North Shore Bear Lake Painting

Painting by Larry Winborg, Hyde Park, Utah

Garden City Council Meeting

Anita Weston, Reporter

Rich Civic Times

GARDEN CITY, Utah. August 8, 2019. The meeting was called to order.  Mayor Leonhardt noted that with a new Council Member, he thought that Council Member Assignments should be changed.  He requested that Pat Argyle continue to work with the parks, beach font, and City Beautification.  Howard Pope was asked to continue to work on trails, bike path, P&Z, as well as short-term rental licenses.  Jordon Perry was asked to take care of the pool, the Board of Adjustments, and the Appeals Board.  Ken Hansen was asked to work with the library and the water system.  The Mayor will work with roads and technology.

There were five new short-term rental licenses that had been requested as follows:

Owner                                  Address                                      Property Management Company

Nate and Brooke Mueller    539 W. Raspberry Patch Road   Boat House, LLC

MMFH, LLC                        285 W Seasons Ln #6                Let’s Get Away Properties

Matt Nielson                         289 W Seasons Ln #8                Let’s Get Away Properties

Nate Parry                             589 S Amber Lane                    Legacy Beach Lodgings, LLC

Tamara & Andrew Myers     948 S Snowmeadows                Tamara & Andrew Myers

The motion was made and passed to grant the above short-term rentals their license request.  The motion carried.

Joey Stocking and Mike Weibel, Bear River Health Department, discussed with the City Council about creating an organization for volunteer individuals.  Most of the firemen in our area are volunteers.  Bear River Health Department is also made up of many volunteers.  It was suggested that an organization be used to combine these two groups so that when accidents or problems arise, both types of individuals would be on site.  Those with medical training would be available as well as those who can handle fires and other situations.  There are currently about 20 volunteers in Rich County. There are about ten vehicles also available in the area. 

There are a variety of training opportunities and public classes.  Training and preparedness are important.  Each town in the County could begin to take advantage of these classes and training opportunities to become more efficient and ready to handle problems that arise.

The City Council thought it was a good idea and thanked these two individuals for coming and expressing their ideas and plans.  It was noted that Weibel would be the health coordinator and Mike Wahlberg would be over the fire area.   Stocking would work under Weibel in Rich County.

A request was made from Mark and Kathy Hislop for termination of encumbrance agreement and covenant to run with the land for Parcel #41-16-030-001 and 41-17-020 0007.  The motion was made and passed to terminate the encumbrance agreement.

Councilperson Pat Argyle was thanked for handling Raspberry Days and for doing such a great job.  Argyle noted that she has already started to work on this activity for next year.  She could always use more help and hopes that she can get more volunteers to help next year.

Argyle reported that there are not enough garbage cans at the nightly rental locations.  People need to be more aware of garbage and how many cans are really needed.  She also said how glad she was the City made the bike path.  It is used constantly.

Councilperson Howard Pope noted that the pool has major issues.  Richard Monk, pool director, needs to pay more to get water tested more frequently.  There should be some policies and procedures that are written to help him take care of the pool.  Pope suggested that perhaps  Monk be asked to report to a Council Member daily.  He also noted that Glen Gillies also does a lot of maintenance on the pool.  He is doing a good job.

Trails need a lot of work.  Up on the top of Logan Canyon there is not enough parking. Something needs to be done.  This is a real problem.  It will get worse because the State recommended that big trucks be required to pull off the road at the top and make sure their brakes are working properly.  That will even make the parking area more difficult.   It might be possible to create another parking area and allow cars to stop and drop of their people and then move their car to the parking area.  Some changes are needed there.

Hodges Canyon has a very nice parking lot, Pope said.  However, the road up above where people turn to go up Sweetwater Hill is in very bad shape.  It shouldn’t be open to the public until the road is repaired.  Foothill Estates trail also needs repair.  Richardson’s trail is in pretty good shape. 

Mayor Leonhard noted that the state is getting the two crosswalks ready this fall.  There will be one between First West by the post office and going South by Cam Jarman’s Physical Therapy Building.  The other cross walk will be across Bear Lake Blvd. from LaBeau’s going east to the parking lot on the east side of the road 

There is going to be a traffic light at the intersection of Bear Lake Blvd. with Logan Road.  However, that will probably not be completed until next summer.  There will also be two new turning lanes put in next spring.  One will be by Harbor Village and the Marina and one by the KOA.

The request has been made to get the legislature to help the City continue Third West Road from Buttercup to Hodges Canyon.

KSL gave Kathy Hislop a High Five for her good work.  She goes above and beyond what is necessary.  She was thanked for her great work.

More people are using electric cars.  It was noted that there should be some charging stations here in Garden City.  Rocky Mountain Power will be responsible for this project.

It is time for the City to write up a TRT grant to submit to the County.  That money will become available soon.

LOTOJA

Please join us for the 35th edition of the LoToJa Classic. Enjoy an epic autumn day bike racing/riding over 200 miles from Logan, UT to Jackson Hole, WY!  September 7 - 8. Website: http://lotoja.com/http://lotoja.com/

Fall Fields

Photo by Bear Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau
bearlake.org

Third crash in a year, second in a week.

Bobbie Bicknell Coray, Reporter
Rich Civic Times

Photos by Bobbie Coray

GARDEN CITY, Utah.  August 20, 2019.  At 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, a dump truck carrying over 17 tones of asphalt crashed through the intersection of Logan Road and Highway 30. It hit the concrete foundation of the storage garages below Raspberry Square, started on fire and continued to catapult through the garage landing just a few feet from one of the condominiums.  People in neighboring buildings heard a very  loud boom and then the splintering of the building. Eye witnesses, Cheryl Fifield and Lori Mauer who had just moved their car said if it had happened a few moments before they would have been parked in the path.  Clint England, had just turned out of the intersection three seconds from when the speeding truck hurtled through the intersection.  Heather Moldenhaur came out from her office when she heard a noise like the roof being torn off her building.

