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Saturday, March 14, 2020

Bear Lake Memorial Hospital announces closures

To protect residents, patients, and staff from any unnecessary exposure, Bear Lake Memorial is limiting visitor access to the hospital, nursing home, assisted living center, and clinics. This includes, effective immediately (March 14th), implementing a controlled entry system to screen ALL patients/visitors/staff for ANY respiratory symptoms. Visitation will only be permitted for specific circumstances. Signage will be posted on campus to help direct traffic during these restrictions.

In addition to the in-person screenings, the hospital is strongly encouraging appointments and visitors to call ahead for ANY chemotherapy, dialysis, outpatient, radiology or lab services. There are additional screenings and clinic workflow processes for patients with fever, cough and recent travel (last 14 days) or direct contact with anyone else who has traveled into areas of concern. Contact phone numbers are listed at the end of this article.

We are also closing the Auxiliary’s Gift Shop and Thrift Store until further notice. This means there will be NO thrift store donations accepted. Additionally, the cafeteria area will restrict public access and ONLY be providing meals to residents, patients, and staff members. This will help eliminate any unnecessary visits from the public.

We are asking for the community’s cooperation and understanding that these processes may change as further official updates and instructions are received. Additional changes may be put in place as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

We appreciate the community’s patience and understanding as we implement these precautionary measures. Please look for additional updates in the newspaper, on the radio, and on our website (www.BLMHospital.com) and here on social media.



Main Desk – 208.847.1630
Skilled Nursing Facility – 208.847.4441
Manor Assisted Living – 208.847.2400
Emergency Department – 208.847.4439
Bear Lake Physician’s Clinic – 208.847.1110
Bear Lake Family Care Clinic – 208.847.4495
Dr. Campbell’s Office – 208.847.3847
Visiting Physician’s and Ortho Clinic – 208.847.4359
Laboratory – 208.847.4422
Chemo/Dialysis – 208.847.4325

The hospital has set up a tent for screening people with respiratory symptoms. This is to protect the people who are already inside the hospital and are already sick for various reasons. If you are unsure what to do, just call the hospital and they can walk you through it.

Friday, March 13, 2020

Contrail

Photo by Carol Ann Dyer, "In Dyer Need of Outdoors"

Laketown to get internet tower

Bobbie Bicknell Coray, Reporter
Rich Civic Times

LAKETOWN, Utah March 4, 2020.  The  Laketown Council  approved a request from CentraCom to put up a tower for internet by the water tank.

Howard Pope, Centra Com, had addressed Planning and Zoning  about a tower on Last Chance Hill that will serve areas they cannot reach other ways including almost everyone in Round Valley and on the west side of Laketown as well as many on the east side of lake.  It will serve a lot of people. He estimates servicing over 100 homes with about 50 homes in Laketown. Mayor Weston gave approval.

It will be run by solar power, the solar power will cost them more but will be better in the long run, said Pope. They want to put a 32-foot pole. Pope shared photos of the pole and solar panels they would install.

Some homeowners will pay for conduit and a post somewhere close to their home if their home is not
within line of sight.  The new dish is a rocket.  Pope spoke of the benefits of the high
speed internet for education and work at home.

As Laketown develops Centra Com would like to put conduit up there so they can eventually put in fiber.

Schools in Utah cancelled for two weeks

Rich County Schools will be  closed for two weeks or until the Governor lifts the ban. Concerning school attendance in Rich County schools effective immediately.

Rich School District Constituents,

On Friday afternoon, Governor Gary Herbert in conjunction with the Utah State Department of Health and the Utah State Board of Education announced that schools will be dismissed for two weeks starting March 16th. This dismissal will be reevaluated at the end of the two-week period. The intent of the school dismissal as articulated in the announcement is to diminish the ability of the virus to spread. The Governor emphasized how important social distancing is to prevent the spread of the virus.

During the school dismissal buses will not run and school buildings will be open between 8:00 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. for education related activities. Buildings will not be open for community recreation activities. In addition, UHSAA has suspended all spring activities for the same two-week period. School dismissal is different than school closure because teachers and staff will continue to provide learning opportunities. Please watch for communication from building principals for details on the delivery method.

Teachers will spend Monday the 16th and Tuesday the 17th preparing for this transition and material will be available to your student on Wednesday the 18th.

Our intent is to make student learning over the next two weeks as meaningful as possible for the students we serve. If you have any questions or concerns please contact your school principals.

Superintendent Dale Lamborn

Little Mermaid, Rich High School Musical, Cancelled due to COVID 19 concerns

Photos of stars by Tammy Calder




Randolph City needs to increase water rates


RANDOLPH WATER RATE INCREASES, 2020

It has been brought to the attention of the Randolph Water Department that it is vitally important that we increase our water rates.  After several attempts to secure grants and/or loans during 2019, we were met with the same response.  “You do not charge enough for your water to make a loan or grant viable.  You need to increase your rates to even apply.”

