Council: Solar Farms, Performance Bonds & High Anxiety
by brian mcNary
“Cactus Blossoms” by Lori Cole
With only 5 items on the April 2 City Council business agenda, I thought it was a good idea to tell my wife that this meeting would go by quickly. Not only was I wrong- but I was once again reminded that I am no latter-day Nostradamus. Yogi Berra once famously said, “Predicting is hard, especially about the future.” Indeed.
department reports: sewage, fire, stop light, criminal cases
Business reports went fairly quickly. The Confluence Park sewage treatment plant is on schedule and expected to be operational in December. It will initially handle 1/2 million gallons of water per day, rising to 1 and 1/2 million gallons per day as homes and businesses come on line. At maximum capacity, the plant will reclaim 3 million gallons of water per day.
Merlin Spendlove said that the Hurricane Valley Fire District was closing in on 1500 calls. Spendlove also said that he was retiring this year. He mentioned something about politics but was cut off. I remember his sentiment all too well.
Darrin LeFevre mentioned that a temporary stop light would be installed on the highway to allow construction trucks in and out of the Anderson Junction/reservoir area. This light will be in use for approximately two years.
The only other staff report of interest was that we have 85 active criminal cases that we are now responsible for prosecuting. Most of these are traffic tickets issued within the city limits, code violations, etc. Staff said they were hoping to recover at least 50% of the prosecuting costs.
Public Forum
Now generally speaking, the city council allows citizens 3 minutes to speak which is rarely used. Tonight, would be different.
Landowner Jerry Eaves and a number of project associates, talked for about 35 minutes about a solar farm proposal. Apparently, Eaves owns a large amount of land near Browse which extends down to Anderson Junction. Eaves wants Toquerville to become a “power city” and utilize the power that his solar farm would create. The presentation, with maps, took about 35 minutes. Although they spoke at length, none of the details were fleshed out. I do not know what the infrastructure cost would be, who would pay it, who would be liable for maintenance, or how much this newly minted electricity would cost us. Mr. Eave’s proposal left me with a wheelbarrow full of questions. After about 35 minutes, the presentation wrapped up.
Business Reports: Water, Performance Bonds, open & public meetings
The Toquerville City Water Conservation Plan was adopted and passed by the council.
Then the city, primarily the city attorney, wanted to talk about performance bonds and how contractors were supposed to financially implement them. Now, prior to this 45 minute discussion, I thought I had a rudimentary idea of how performance bonds worked. After listening to the city attorney and the council beat this thing to death, I am no longer confident that I know anything about performance bonds. Performance bonds are simply insurance that a developer will complete a project satisfactorily and if not- new contractors are deployed to fix or finish the project according to plan. I don’t understand what this discussion was about and I kept hoping the Mayor would direct the city attorney to get the answers from another city or two, or contact an insurance company. As I felt the life draining out of me, mercifully, the discussion ended.
Ben Billingsly talked about reviewing and prioritizing capital projects each year to determine which ones they would undertake. Council thought this was a good idea.
The state is requiring municipal governments to retain qualified advisors when contemplating PIDs. (Public Infrastructure Districts)
The Mayor and council were then given instruction regarding the Open and Public Meetings Act and how they should conduct themselves.
Calendar
Easter Egg Hunt, April 12, at Center Street Park , 10:00 a.m.
Arbor Day- Plant a tree and pick up the park event. April 25 at Center Street Park, 12:00 p.m.