Making Way for Animantarx

A new dinosaur will find its way home to Emery County in March, taking up residence at the Museum of the San Rafael.

The new dinosaur display will be the first exhibit for the museum that will show a dinosaur that is from the prehistoric Emery County. Named Animatarx RamalJonesi, the armored dinosaur was found near Castle Dale by Ramal Jones. Jones discovered the dinosaur with his fossil bone locator, which he adapted from a laboratory tool to detect the tiny amounts of radiation released by dinosaur bones.

Animantarx RamalJonesi is expected to have lived 100 million years ago and was considered a primitive dinosaur because it still had teeth in the front of the upper jaw; armored dinosaurs that came later developed beaks for stripping ferns and other low growing plants. It was approximately seven feet long and stood only a few feet high.

In preparation for the new exhibit local artist Cliff Oviatt of Cleveland and two of his art students, Laraine Johnston of Wellington and Frances Hanson of Spring Glen have been preparing the exhibit area with a detailed mural of what the Emery County area may have looked like at the time when dinosaurs ruled the earth.

As the date nears for the arrival of Animantarx the museum will sponsor coloring contests for Emery County school children to celebrate the return of latest and oldest resident of Emery County.

At Odds Over at Risk Youth

Josie Luke

One issue dominated discussion in both the planning and zoning and the City Council meetings held in Ferron City on Jan. 10: the issuance of a business license to Charlotte Williams for a privately-owned residential treatment center for girls ages 12 to 18. The business would be the first of its kind in either Carbon or Emery County.

Williams first introduced her plan at a planning and zoning meeting held in November at which the board decided that letters should be sent to neighbors of the facility, which is located at 945 South State Street. Williams answered questions from neighbors and community members at the next meeting held in December.

According to Williams, the board told her at this meeting that they did not see any zoning issues. At the city council meeting held later that night Williams again answered questions about the business and a motion was passed by the council to grant her the license pending the decision of the Planning and Zoning Board.

Williams said that because of these assurances she started making improvements on the building, including buying furniture, having the building inspected and having an alarm system installed. In fact, she revealed, if a positive decision was reached at the meeting held Thursday, “I would have been able to start taking referrals, I would have been a go.”

The planning and zoning meeting began with discussion of this issue. Because of some concerns, Williams attempted to further explain her plans for the facility.

Specifically she reported that the girls she would be serving would not be “extremely troubled girls,” that they would not be a “high run risk,” that they would receive therapy at the facility and that their schooling would be exclusively at the facility and not through any local schools.

Responding to inquiries as to whether she would accept children through state agencies, she reported that although in her business plan she had included this possibility, it was included as a backup plan in order to procure funding, and that she intended to take only private placements.

She went on to explain that if she did take private placements as she planned, she would not be able to take children from the state at the same time, “Once I go private pay, I’m private pay,” she clarified.

During the meeting Williams also explained that psychological services would be contracted through Four Corners Behavioral Health and would be conducted at the center and that medical services would be contracted with Emery Medical Clinic through Bruce Anderson and would be done at the clinic in Castle Dale. She also explained that her license had been issued through the State Department of Human Services.

She was then asked to explain what was meant by the term “level one” children in her business plan. This she explained, meant that the children she would accept would not be sex offenders, criminal offenders, or those with violent histories.

The board then asked whether she had a policies and procedures manual. She produced two binders. One she explained was already “checked off by the State of Utah”, and the other contained the changes that had been made for the new facility. Both of these she explained she had created herself and would allow the board to review.

The ratio of staff to youth was also raised as an issue. Williams related that the ratio required by the state was 1-to-6, but that she had chosen to make it 1-to-4 at the new facility. “I felt that that was something that I wanted to do with my own business. That was my own decision,” she said.

There were also residents who wanted to make comments on the proposal. Rod Moore was the first to speak. The first concern he expressed was that property values around the facility would decrease. He produced reports from local realtors that he said supported his claim.

The next issue he raised was that the property where the facility would be located is zoned as highway/commercial property. He offered Utah County’s policy as an example of a highway/commercial zoning ordinance which did not allow for a residential facility.

