Rich Civic Times
RANDOLPH. Utah. August 3, 2016. The County Commissioners dealt with several small issues during the commission meeting.
Travis Hobbs, Garden City, requested a business license for the Bear Lake Gravel Pit. It will be on 89 acres. Hobbs will maintain and widen the existing road and make it a reasonable access to the site.
The access road is on his property and Hobbs suggested that if he made the road comply to county engineering standards, the county might want to take it over to qualify for state road funding. The planning commission wanted to ensure reclamation of the site when Hobbs was finished with gravel removal and he had presented a plan for that. He has to get a permit from Utah Mining and Minerals division and wants to work with the county on the road.
Dan Ames, Rich County Fire Warden told Commissioners there were three big fires this quarter. Stirrup Springs fire was very expensive and the county will have to bear 26% of the cost, it is still under investigation as to how the fire was started
The Sage Creek 2 fire will also cost the county 25% of the total cost. The State of Utah will pay the remaining 75%. They have over exceeded the fire suppression budget. Because most of the Governor’s Initiative on Sage Grouse Habitat is in most of Rich County, to preserve sage grouse, they fight some fires that would not need to be fought and it is very expensive. The Garden City fire break is growing in and needs to be cut back. They are looking at a chemical that will take out the new growth and are also trying for a grant to buy that chemical.
Becky Peart, County Clerk, announced the recount and canvas of votes from the last primary election. There was no change from the first count.
The commissioners decide to partner with the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food in getting rid of predators such as coyotes to protect the deer population. They will do aerial shooting to diminish the coyote populations. It will cost the county $5,000. There is also a state program that pays bounty to private hunters.
Ulrich Associates, a CPA firm, presented the Rich County Audit. Chuck Ulrich and Cayla Cornwall said that many things had been improved on since last year’s audit. Revenue has exceeded expenditures. That presents a problem because they have exceeded the amount that can be carried in the Fund Balance according to state law. Last year they needed to spend down $800,000 but instead they added $200,000. So they need to spend some of it.
The state wants to have commission minutes posted within three working days of being approved. Senior Citizens, Fair Board and other boards also need a quarterly presentation to the commission. But overall the audit was positive.
No comments:
Post a Comment