The Garden City Fire District truck was there within minutes and put out the fire in the truck and a Hazmat Unit was called to take care of the oil and asphalt spread out in the driveway down to the lake.

There was a second asphalt carrying truck from the same company,  with smoking brakes following the first. That driver managed to turn the corner and parked in front of the LDS Church opposite Raspberry Square.  Nadine Sprouse of Garden City talked to him about his brakes smoking and he said "this is too dangerous, I'm not driving anymore."

The driver and passenger in the first truck had minor injuries.  That no  one was killed is a miracle.  Alicia Hobson's parents had been trailing their boat through the intersection just 5 seconds before the crash.  If it had been a weekend, the square would have been filled with tourists.

RCTonline reached out to Vic Saunders, Region One spokesman for UDOT and he responded  "We've been conducting a study since last October, about the options available to us on US-89 in Garden City. We have the results of the study back and the funding to construct a permanent Brake Check Area on the east side of the Summit of Logan Canyon, where trucks will be required to stop and check their brakes before heading downhill.

Additionally, we're planning to install a runaway Truck Arresting System (TAS) at a place to be determined  west of Garden City, where trucks that have lost their brakes can,  in a safe and controlled way, be arrested and stopped before coming into town.

Our process to do this will take a little time, we have to acquire right of way, design it, and go through the process of securing a contractor. But we hope to be able to begin construction on it the first thing next spring. In the interim, UDOT will be adding a temporary Brake Check Area at the summit, and placing additional  warning signage prior to, and at the Summit of Logan Canyon, to heighten awareness of the grade and the need to use proper braking procedures and techniques when ascending the grade into Garden City on US-89."

Trucks carrying a GVW of 10,000 or more were being pulled over at the rest stop this week and additional signage has been added.  Ironically another crash was averted as a truck with smoking brakes the next day pulled off into a field above the Chevron Station.

Locals have suggested that as you approach the intersection of Highway 89 and Highway 30 that you look west to make sure there is no speeding vehicle which may not have brakes.

City leaders have contacted UDOT and legislators for additional help.  Mayor Leonhardt said that he was pleased with their response.

Eighteen Wheel Philosopher

Truckers and Break Checks
On the Accident

By Mel Hansen

I was born and raised here in Garden City...lived 50 of my 58 years here. To say there should be no big rigs coming through the canyon, is like me saying that no boats/swimming should be allowed on/in the lake because of possible drowning. I have seen more boating/drowning accidents on the lake than I have seen big rig accidents throughout Logan and Laketown Canyons.(That might not be a bad idea banning both?...that would take care of both problems and bring back some peace and quiet.)

The state has to shoulder part...a big part... of the blame. When they did away with horse shoe bend and suicide point they increased the lengths of the 8% grade without the options of ramps. Believe it or not, curves most generally decrease both grade and speed. I’ve been driving big rigs off and on since 1979.  Fortunately I’ve yet to be involved in a accident, and I can count on one hand how many times I could see or smell smoke from my truck or trailer brakes. But I have smelled cars, pickups pulling boats/trailer etc. countless times while coming down both Logan and Laketown Canyons and seen more fatalities from those loss of brake failures than I have big rigs.

In my professional truck driving opinion, there should be a brake check pull out at, or just below the rest area overlook, a runaway ramp through the new cutout, it’s basically already there, just fill it in with pea gravel from the shoulder of the road to the rock side of the cut,  and then another one just before the Chevron.

I have traveled canyons with way less grade and length than Logan and Laketown...with as many as 4-6 ramps in them!

What I find ironic is that the state can come up with…cut loose with...over 3 million dollars to improve the State Marina for more ease and consideration of the almighty tourism dollar...but don’t seem to give two hoots in Hell about two or three ramps to help improve safety and life in a timely matter to get to the State Marina!

Accidents happen! Be it your fault...my fault...nobody’s fault. There are dumb truck drivers...no one’s harder on my profession than I...a lot of companies train drivers for a week or two and turn them loose! That needs to be fixed! But there’s just as many, more in fact, of those dummies in non professional automobiles.

The point is, you have to know your automobile and big rig! You have to know its capabilities in all aspects of driving! Your means of transportation is only as good as the person behind the wheel.

Be safe!...Be courteous!...but above all....for Hell sakes be patient! There are way too many people in a big hurry to die...just to get there a few seconds in front of someone.

Code Red for Rich County

Garden City Fire District Board Meeting

Leonard O’Reilly, Reporter
Rich Civic Times

GARDEN CITY, Utah. August 7th, 2019.  Chairman Randall Knight presided with two of the current members absent.

The revised Employee Handbook was approved and is ready to be distributed to all employees. Board member, Doug Pincock, gave the board a further update on the proposed tax increase. Notices will go out in the mail at the end of August or the first part of September. The prescribed public hearing would hopefully be scheduled for October 2nd at the Garden City Fire Station.

Chief Wahlberg gave a report on the progress of the addition construction as well as the breakfast put on by the fire department at Raspberry Days. 

The chief gave the following report of responses for the month:

1 - Structure fire (assists at condo by Laketown and Bear Lake FD)

1 - Vehicle fire

1 - Downed power line

2 - Agency assists

3 - Carbon monoxide calls

6 - Fire calls

17 - Medical calls

3 - Marine call outs

4 - Landing zone assists (helicopter landing at church parking lot)

1 - Mutual aid wildfire (Box Elder county)

2 - Ground blast assist (construction explosives)

Flying Over the Lake

Photo by Linda Baird, Garden City