Town of Daniel

Town Council Meeting Minutes

August 4, 2008

Wasatch County Services Building

55 South 500 East

Heber City, Utah

Room 132

5:30 PM

Quorum:  Mayor Mike Duggin, Council members Eric Bunker, Gary Walton, and Heather Bateman were present.

Mayor Duggin called the meeting to order at 5:36 PM.  Council member Jonathan Blotter arrived just after the meeting was called to order at 5:37 PM.

1. Business applications

Laurie Duke appeared before the Town Council to request a new business license for her daycare preschool facility.  This business will not require a state license as the children will be present for less than 4 hours per day.  She expects classes of 6-8 children.  Mayor Duggin made a motion to accept this application which was seconded by Council member Blotter.  There was no discussion, and the motion passed unanimously.

Allen Remund’s renewal request for Rocky Mountain Weed and Pest Control was tabled as Mr. Remund was not present before the Council.  Councilman Bunker reminded the Council that applicants must appear before the Council for the initial application and said that he had explained that to Mr. Remund.  Mayor Duggin moved to table the application until Mr. Remund was present.  Council member Walton seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously.

2. HLP (HEBER, LIGHT & POWER) FRANCHISE AGREEMENT

Joe Dunbeck, attorney for HLP, apologized for confusion caused when he emailed the town a franchise agreement that was somewhat different from the original document submitted to the town.  He explained that the franchise was an agreement between the Town of Daniel and HLP to allow them an easement on our roadways for power lines that are already in place there.  HLP considers this agreement a “housekeeping” measure similar to one that Wasatch County has already signed with HLP.  Mayor Duggin pointed out that there was no exclusivity clause in this agreement.  Mr. Dunbeck stated that if Daniel Town signs a franchise with HLP, Rocky Mountain Power will not come into Daniel.  Mayor Duggin questioned the 50 year length of the agreement, and Mr. Dunbeck responded that the length of the agreement could be determined by the town.  He stated that 30 years is more than adequate for what they needed.  Daniel Town would not be a “municipal member” of HLP.  Daniel would receive the same rate as everyone else but would not be allowed a vote.

Mayor Duggin noted that HLP is 40% “green”, run by local people, and he felt that this agreement will be inevitable.  He asked Mr. Dunbeck to note the correct Utah State statute into the agreement and send the town a clean copy of the final agreement, and Mr. Dunbeck agreed that he would comply.  In answer to Claire Averett’s question concerning a franchise fee as revenue for the town, Mr. Dunbeck clarified that the franchise agreement is separate from the fee that could be collected by HLP for the town once it enacts an ordinance authorizing a municipal energy tax.

Lambert Deegan stated that he thought even 30 years was too long a term commitment, and the Mayor committed to calling around to see what is usual and customary.

Council member Bunker asked for an explanation of “public and private use” from Section 2, but his question went unanswered.  Councilman Blotter requested a list of all Daniel residents.  Mr. Dunbeck was concerned about privacy issues, but he said that he would look into supplying such a list within 10 days.

Councilman Bunker made a motion to table this franchise agreement until our next meeting September 8, 2008.  Council member Bateman seconded the motion.  There was no discussion, and the vote was unanimous.

3. ENERGY TAX ORDINANCE

 

Mayor Duggin discussed the estimate of tax that could be collected if the town enacts an energy tax (on electricity, natural gas, and propane used by Daniel Town residents) ranging from 1% (generating approximately $2,270) to 6% (generating approximately $13,600).  He noted that passing an ordinance to initiate this tax does not require a public hearing, but he felt that it would be a good idea to hold one.  The Council members agreed with the Mayor.  Council member Bunker made a motion to schedule a public hearing for September 8 to hear public comment concerning a franchise energy tax.  He amended the motion to remove the word “franchise”.  Council member Bateman seconded the motion.  The mayor asked if HLP would pay a franchise fee to Daniel.  Mr. Dunbeck said that would not be possible because it would be treating Daniel differently than other franchise grantors.  There was no further discussion, and the vote was unanimous.

4. WIND POWER/WINDMILLS

Mr. Jim McCleary was not available to present his information to the Town Council.  Mayor Duggin spoke about taking a look at this technology even though it might not be cost effective at this time.  Mr. Blaine Stewart discussed qualifications that would be necessary to hook in to the HLP system to sell surplus energy from wind power.  Councilman Walton said that this technology does not work in the Heber Valley.

5. RONALD SMITH DISCONNECTION REQUEST

Merry Duggin noted that despite attempts made to contact Mr. Smith, Mr. Smith was not present at the meeting.  Council member Bunker presented a recommendation from the Daniel Planning Board that the request by Mr. Smith to subdivide his property and disconnect from the Town of Daniel should be denied consideration until further information is provided to the Planning Board and Town Council.  A letter will be sent to Mr. Smith outlining the information requested.  It was noted that the Smith property is not large enough for a legal subdivision in its current 5 acre zoning.  Mayor Duggin said that the Town has received no formal application other than the letter from Mr. Smith requesting disconnection.