Small towns all over Utah are being met with the same response.  Laketown has recently raised their rates to $48 per month and charge .0025 for overages.
    
Tabiona has also raised their monthly rates from $23 per month to $33 for 12,000 gallons of usage.  Hanna water system, also in Duchesne County is charging $57 for 7000 gallons of water.  Commercial water hook ups are charged either $43 or $53, depending on size and estimated usage during unmetered months. 

The last time water rates were increased was August of 2008.  At that time, the base rate went from $16 to $20 for 20,000 gallons per month, or a 25% increase. 

If we raised the base rate 25% now, we would be charging $25 per month for 20,000 gallons.  (Gallons per month could also be adjusted.) 

If we adjust Overage 1 for 10,000 gallons from $.001 per gallon to $.005 per gallon, it would increase the first tier of overage from $10 to $15 using all 10,000 gallons. 

If we adjust Overage 2 for 20,000 gallons from $.0015 per gallon to $.002 per gallon, it would increase the second tier of overage from $30 to $40 using all 20,000 gallons.

If we adjust overage 3 for unlimited gallons from $.002 per gallon to $.003 per gallon, it would increase the third tier of overage from $40 to $60, using an example of 20,000 gallons.  
  
We have 24 commercial hookups in the town of Randolph.  Increasing their base rate would be an option.  This is something nearly all small systems have in effect due to their high consumption during unmetered months and the use of town water for commercial gain.  

Consideration is being made for a future plan where rates will go up incrementally over the next 5 or 10 years, or even longer. 

Our System is Aging.  The last major improvement was done in the 1980’s.  Several of our shut off valves do not work.  It is not if we need major repairs, but when.  The town is trying to be proactive and prepare for the future. 




Garden City Council approves more short term rentals

GARDEN CITY, Utah.  March 12, 2020.  Several new short term rentals were approved including:

        Owner                          Address                                          Property Management
  • a. Jared & Stefanie Wells    930 N Newburg Dr #2      Bear Lake Lodging
  • b. Wendy Komoroski    98 W Lake Circle        Bear Lake Lodging
  • c. Miller-Edmonds Family Trust,     730 S Balsamorhiza Rd     Bear Lake Lodging
  • d. Rich & Sandy Morris    373 Rendevous       Rich & Sandy Morris
  • e. Ryan & Emily Henderson    904 Cambry     Ryan & Emily Henderson
  • f. Joe Coccimiglio    283 Snowmeadows         Joe Cocimiglio
  • g. L.P Lamplight Properties    745 Cambry Dr         L.P Lamplight Properties

Garden City Library quarantines books



Erring on the side of caution, if you have any cold or flu symptoms in your home, please leave all materials in the book return so they can be cleaned before being returned to the shelves. You may also CALL us any time at 435-946-2950 and renew items over the phone or email your request to librarydirector@cut.net. 

We hope to do our part to minimize the spread of any infectious diseases while still serving our patrons and the public.

From Garden City Mayor Mike Leonhardt

Garden City citizens, friends and community, the COVID-19 virus is serious and it is very important to be proactive to avoid spreading the virus. Its also very important to not panic and make decisions based on fear.
We will be proactive in our efforts to mitigate the possible spread of the Coronavirus at our city office and our library as well as our city pool. We will also implement Governor Herbert's recommendations from yesterdays press conference. We will work closely with the state of Utah and Bear River Health Department to minimize the impact of this new virus in our community.
As time goes on we will react accordingly and perhaps take additional measures based upon the recommendations of Bear River Health Department and other medical experts.
If you are worried that you have COVID-19, please call the Utah Coronavirus Hotline at 1-800-456-7707.
My final thoughts are this... Please be kind and patient with one another, help one another, as a community we can and will work through any situation we might have...
Thank you
Mayor Mike

Garden City Fire District Board Meeting


Leonard O’Reilly, Reporter
Rich Civic Times

GARDEN CITY, Utah.  March 4th, 2020.   Chairman Randall Knight opened the meeting with all board members present.  Chief Wahlberg reported on the progress of the addition.  Still needing completion; insulation, drywall, some electrical and carpet upstairs. Some of this work will done by volunteer fire fighters.

The new ladder truck is ready to be put in service after hose adaptors were used to be compatible with the threads of the existing hoses.

The board discussed and passed a yearly automatic 3% increase in the tax levy.


