Santaquin City bans fireworks as wildfires burn across Utah

Santaquin fireworks ban

By Spencer Healey

Update June 29, 10:14 a.m. - Letter from the Mayor to Santaquin Citizens

SANTAQUIN – On Wednesday night the Santaquin City Council voted to ban private firework use throughout the city, joining a long list of cities across the state of Utah that have placed recent bans and restrictions on fireworks.

As six wildfires burned through different parts of Utah, the council adopted an ordinance to prohibit all firework uses other than “professional pyrotechnic displays at community sponsored events”. Utah has already banned fireworks across the state, although incorporated towns and cities can enact their own regulations.

“Basically, what Santaquin’s ordinance does is mirror the state ordinance which gives the provision to tighten firework laws in stages,” said Santaquin Public Safety Director Dennis Howard.

The council decided to move Santaquin to a level 3 stage of firework use across the entire city. While some cities have adopted partial bans and area-specific regulations, Santaquin joins other towns like Woodland Hills and Cedar Fort who have issued citywide firework bans.

“If anyone is using fireworks they will be issued a citation and the fireworks will be confiscated,” said Howard. “First citation is an infraction, the second is a Class C Misdemeanor.”

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New Miss Santaquin crowned for 2013

Written on June 9, 2012 by in City News, Featured, Featured article
Miss Santaquin 2013 Royalty | Center: Miss Santaquin Kylie Jo Black. Attendants: Left - Shelby Mortensen, Right - Brylee Briggs

by Spencer Healey

 

Kylie Jo Black was crowned as the new Miss Santaquin in front of a crowd of local support Saturday night in the Payson High School auditorium.

After a competition featuring three young ladies from the Santaquin area, Black was announced the winner. Her attendants are Brylee Biggs and Shelby Mortensen.

Black competed on a platform to help youth cope with anxiety problems, she herself having dealt with anxiety her whole life.

“I have my own anxiety, so I think if I give advice to those who need it that will help,” said Black after the pageant. “I had my dad give me advice, a lot of people don’t have that,  so giving advice will help.”

The evening pageantry had a throwback flavor throughout the night, with all three contestants performing classic numbers for the talent portion of the competition. Black, dressed in a 50s red-and-white polka-dot outfit, sang a rendition of the classic “It’s Oh So Quiet”, originally sung by Betty Hutton. Biggs donned a red flapper-style dress and danced a routine to the song “All That Jazz”. Mortensen performed a dance choreographed to the famous aria “Habanera” from the opera “Carmen”.

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Politics

The Council’s Six Goals

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Pool, roads, and grocery store on city’s radar

Santaquin citizens for years have clamored for the city to take action regarding issues like road maintenance, commercial growth, and the lack of recreational facilities. Over the years it seems much has been said by public officials and representatives on those fronts, with limited headway made on plans for a future pool, grocery store, or improved roads.

During this year’s city council retreat, however, councilman and city officials may have started the ball rolling on solutions to the citizens’ concerns.

With help from a third-party facilitator from Brigham Young University, the council was able to outline important goals for the future during their meetings in late February. Many issues and city needs were discussed, but in the end the council and department supervisors were able to determine six main areas of focus. inSantaquin News was able to sit down with City Manager Benjamin Reeves recently to talk about the direction Santaquin City is headed.

6 Main Goals

According to Reeves, a consensus was reached regarding the most pressing issues facing the city in the next two years.

“The issue we have with our council and our mayor, they run because they want to improve, they want to make a difference,” said Reeves. He spoke from the perspective of the council by saying, “It’s so hard when we have people pulling in different directions, so by spending time in a retreat with an unbiased facilitator, letting them filter what’s most important to me as a council member so that in two years or four years when I’m gone I can feel like I made a difference and I made a legacy.”

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Teen long-boarding across Utah for paralyzed friend will ride through Santaquin

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15-year-old Ben Smith is gearing up for the longest ride of his life, and he’s doing it all for a friend.  Ben is riding his longboard from the Arizona state line, through the entire state of Utah, into Idaho to raise awareness and money to help his friend, Gates Hunsaker.

Gates broke his neck a year ago in a snowboarding accident, leaving him paralyzed from the chest down.  Gates, a 20-year-old, Bountiful native and graduate of Woods Cross High School, has spent the last 14 months in hospitals, doctors’ offices and rehabilitation centers making remarkable strides in his quest for renewed independence.  The money Ben is raising will be donated to modify Gates’s vehicle so one day Gates will be able to drive himself.  Additional donations will be used to help offset costs of physical therapy.

Ben will start his adventure on June 11th, 2012 at 6am south of Kanab.  He expects to finish about two weeks later at the Idaho border.  Prior to planning this longboard trek, contact was made with the Utah Highway Patrol and UDOT; both agencies have been cooperative and helpful. 

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Firefighter’s Memorial Day breakfast draws big crowd

mdaybreakfast

SANTAQUIN, Utah– This year’s annual Memorial Day breakfast put on by the local volunteer fire department drew a large crowd to the Santaquin fire station. Estimates for this year’s breakfast showed an attendance of roughly 1800-2000 people. The breakfast, in its 11th year now, serves as the department’s fundraiser to purchase flags for the coffins…

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Broadhead Defends Himself, City Seeks Reconciliation

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Mayor DeGraffenried and Keith Broadhead shake hands after contentious meeting

In city council meeting last night, Councilman Keith Broadhead made a public statement in an effort to “set the record straight.”

The same day that his legal counsel asked Santaquin City to retract statements made to inSantaquin News about a $100,000 settlement offer, Broadhead said he wanted to clear his name.

Saying that his inclusion as a recipient of the settlement offer was an attempt by the City to discredit and defame his name and reputation, he illustrated his surprise at being named in the offer at all.

“Including me as a recipient of this offer has caused some citizens to believe that I am trying to make some kind of financial gain from the lawsuit. My sole purpose from the beginning was to give the citizens their constitutional right to vote on this matter,” said Keith from his council seat.

The settlement, according to Broadhead, wasn’t solicited by him. He claims he notified Santaquin City’s attorney Brett Rich that he was dismissing his election contest suit against the City on Feb 2, before the offer was made.

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