He also encouraged the board to speak with the support services around the county which would be involved, such as law enforcement and medical services.

Detective Robert Blackburn spoke next and said that he was asked by Sheriff Lamar Guymon to attend and to represent him. He said that his first concern was that the youth did not want to be at the facility, and because of this, they would run. Addressing those in the room, he then stated, “In order to do that they’re going to be in your homes and in your cars.”

His second concern was that it would be difficult to find people to take responsibility if the private-pay youth were to get into trouble. To further illustrate his points, he then spoke of an incident with a young man in a foster home who had run and had then been found dead the next spring in the mountains.

He continued, “You people really want to think about what you’re doing here. Are we getting this desperate? Is this what we’re going to have to do? I mean, what’s next?”

He was then interrupted by the question from the crowd, “Aren’t we here to help people?” He responded, “Yeah we’re here to help people,” and then continued, “Do we want to put in a nuclear waste facility next-- are we that desperate?”

Melinda Meccariello then asked what the response time would be if a child were to run. Blackburn explained that although the sheriff’s office likes to keep a deputy in each area of the county, sometimes they are “shorthanded, and Ferron is usually the one that gets left without an officer to respond.”

Williams asked Blackburn how often in the past 10 years the sheriff’s office had trouble with her in Orangeville. He responded that he didn’t know that she had, but that there were a couple of others they had trouble with.

Both then agreed that the sheriff’s office hadn’t been to her home as often as they had been to other homes.

Matt Meccariello was then given the chance to read a letter he and his wife, Melinda, had written on the subject. Their first concern was that they did not feel that the benefits of the facility would outweigh the risks.

He reported that they had done research on the facilities and had contacted state agencies “regarding licensing and placing children into this facility.” He asked that the board would also do the same so that they could make an educated decision regarding the business.

He further expressed that they did not feel that such a business fit with the vision and values of the community and that it would not “protect the welfare of Ferron citizens.”

He continued that if Williams would hire medical, psychological, educational and other professionals that it would be a benefit to the community, but said that her business plan did not state that she would. He said that Williams plan to contract out to Four Corners Mental Health would not “help Ferron City,” and that the employees that Williams had in her plan “do not live in Ferron and do not plan to live in Ferron to help the local tax base.”

He also said that Williams’ statements in the previous city council meeting did not match what she had written in her business plan. He expressed concern over the “type of youth” that would be drawn to the facility. “Do you want sex offenders, child molesters or felons living in close proximity to children or widows,” he posed.

Another issue he raised was that if Williams were to accept children from the state, “our public school system has to educate them.” He also asked that several other concerns be addressed.
Board Chairman Dennis Worwood encouraged further questions and comments be put in writing and given to city hall. He then gave Williams an opportunity to respond to the comments given in the meeting.

She reported that she had put in a security system to minimize the chance that the youth would be able to run. She also pointed to her 10 years of experience with the youth and to her respect and love for those she had worked with.

She also responded to the issue of their schooling saying that she had never contracted with Emery County School District for the education of those who would stay in the center.

She concluded by expressing regret that the situation had become so divisive when she “just wanted to help these girls.”

Melinda Meccariello then asked whether Williams had received a building permit to install the alarm system in the center. A board member replied that it was not required.

Moore then again addressed whether a residential treatment center should be allowed in Ferron in a highway/commercial zone, when Utah County did not allow it. He said that he believed that this was an issue that would have an effect on the community and produced petitions people had signed around the community on the subject.

The petitions stated, “Did you know that Ferron City Council approved a business license for a residential treatment center for troubled girls between the ages of 12-18 named Pine Meadows? Ferron citizens have had little input on this decision and the effects it will bring upon our city (potential for crime, decrease in property values, etc.).

“With your signature we would recommend the city council rescind their motion until further input and research has been evaluated and address our concerns in a public hearing. If you are concerned about this business coming to Ferron, please sign your name and plan to attend the Planning and Zoning meeting on January 10, 2008 at 5:30 P.M. at Ferron City Hall.”

