Weber County Commissioners make a last minute change to Ogden Valley General Plan after all public input was closed.

Guest Post by Lee Schussman

Eden, UT

What a Travesty of the Democratic Process.

Come to meetings! Participate! Make your thoughts and ideas known! Get your fellow Ogden Valley residents involved! Over the past 40 years there have been dozens of occasions on which Weber County Commissioners themselves, Ogden Valley Planning Commission members, and members of the Weber County Planning Office have asked me and many others to PARTICIPATE -- to come to meetings, to work with them, to get others involved, and to make our thoughts known.

We were also told repeatedly by our County Commissioners (notably in 1998 when the first Ogden Valley General Plan was created, again in 2002 when the Ogden Valley Recreation Plan was made, and again for the past three years as the new General Plan has been crafted) that we should communicate our ideas to them, that we should TRUST them, and that we should let them know the directions in which we wanted to channel the inevitable growth of the Ogden Valley.

Well, for the past three years, Ogden Valley residents have done just that – they have PARTICIPATED! Many Ogden Valley residents spent hours in multiple meetings and workshops. 

As you are probably aware, the original “Advisory Group”of Ogden Valley residents worked with the Simpson Bowles consulting company to create the initial version of the plan. You can see those involved citizens listed in the final version of the plan. However, you may not be aware that, since the initial version, at least four revisions were then written.

Kim Wheatley of Huntsville worked tirelessly for hundreds of hours on these multiple revisions. He worked closely with Charlie Ewert, Principal Planner for Weber County Planning Office and with the Ogden Valley Planning Commission. During the last 2 years, Kim also spear-headed and held together a group of interested Valley residents who met regularly and who studied the issues, tried to understand the ramifications of each part of the plan, and wrote and re-wrote the 60 page document many times.

Given the parameters under which the General Plan had to be written, all these individuals labored long and hard to try to meet the needs of ALL of the many stakeholders involved in the development of the Ogden Valley. They deserve our sincere thanks and respect.

They also deserve the support of our three county commissioners. However, instead, at the last Weber County Commissioners’ meeting on August 30, in a few minutes, an important part of that good work was summarily thrown out by two of our commissioners.  In that meeting, after all public input was closed, in an arrogant and audacious manner, a motion to make a last minute change in an important part of the long-debated plan was made and passed. The motion was made by Commissioner Gibson, supported by State Rep Froerer, and voted in by lame-duck Commissioner Bell, while Commissioner Ebert voted against the last-minute change.

That motion re-establishes bonuses for TDR’s. This loop-hole, which Commissioners Gibson and Bell inserted into the General Plan, will allow the potential for further increases in the total density of housing units in the valley—above and beyond the already astronomical numbers of 16,000 housing units and 21,000 residents! Giving bonuses for TDRs sets up the potential for developers to make end-runs around existing caps on Ogden Valley growth.

This decision by two of our county commissioners establishes an important and long-reaching policy, and it was created in such a blatant and arrogant way that I believe it fuels the growing distrust and cynicism regarding our local government. 

So…Participate! Come to meetings! Make your ideas known. Involve your fellow Ogden Valley residents, and even work hard to actually help craft the plan! Then watch as a few politicians make decisions that blatantly contravene and are diametrically opposed to the will of the citizens. 

The residents of the Ogden Valley deserve and need better representation. Perhaps we will never get that representation until and unless we have five county commissioners, one from the Ogden Valley; or until the Ogden Valley breaks from the Weber County government and is incorporated as its own municipality.   

Lee Schussman

Eden, UT

Schussman's letter made it in the Standard Op Ed section, albeit a scaled down version:

Froerer, Gibson and Bell hijacked Ogden Valley General Plan

And the Standard reported on the same story here:

Weber Commission OKs growth plan for Ogden Valley

Petition being circulated to Weber County, Utah: Enforce and Maintain Existing Zoning On Stringtown Road, Eden

Some neighbors on and near Stringtown Road have drafted a petition to encourage Weber County to enforce and maintain existing zoning on Stringtown Road in Eden.

Click here to view the petition.

Here is the text of the petition:

Eden, Utah, and particularly Stringtown Road, is a quiet, rural place that Weber County residents, as well as visitors use as a place to walk, jog, horse-back ride, bike, and socialize together. One home in particular, rented by The Summit Group, is being operated as a business seven days a week. They have installed three kitchens, six massage rooms, are serviced by semi-trucks delivering food weekly, and have installed three commercial dumpsters.  It is locally known as "the party house".  It is serviced by four white passenger vans, which can run at a frequency of every five minutes until the early morning hours.  In a large paved parking area, they have erected tall, commercial light poles that add light pollution in what was formerly a beautiful spot for stargazing. Because of the business, daily auto traffic has increased more than three times what it was previously, making the country road an unsafe place to recreate. More importantly, it has become an unsafe place for the hundreds of Valley Elementary school children,that walk down the road for exercise on a routine school day. We ask Weber County to enforce zoning laws to preserve the authenticity of the town, and the investments by the locals. We also request that the Weber County Commissioners maintain the original zoning as residential and agriculture, to preserve the Stringtown Road.

