Commission discusses moratorium plans

‘Mark Vlasic of Landmark Design visited with the San Juan County Commission on June 18 about the six-month moratorium on commercial building along Highway 191 in Spanish Valley.
Landmark Design has contracted with the county to help develop a master plan for Spanish Valley. Preliminary plans have been challenged by local residents.
Vlasic outlined a new effort to conduct additional study in Spanish Valley and “make revisions to the commercial codes in that area that meet the public needs.”
There will be new public scoping meetings beginning next week. Vlasic said they would also “reach out to special interest groups to hear all concerns and understand what is going on.”
The revisions are likely to be ready for public hearings and approvals in the fall. The final product would need to be approved by mid-November.
Vlasic stated, “Love’s Truck Stop have made an application through the current zoning and that is not going away.” He added that he is not sure if the Love’s application is vested and if they are exempt from the moratorium.
Commissioner Bruce Adams expressed frustration with the lack of progress in Spanish Valley.
“The moratorium has been in place for a month, and we have not done anything,” said Adams. He said a recent joint meeting between the Commission and the Grand County Council “included a lot of backslapping and praise about this wonderful meeting, but I don’t know if we got anything done.”
Adams said the Grand County Council sent a letter opposing Love’s Truck Stop the day after the meeting.
“The letter was already penned before the meeting, and they didn’t say anything about it,” said Adams. “It bothers me that we sit here and let the Grand County Council dictate to Love’s Truck Stop what is going to happen in San Juan County.”
Adams said, “A huge amount of attention has been paid to Spanish Valley over the past five or six years. They (Spanish Valley residents) are motivated now, so let’s let the process go.”
He encouraged having representatives from Loves meet with local residents, “Getting Love’s at the table would be great.”
Commissioners approved two policies that govern the use of public property and declaring conflicts of interest by county employees. The policies are necessary because of recent bills passed by the state legislature.
Commissioners discussed a proposed interlocal agreement between San Juan and Grand counties that would formalize the process of Grand County crews building non-motorized trails in Spanish Valley and the La Sal Mountains in San Juan County.
The crews have built hundreds of miles of bike trails in the Moab area and hope to continue the work into northern San Juan County.
The effort started several years ago with private groups seeking grants and funding. The trail crews more recently became employees of Grand County.
The agreement will be addressed at a future Commission meeting.
Commissioners approved $1.5 million in bonds through the Local Building Authority to fund construction of a road department shop and related facilities in Monticello. The $1.9 million project is funded, in part, by the CIB, with 45 percent of the total in a grant.
A public hearing was held on a proposal that would result in new vehicles for Emergency Medical Response. The proposal would seek funding from the Community Impact Board (CIB) for a transport vehicle and new ambulances.
San Juan County would contribute $50,000 to the project, with the remainder from the CIB.