Blanding city talks new mayor, memorial

by David Boyle
News Director
Members of the Blanding City council made plans to change the location of their new Veterans Memorial, approved a policy related to cell phones for police officers and made preparations for a new mayor at the start of the year at their latest meeting.
At the November 12 meeting Mayor Logan Monson shared he had submitted his resignation. Monson won an election on November 5 to represent San Juan County along with five other counties in southeast Utah in the Utah State House. Monson will represent District 69 beginning in January. 
As a result applications are open now for Blanding residents to apply to serve as the city mayor, applications are due on December 4. City council plans to interview candidates at their December 10 meeting before making an appointment. An municipal election would be held in November 2025 with the appointed term ending the first Monday in 2026.
Candidates must be registered voters in Blanding, US citizens age 18 years or older and legal residents of Blanding for 12 months preceding the appointment, and must remain Blanding residents during their term.
Members of the Blanding City council also discussed the future site of the proposed Veterans Memorial.
City Manager Trent Herring reported that the previously proposed location for the memorial had been rejected by representatives with the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT). The previously proposed location would have been at the triangle shaped location where Center Street, 200 East and Grayson Parkway meet, UDOT rejected two requests to build the memorial there.
As a result the city proposed a location change for the memorial would place it next to the current city memorial. The proposed relocation would be on city property between the city visitor center and the Maverick gas station. 
Herring and memorial organizer Tony Wojcik, who also serves as commander of American Legion Post 97 in Blanding, agreed on the new location with organizers hoping for additional foot traffic and hope that the location would enhance the existing Veterans Memorial. 
Members of the city council signaled support for the project moving forward but did ask for additional information as to why UDOT wouldn’t allow for the memorial in a spot where a clock monument already exists.
Blanding city council also approved a new policy regarding cell phones for police officers. 
While most city employees that qualify take a $40 a month cell phone allowance, Herring explained that some in the police department may prefer having a city issued phone “with its own number so they can use that for their investigations. texting back and forth with the victims, witnesses, etc., keeping pictures on that phone.
“We just have had some interest in our police department to see if the city would allow that.”
Herring explained the cost would be about $5 a month per officer that wants a city provided cell phone, with three officers expressing interest in a city provided phone. Members of the council unanimously approved the policy update.
Members of the council also approved resolutions of power sales contracts to help with the creation of natural gas and hydrogen mix facilities to provide future power to the city.
One project is located in Millard county with a study, preliminary design and permitting scheduled for 2025 and operations going online in 2029. Another project in Power County, Idaho would become operational in 2031.
The projects are being developed with support from Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) which Blanding is a member of, the project will need to hit certain milestones in cost to come online with multiple off-ramp points per the city if they choose to no longer be a part of the project.
Recently a UAMPS nuclear energy power plant in Idaho failed to get off the ground with UAMPS members including Blanding eventually withdrawing from the project. Members of the council approved the resolutions signaling the support for the project while retaining future options to withdraw.
During public comment members of the council also heard from Glenn Gurney. In public comment Gurney said the city illegally moved his tractor trailer and aircraft at the city airport in order to move the items as part of the recent resealing at the airport.
Gurney said he was given one hour notice and being unable to move the contents himself any damage that occurred to his property while in transit could leave the city liable.
Gurney shared if there were no damage there’d be no issue, if property was damaged he’d seek compensation from the city. 
Being a legal matter city council and staff did not respond to the comments at the public meeting but thanked Gurney for his time. 
Members of the Blanding city council also heard a report from the city youth council. Members of the youth city council reported on their events including participation in the San Juan Civics Day held at the USU Blanding campus. Youth council also was involved in the Blanding Fall Festival as well as aiding the Bears Ears Marathon and other items. 
The council is also meeting regularly as part of a class at San Juan High with regular attendance at those meetings enabling participation for training provided by the Utah League of Cities and Towns.
Members of the Blanding city council thanked the youth council for their report. 
Council also received a report on the Bears Ears Marathon with 161 registrants for the race and about 130 showing up on race day. City staff report noted the numbers were slightly lower than the first year likely due to the election but they saw hotels fill that weekend for the race, and are waiting for feedback from runners in the coming days and weeks via a survey.
 Members of the Blanding city council also signaled a support for an update to the city annexation process. Herring presented an update to the policy including links to state codes as well as a provision allowing property owners seeking annexation to receive in-city utility rates upon signing an annexation agreement.
Herring noted that the city process can take some time, but the updated policy will allow those applying for annexation to receive the benefit while the city goes through the needed process.
Council members expressed support for the idea. Formal approval is likely to come in future council meeting.
Members of the council also gave advice and consent on the placement of shade structures at the city tennis and pickleball courts. The shade structures would be built on the north end of the courts with funding coming through a grant from the San Juan Clean Energy Foundation as well as the city itself.