The responses for the month were:

1  Structure Fire in Lake Town

1  Runaway truck (the fourth in the years time)

3  Fire calls

3  Medical calls

Shards

Photo  from Bear Lake State Park

Rich Middle School Honors

March Academic Students of the Month

Sixth   

Mackley Nielsen

Rowyn Stroud

Seventh  

 Hilary Rex

 Talon Pace

Eighth  

 Ivan Flores

  Kasey Wilson


March Citizens of the Month

Sixth  

Reid Winter

Stella Earley

Seventh 

 Alli Livingston

  Jordan Johnson

Eighth   

Quinci Siddoway

  Jayden Cornia

Rich County Conservation District

The Rich County Conservation District will hold a
BUDGET HEARING

for Fiscal Year 2020

March 30th

7:00 pm

Farm Services Office

195 N. Main St.

Randolph, UT


PUBLIC INVITED

Respond to the US CENSUS

U.S. CENSUS BUREAU READY FOR PUBLIC TO RESPOND TO THE CENSUS, TOLL-FREE PHONE NUMBERS ARE AVAILABLE FOR PUBLIC ASSISTANCE

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH – On March 1, the U.S. Census Bureau disclosed the Census Questionnaire Assistance (CQA) phone numbers available to the public for assistance during the 2020 Census. The following toll-free phone numbers are available from 7:00 a.m. to 2 a.m. EST, seven days a week, in various languages and are supported by CQA:

LANGUAGE LINE TOLL-FREE NUMBERS
  • English 844-330-2020
  • Spanish 844-468-2020
  • Chinese (Mandarin) 844-391-2020
  • Chinese (Cantonese) 844-398-2020
  • Vietnamese 844-461-2020
  • Korean 844-392-2020
  • Russian 844-417-2020
  • Arabic 844-416-2020
  • Tagalog 844-478-2020
  • Polish 844-479-2020
  • French 844-494-2020
  • Haitian Creole 844-477-2020
  • Portuguese 844-474-2020
  • Japanese 844-460-2020
  • English (Puerto Rico residents) 844-418-2020
  • Spanish (Puerto Rico residents) 844-426-2020
  • Telephone Display Device (TDD) 844-467-2020

The English and Spanish language lines will be available to provide general information about the 2020 Census, including answers to frequently asked questions (FAQ’s), via an automated Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system. Activated on March 9, all lines will begin live CSR support providing information about the 2020 Census and assistance with the questionnaire. The CQA IVR and live CSR support on all language lines will end on July 31, 2020.
Most residents throughout the country will begin receiving their invitations to respond to the Census starting Thursday, March 12. The invitation will include instructions for responding to the 2020 Census online, with households in areas less likely to respond online receiving a paper questionnaire that they can return in the mail. By mid-April, all households that have not yet responded will receive a paper questionnaire.
The Census Bureau asks that you include everyone who lives in your home as of April 1 and residents are asked to use the Census ID included in the invitation. You can also respond without it by providing your address. For more information, please visit 2020census.gov or census.gov.

Best Regards, 

Coralys M. Ruiz Jiménez, Media Specialist
Utah Field Division / Dallas Regional Census Center / Denver Region
U.S. Census Bureau

Nilda Mae Longhurst Hoffman 1929 - 2020

Obituary
Nilda Mae Longhurst Hoffman, passed peacefully from this life on March 15, 2020, at the age of 90. She was born September 23, 1929, in Woodruff Utah to William Albert and Effa Gennett Longhurst.  Nilda is the youngest of eight children, she was proceeded in death by her beloved siblings: Leland, Edna, Clyde (Joe), Dora, Betsey, Earl, and Edith.

Nilda was married to Harold Hoffman on September 1, 1948 in Woodruff, Utah and later sealed in the Logan Temple on November 29, 1951.  They welcomed into their home two sons, Kent (Julianne) and Neil (Christine).  Nilda and Harold are the loving grandparents of eleven grandchildren and twenty eight great grandchildren.

Nilda showed a strong testimony and love of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.   She served many church positions and never hesitated to share her testimony and love of the gospel with her family.  She and her husband found joy serving in the Ogden Temple for several years.

Nilda was blessed with a gift for music and shared it throughout her life. She played the piano and organ for sacrament meeting, relief society and school programs.  She conducted the ward choir, led music in the junior Sunday school,  the primary and taught piano lessons to many children.

She was an excellent quilter.  You could often find numerous friends gathered around a quilt frame in her living room busily stitching for an upcoming wedding or new baby.

Nilda and Harold successfully worked on their cattle ranch in Randolph for over 60 years. They could be found working side-by-side on all aspects of the ranch such as stacking hay, fixing fences, driving cows and branding calves.  Nilda was a wonderful cook and always happy to serve a good meal to anyone who stopped by her home.

