Monticello city approves economic blueprint and talks Main Street traffic

by David Boyle
News Director
Members of the Monticello City Council approved an economic blueprint, waived additional county building fees and talked Main street traffic at their latest meeting.
Members of the Monticello City Council opted to forgo a proposal to place signs limiting engine brakes within city limits at their December 9 meeting.
The cost for signage restricting engine or “jake” brakes within city limits would cost $4,000 to $6,000 from the city streets and road fund. Members of the city council voted 3-2 against the signage.
City staff noted that while there currently is an ordinance in place preventing semi-trucks using loud engine brakes in town, law enforcement will not write infractions without posted signage in town.
Council member Kirk Crowley said he’s fine with the principle of having restrictions and penalizing those who use engine brakes but doesn’t see the efficiency for the money. Saying why spend the $6,000 if there won’t be enforcement. Crowley reflected on his 35 years working in the trucking industry.
“I do not remember ever seeing one single violation for our trucking company for an engine brake ordinance and they're all over; every town in the country has them (...) I've dealt with thousands of drivers. There's probably been one, but I don't remember it. So that tells you that most people just aren't enforcing these things.”
Council members also noted that fixing the speeding issue through town would diminish loud noise from engine braking.
A motion to purchase additional signage for engine brakes at three locations in town failed with council members Ron Skinner and Kevin Dunn voting in favor and council members Nathan Chamberlain, Crowley and Rice voting against.
After the vote Rice said he thinks speed enforcement should continue to be the emphasis of the city shared to the sheriff’s department, with recognition that the sheriff’s department is doing the best they can while being short-handed.
Following that vote members of the council also considered installing a speed feedback sign on highway 491 coming into town. That installation cost of $6,000-$8,000 would be split with UDOT. Pointing to a belief that the signs are not an effective deterrent, members of the council did not bring a motion on the issue.
Members of the city council also adopted the Monticello City Rural Economic Blueprint. The document presented by Deborah McKee of the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity, provides an outline of the economic realities, challenges and future planning for the success of Monticello’s economy. The council adopted the blueprint recognizing it as a “living document” that can be edited and updated as needed.
Members of the Monticello city council also approved additional fees waived for the San Juan County Public Safety Building.
City staff recommended waiving additional fees beyond the $65,000 approved at Monticello’s last city council meeting. With building permit fees brought down to just $221.84 to acknowledge additional city staff time spent on reviews and utility line discussions.
County building representative Sam Long shared that the groundbreaking of the project had been delayed due to subcontractor costs exceeding projections. County Administrator Mack McDonald explained the project was over budget at the last city council meeting and looked at every avenue to reduce costs on the project. Members of the city council approved to reduce the building fees again to help the county meet its budget. Councilmember George Rice did take to share with the county his concerns about the existing sewer lines serving the facility with particular concerns about the lines ability to service a larger facility with more users. Rice urged the county to have engineers address the line's condition as part of the project.
During public comment the city heard from researchers with the University of Utah. The researchers shared they are traveling the state to collect opinions related to carbon capture and storage technology. The process involves capturing carbon dioxide at emission sources and storing it, including a method that pumps it into deep geologic reservoirs. The group explained their research, funded by the Department of Energy, is to gather local perspectives to inform opinions about CCS projects in Utah. Their presentation concluded by inviting council members and the public to participate in interviews to share perspectives regarding the tech.
Members of the council also revisited their discussion with Airbuild. The Green River headquartered company that proposed a grant-funded wastewater treatment system. The process uses micro algae and pyrolysis to capture carbon and store it using biochar. The company has a similar project in Green River and is seeking a preliminary development agreement to help secure grant funding.
Council concerns at the meeting included city liability if the company should fail as well as cleanup responsibility and how private operation would work with city staff. Airbuild representatives recommended a collaborative effort possibly hiring city public work staff with specialized training with salaries potentially covered by Airbuild.
City manager Kaeden Kulow noted the project involves no financial burden on the city, just allocation of land at the sewer lagoons.
The discussion concluded with a proposal to utilize a memorandum of understanding (MOU) rather than a formal development agreement in order to further explore the proposal without as firm a commitment just yet from the city.
Members of the council also approved documents designating the city manager as the chief administrative officer and the city recorder as the chief privacy officer in order to fulfill requirements from the state regarding data privacy.
Members of the Monticello city council also approved their meeting schedule for the upcoming year. City council will meet every 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month, same as has been done for the past several years.