Worwood then clarified that the issue before the board was whether the zoning allowed for such a facility. He also pointed out that a planning and zoning board is an advisory board to a city council, and the he considered the action that had been taken at by the City Council as “putting the cart before the horse.”

He proposed that the board “put it back in the lap of the City Council”, because they were the elected officials. He then went on to define the permitted uses of the specified land, which did not specifically include a residential treatment facility.

He explained that although he had previously understood that if a use was “not specifically denied,” that the use could be allowed, the City’s Attorney found that there was “no zone in Ferron” where a residential facility was allowed, and because of this, there was nowhere that it could specifically be allowed. Because of this the lawyer recommended that they would need to modify the city code to allow for such a use.

After this discussion Worwood asked if there were a motion to approve the business license, to which there was none. The choice was made to make a decision at a later time.

At the City Council meeting held later that evening, the council discussed what had occurred at the earlier planning and zoning meeting. Because the motion had been passed to grant the license at the previous City Council meeting pending the planning and zoning board’s decision, the decision was made to rescind the motion that had been made on Dec. 13.

Comments were then taken from the audience. Jake Barnett, from Castle Dale, who has had professional experience with both state run foster care and private-placement programs, explained, “By far the private placement kids were much easier to work with. They didn’t have the extensive problems and history that the DCFS kids had, and we have DCFS kids all around us.”

He further stated that he had a positive experience working with Williams and that he was disappointed at the tactics of fear that were being used in the argument against her.

Phil Fauver, a neighbor of Williams in Orangeville, expressed that he has never had a problem with the youth who have lived with her over the years.

Detective Blackburn stood up and stated, “The sheriff asked me to come here because he’s totally against this.” He then repeated the concerns to the city council he had given in the planning and zoning meeting.

In response to questions as to who would oversee the facility, Williams explained that because her license was through DHS, she would be overseen by that department and would be held responsible for any violations of policy they might find in regular checks of the center.

Moore then expressed concern over the distance of the facility from community support services, to which Barnett explained that the services were in fact closer in this situation than in other places he had worked.

In response to concerns that property values may decrease in the area near the center, Williams responded that the business would in fact be good for the economy as a source of tax revenue for the city.

Several people in the meeting again expressed concern that the staff of the facility would not in fact live in Ferron. Barnett expressed his disappointment at these arguments. He revealed that one of the things he had admired about Emery County when he moved here was that it was “a community in and of itself.”

Gill Bowden also expressed his view that crime was already high in Ferron. He related that he had been robbed at his home seven times, at his business five times, and that diesel has been siphoned from his backhoe many times. He also argued that the tax revenue that businesses bring in was vital to the local economy.

“I think what we need to look at is we’re helping youth. We’re giving people a second chance. I don’t think this business is going to do the harm everyone’s saying it is going to do. I think it can to do a lot of good,” he concluded.

Blackburn again stood up and pointed to the incident where the young man had run away from a foster home. “He didn’t want to be here, he ran away and I hauled his skeleton off the mountain,” he reported.

The issue will be addressed again at the next planning and zoning meeting to be held on the third Jan. 15 at 7 pm.

Green River mayor, council bicker over appointments

James L. Davis

A difference of opinion between the City of Green River mayor and city council ended in a stalemate as the city council failed to approve any of the mayor’s appointments for the new year during the Jan. 8 city council meeting.

Following the swearing in of newly elected officials Mayor Ed Bentley presented his appointments for the year, which included appointed responsibilities of the city council as well as his desire to appoint Karen Smith city recorder instead of Conae Black.

The city council made a motion to deny his appointments and it was approved unanimously.. With his appointments denied by the council the appointed responsibilities usually given to city council members are now under direction of the mayor. Appointments such as city streets, parks, and beautification are duties of the mayor that are given to the council by way of appointment. When the council does not approve the mayor’s appointments it leaves the mayor in charge of those duties. In the case of city recorder and city clerk, those currently holding those positions will continue to do so until the council and mayor agree on new appointments.

The disagreement between the mayor and the city council leaves the city for all intents and purposes at a standstill, with the mayor having the authority over all positions in the city but the city council the power to approve or deny any spending for the city.

