Grand Canyon pkwy gates

by lynn williams

Photo by Deanna McNary

At the city council meeting on January 15, 2025 the locked gates at Trail Ridge were discussed again.  This was business items 1 and 2. The discussion on YouTube can be watched beginning here.

I am vocal on this issue because I have witnessed three mayors, two city attorneys, and numerous city council members kick this subject down the road several times. So far absolutely nothing has been done.

These gates are illegal on many levels.  They violate the Toquerville City Code, the International Fire Code, the Utah State Code and possibly the Federal Act SR2477.

Most of these violations could be argued and wind up in court, but the violation of the fire code should be a straightforward, “get-off-your-butt-with-a-tape-measure” and take care of business issue.

The representative from Hurricane Valley Fire District basically said these are minor violations and he is okay with them.  Considering what is going on in California right now, the public should insist all fire codes are obeyed. 

The aforementioned representative even went so far as to say that, if it got bad, people could drive through the locked gates.  This same fire department representative stated in 2020 that the North Gate was a violation of the Fire Code. Now he has decided that it no longer is.

One of the main purposes of the City is to provide public safety.  With this in mind, why has that locked gate been ignored for five years?

I’m not sure how this discussion ended.  I think that people are going to talk to people and discuss it again some time in the future.

Why does that sound familiar?

(Brian McNary previously wrote a post sharing his experience and opinion on locked gates and barricaded roads).