6. DANIEL ROADWAY CAPITAL FACILITY PLAN

Ryan Taylor of Epic Engineering presented a PowerPoint summary of a road operations and maintenance plan for Daniel Town documenting one time repairs and ongoing maintenance. He noted that Daniel has 10 miles of two lane roads in good to fair condition.  There are some problems with poor drainage, cracking, and improper cut repairs.  The short to mid time repairs are estimated to be $150,000, and adding some needed cul de sacs will raise the cost to $286,000.  The report recommends crack sealing every 2-3 years, surface sealing every 3-5 years, and chip and sealing major roads every 3-5 years.  The projects are ranked in priority order, and Epic recommends completely redoing roads every 50 years.  The total for recommended maintenance of Daniel Roads is $9,000,000 in today’s dollars.  This is an annualized cost of $183,000.

Mayor Duggin pointed out that Class C road funds (currently at approximately $50,000) will be decreasing due to lower gasoline sales, and we will have a major revenue shortfall.  Mayor Duggin feels that it is irresponsible to put this problem off for a future Council to have to deal with.  Daniel may have to look at a property tax in the near future.  Meanwhile, Mr. Taylor suggested that we can save money by doing the crack sealing ourselves by renting the equipment and working with volunteers’ labor this fall, and we can put aside money for more major repairs.  We need to upgrade our standards for road repair when someone makes cuts, and we should require compaction tests.  The easiest thing for us to do now is to guard against “irrigating” the roadways which shortens the useful life of the road.

The mayor asked for a completed copy of the plan to be placed on the website for everyone to examine.  Council member Bunker asked that the plan be compared to the Daniel Road plan already in effect.

Several of the people in attendance at the meeting volunteered to help with the sealing project in the fall.

7. TRAFFIC ISSUES

An ordinance recently passed by Bluffdale denying heavy trucks access to residential streets was discussed.  Mr. Walton wondered who would enforce it.  Mr. Bunker wondered if it would affect the amount of Class C road funds Daniel would receive.  Mayor Duggin said that he would check with our attorney to see if this would be something Daniel Town should consider.

There was discussion about a bridge on Big Hollow Rd, and it was suggested that Wasatch County might help us repair the deterioration as their trucks used it so frequently.

Lambert Deegan discussed placing stop signs in several locations.  He was especially interested in stop signs on Southfield Rd. near his home to control large truck traffic now coming to and from the airport industrial area through his residential area.  Mayor Duggin agreed that the road was not designed or appropriate for the traffic now using it, but he was not sure what can be done.  He proposed that we look at this issue a little more.  Gary Weight stated that stop signs could increase pollution, noise, and road maintenance, and these issues should be considered carefully.  Mr. Walton suggested that we could write a letter to Heber City outlining our concerns.

Mr. Deegan also suggested stop signs could be placed at other locations on 3000 South to control speed and discourage heavy traffic through Daniel.

8. COMMITTEE REPORTS

Snowplow update—Mayor Duggin appointed Councilman Gary Walton to pursue purchase of a snowplow for Daniel.  The snow will be flying soon, and we need to be prepared.

Water issues update—Merry Duggin reported that Daniel Domestic Water will conclude the paperwork for its water rights case and submit it to the State Engineer’s office by August 31.

CDBG (Community Development Block Grant)/Jonathan Blotter– A town survey will have to be completed before we can determine if we qualify for application for a grant as a low to moderate income level community.  Before the survey can be performed we have to obtain a list of the residences in Daniel and designate homes to be surveyed by random.

Newsletter/Merry Duggin—The next issue should be ready for delivery in the next few weeks and will include information about the survey to inform the public of its necessity.

Planning/Eric Bunker—Mr. Bunker reported that the Willie Barn/house on 3000 South is not yet completed.  An attorney has become involved in the process.  The Wasatch County planning department is also still involved.  Mr. Bunker also made a motion that Kathy Percy be named the new planning board secretary to replace Marilou Hall, and he thanked Ms. Hall for all her service over the last two years.  The motion passed unanimously.  The Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on August 20 concerning zoning changes.

Fundraiser/Heather Bateman—Ms. Bateman reported that the fundraiser is scheduled for Friday, August 22, and will be held at the home of Mr. and Mrs. George Curtis located on Hwy 40.

9. 9. MINUTES

Council member Blotter moved to accept the minutes of July 7, 2008 as written.  Council member Walton seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously.

10. ADJOURN

Mr. Blotter moved to adjourn.  The motion was seconded by Mr. Bunker.  The vote was unanimous, and the mayor adjourned the meeting at 7:40 PM.