggling during these holidays. We pray for each other and we do acts of service. If we continue this, then the world will become a wonderful place. Just look for and be one of the helpers.
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