She will be greatly missed and loved by us all.  The Funeral will begin at 11:00 AM at the Randolph Ward Church on Thursday, March 19. Also, viewings will be at the church from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM  on Wednesday the 18th, and at 10:00 AM on Thursday.


To send flowers to Nilda's family, please visit our floral section.

Services
VISITATION
Wednesday
March 18, 2020
6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Randolph LDS Chapel
15 South Main
Randolph, Utah 84064

Monday, March 9, 2020

The Fearless Foodie


                                                     
Scott Heiner

If You Make It, They Will Come

is a line from “Field of Dreams,” the 1989 fantasy-drama sports film starring Kevin Costner as Ray Kinsella.  It refers to Ray’s repeatedly hearing a voice that whispers, “If you make it, they will come.”  So, Ray plows up his Iowa cornfield to make a baseball field which brings some of baseball’s greatest players—including Ray’s own father—coming back from the past for “dream games.”  It also brings throngs of baseball fans from afar who come to watch these memorable games.

That line also applies to a most memorable food event recently: the 2020 Bear Lake Monster Winterfest.

The event started with the Cisco Disco early in the morning on the east side of Bear Lake.  Now, I’ve heard of cisco, and what an amazing delicacy they are, but I’ve never been able to get up early enough to check it out.

This year, however, our daughter and grandkids were visiting and anxious to experience this sublime treat.  Bleary-eyed, we all ventured out and got to the State Park just in time for the event.  There the crew was under an awning, battering and frying up the little 6-inch critters.  We got in line and they served them up alongside French fries and scones, accompanied by tartar sauce, fry sauce and honey and jam respectively.

The fried cisco were light and crunchy without a hint of fishy taste.  The grandkids (quite picky eaters) also liked them, but didn’t want to eat the tails.  That was fine with me; I was glad to finish them off as well.  The scones and French fries were also very good.

Scott Tolentino of the Utah DNR was in charge of the event and explained some of the details of cisco science to me.  He said all you have to do is take your pole net and wade out into the water ankle-deep and the little critters just come swarming to you.  He said on a good day, you can scoop up your limit of 30 fish in just minutes.   I’ve never been able to catch fish, due to either lack of skills or patience.  However, if catching cisco is that easy, I just might invest in a net.  If you make it, they will come.

Of course, a highlight of the Bear Lake Monster Winterfest is the Monster Plunge, where crazy people in crazy costumes come to jump in the frigid lake, a great attraction for crowds from near and far who come to watch.  If you make it, they will come.

In the evening, the first annual “Monster Taste of Bear Lake” was held at the Sunrise Resort and Event Center, where many of the food establishments at Bear Lake offered their faire to sample.  There was the Bear Trapper with Sicilian Chicken and pot roast.  Bear Lake Pizza was also there with…pizza samples. and The Chocolate Bear served chocolate-covered raspberries.

Ruca’s came with their delicious Danish aebleskivers as well as Moose Buns with their wonderful cinnamon rolls.  The Waffle Den and Bakery was also there with a selection of their goodies; my sweet tooth especially appreciated their “Sweet Tooth Cookies.”  Café Sabor served fajitas while Cody’s featured chile verde and sliders.  It was a wonderland of ‘food, glorious food,’ and I felt like a kid in a candy store.  My biggest frustration was that I couldn’t try every single thing offered.  Unsurprisingly, the place was crowded to the max with people.  If you make it, they will come.



Trumpeter Swans On The Ice

Photo by Richard and Mimi Payne

Garden City Planning and Zoning


Anita Weston, Reporter
Rich Civic Times

GARDEN CITY, Utah.  March 4, 2020. The Oath of Office for two new Planning Commission members was given.  Sworn into this position were Kendra Bjoralt and Burt Carlisle. 

Because of the many changes in the Planning Commission, a new Chair and new Vice Chair were needed.  Dan Kurek was voted in as the new Chair and Joey Stocking was voted in as the Vice Chair.

A discussion was held concerning Phase 2 of Waterdance PUD located at approximately 185 South 100 West.  This subdivision is being developed by Norm Mecham.  It was noted that there were some discrepancies between the Final Plat and the construction drawings.  It was decided to postpone making any decisions on this project to next month so that the discrepancies can be resolved.

Jeff Jorgensen is currently involved in the Long Ridge Development.  Jorgensen’s career has been dealing with ordinances and creating subdivisions that are well designed.  He addressed the Planning Commission showing them how to take care of density, lot sizes, maximum numbers of lots in a subdivision, and building lot requirements.  He proposed changes to preliminary and final plat requirements.  He also talked about proposed changes related to open space requirements.  The information was well presented and will help the Planning Commission make ordinance changes and allow more variety and beauty to future developments.