Monticello supports Highway 191 grant

By David Boyle
News Director
The Monticello City Council tabled a water application and approved support for a highway 191 project at their latest meeting.
At their September 24 meeting, members of the city council approved a letter to support a grant application to widen lanes on highway 191 north of Monticello.
The Needles District Safety and Mobility Project is seeking federal funds through the Nationally Significant Federal Lands and Tribal Projects Grant.
The project would widen Highway 191 to four lanes roughly from mile marker 90 to 94.
Monticello’s support letter noted the area is a critical rural freight route, as well as an important road for tourism to access outdoor recreation in the region.
The letter also notes that four-mile stretch has seen several fatal accidents.
Members of the Monticello city council unanimously approved the letter supporting the grant application for the proposed highway 191 project.
Members of the Monticello city council also moved to table approval of an application for an outside city limits utility agreement.
The property is located outside city limits near Clay Hill, with some council members adding they’d like to see the property have it’s building permit from the county and the utility easement running through a neighboring property recorded on a deed before moving forward.
Additionally the project would require the water line to run through an area that the Department of Energy (DOE) had not thoroughly cleaned up.
As a result the restricted development would require the DOE to do radiation check while digging occurred.
City staff also expressed concern that the property does not front a city street, which would be against regulation if the property were to ever be annexed into the city.
Annexation into the city could require the addition of a flag lot for the necessary frontage.
The property owner shared they didn’t have plans to be annexed into the city.
Those hooked up to the city water outside of city limits pay about double for a hook-up fee, with the first 30,000 gallons of water a month charged at a similar rate to Monticello residents, with rates jumping up beyond that 30,000 gallons.
City council member George Rice advocated for denial of the application. 
“Our goal as a city council is to encourage growth in the city.
I would like to see a request to annex into the city and then work on getting the water that way rather than go through this.” 
Rice also raised concerns about how easements across family property lines is not an issue now but could be an issue down the road as the properties change hands.
Members of the council voted to table the application asking that the property owners come back with their building permit and easement before it is considered again.