According to Mayor Bentley the council was not happy with his decision on who to put over city streets. He said the council wanted him to appoint Dan Harrison to city streets, but since Councilmember Harrison is the only contractor in town he said it would be a conflict of interest for Harrison to be over city streets. The mayor said after consulting with the city attorney he was advised not to make such an appointment.

Bentley said he had no plans to change the appointments he had already given to the council for approval.

Wrecked charter bus towed to local shop for investigation

James L. Davis

A charter ski bus that crashed Jan. 6 in Southern Utah found its way to Carbon County as it was towed to a shop on Ridge Road owned by Nielson Construction as federal investigators and the Utah Highway Patrol combed the wreckage for clues to the cause of the deadly accident.

There were 51 passengers aboard the Corporate Transportation ‘N Tours charter bus, primarily from the Phoenix and Tucson, Ariz., area when it crashed, killing nine and ejecting most of the passengers. The buss rolled off the road near Mexican Hat.

The Nielson Construction shop was chosen to bring the wreckage of the bus because it was the closest facility to the accident scene large enough to house the bus and allow investigators to perform their work out of the weather.

By Thursday investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board and the Utah Highway Patrol had almost finished their physical inspection of the wreckage. The bus, with its roof sheered off, was tangled almost to the point of being unrecognizable and the task of piecing together clues to the cause of the accident was immense.

“It’s a pretty daunting task. I’ve never faced anything this huge before,” said Highway Patrol inspector James Curtis of Monticello. “The forces that had to be involved are just incredible.”

The bus was a 2007 model with only 26,000 miles on the odometer. Investigators were preparing electronic components from the bus for shipment to NTSB headquarters for analysis. The bus was equipped with a dash cam that could have activated a few seconds prior to the accident that could give clues to the cause of the crash. It was also equipped with a panic button the driver could have activated and an electronic control module, or “black box” that would give important clues to the accident’s cause. Curtis said the black box had to be turned on by the manufacturer and they were not sure as of Jan. 10 if it had been activated.

As the inspection of the bus continued Curtis said so far inspectors had not been able to discover anything physically wrong with the bus.

Residents urged to prepare for looming digital TV change

James L. Davis

During the Jan. 8 meeting of the Emery County Commission an update on the TV Converter Box Coupon Program was presented by Brett Mills, communications specialist for the county.

The TV Converter Box Program helps individuals and communities prepare for impending changes to television broadcasting that will take effect in February of 2009. The Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Act of 2005 require TV stations to stop broadcasting in analog and to broadcast only in digital after Feb. 17, 2009. Individuals who rely on their TV reception through the help of “rabbit ears” or a rooftop antenna will need to either have a TV converter box that will convert the digital signal to analog or they will need to buy a TV with a digital tuner. Any TV built after April of 2007 has a digital tuner built in. TV viewers who get their signal through cable or satellite will not be impacted by the change.

The cost of the converter box is projected to be between $50 and $70, according to Mills and the government is helping with the cost of the converter box with the TV Converter Box Coupon Program, which gives individuals up to two $40 coupons good toward the cost of the box. The number of coupons that will be available to individuals is limited and will be given out on a first come, first served basis, which is why county officials are urging Emery County residents to apply for their converter box as soon as possible.

You can apply for the coupon on the internet at www.DTV2009.gov. During his update Mills cautioned residents when filling out address information to type in their physical address, not mailing address. A mailing address will be asked for later in the online form. You may also apply for the coupons by telephone at 1-888-388-2009 or by mail by writing TV Converter Box Program Coupon Program, P.O. Box 2000, Portland, OR. 97208.

Mills said up to 70 percent of county residents still receive their TV signal through the use of an antenna, and with no cable access virtually all of the town of Emery receives TV only through the use of an antenna.

Mills also said that the county is looking for the resources to switch local Channel 26 to digital to be able to keep it on the air. It will cost between $60,000 and $120,000 to convert the Channel 26 equipment over to digital.

Commissioner Drew Sitterud indicated that the county needed to find the resources to convert Channel 26 to digital. If the county didn’t use the channel it would lose its license. The county hoped that with new digital equipment they might be able to get back into broadcasting local events for the community.