What do you think?  Does Weber County need to take action?

Dyers Woad Cleanup Saturday Morning

Join Representative Gage Froerer for the second annual Dyers Woad Cleanup


June 2nd - 9AM at the Eden Park.

Bring gloves, shovels etc.  Lunch will be served.

Dyers Woad Eradication Event Saturday

Representative Gage Froerer is hosting a Dyers Woad Eradication event Saturday, July 16, 2011.  We just received this reminder and thought it was important enough to pass on.

The event starts at 8:30 am at Snowcrest Junior High.

Representative Froerer and his office will generously provide lunch afterwards.

Click here for details.

More HB 477 "Brouhaha"

There is more HB 477 "Brouhaha" as the HB 477 train seems to pick up steam each and every day.

We will toss the ball to the Weber County Forum where Rudi shares his compilation, complete with our post from yesterday with Representative Froerer's explanation.

We will also highlight an earlier comment from Ogden Council Women and activist Amy Wicks:

We need to mobilize quickly to try to preserve reasonable and affordable access to government records. If you would like to help, please sign up here: www.savegrama.com

Have at it humble Valley-ites!

HB 477 Update along with an explanation from Representative Gage Froerer

The aftermath of HB477 is a hot topic on area blogs and on the front page of local papers.  The Weber County Forum has done a masterful job of keeping readers updated, but we will add an explanation from our local representative Gage Froerer.  This appeared in the March 15, 2011 issue of the Ogden Valley News.

Representative Gage Froerer Responds to Questions on Vote in Favor of HB 477

This article was apparently written during the short period of time between the bill being recalled and subsequently signed by Governor Herbert.

Representative Froerer states,

"This bill was passed in an attempt to bring news media and other stakeholders to the table to address an outdated statue that needs to be addressed in terms of our current forms of communication and the devices we use to communicate."

It doesn't seem like the parties spent a lot of time at the table.  What do you think?

Letter To The Editor From Gage Froerer

One of our humble readers pointed out this most excellent Gage Froerer letter to the editor.

From the letter, Gage states:

I was disappointed to read the editorial, "Teen Academy OK for Valley" printed on July 7th.

The article attempts to place blame on local residents for not supporting a proposed academy treating teenagers in a health care facility because of a "not in my back yard approach."

In my opinion, the lack of support you mention is not a result of the "not in my back yard" mentality, but more a result of the significant land use change proposed for the FV-3 zone and the impact such a change would have on local residents. The proposed zone change would allow group homes in a zone designated for single family homes with a minimum lot size of 3 acres. I recently attended community meetings on this issue and found the residents to be both logical and rational as the pros and cons of the zone change were discussed. The opposition you speak of is not directed at the health provider or the company itself, but at the proposed land use change prior to completion of proper due diligence.

Click here to read the rest of the letter

Well said Gage.

Utah Legislative Reform Needed - Sign the petition now!

Now that the 2010 Legislative session has come and gone with HB 218 once again dying on the vine without an up or down vote, it has become more and more obvious that Ethics in our legislature is severely lacking.   Not to mention the latest events with Rep. Garn and Senator Kilpack.

Rudi summarizes the problem best here:

Weber County Forum readers got a pretty harsh dose of reality regarding the depth of ethical problems in the Utah Legislature just last week, of course, when Rep. Gage Froerer candidly informed us that elements within the Utah Senate were putting the arm on the Ogden Valley citizens for a cool 25 Grand... you know ... to hire a lobbyist to grease the skids for his HB 218 [wink-wink]. It's in that context that we thought UEG's new TeeVee commercial might strike a lumpencitizen nerve, and spur on any readers who haven't yet signed the petition to get to it right now:

Here's the link to the UEG electronic petition; and here are the links to the other two petitions (including Fair Boundaries) which are still in circulation and in need of your signatures.

Be sure to watch the 60 second video, sign the petition, then distribute this to friends, neighbors and spouses throughout the land of Zion.

The petitions have also been added to our Petition Center in the Upper right sidebar.

HB 218 - The Meeting at the Capital - UPDATED with Audio Files of the meeting

The Standard offers a brief rundown of the events surrounding yesterday's meeting at the capital.

• Powder Mountain issue still far from a resolution

From the article:

Rep. Gage Froerer, R-Huntsville, brought the proposal back this year, and the bill again is waiting for possible action in the remaining days of the session.
But Froerer told about 15 residents and others at a Thursday meeting in the Capitol that this year was even more of an uphill battle.
To start with, the legislation never left committee after a tie vote.

 With one week to go in the legislative session, the prospects of HB 218 becoming law in the next week looks extremely grim as Senate leadership has indicated the bill will not make it to the floor for a vote.  Instead, the President of the Senate, Michael Waddoups, has apparently told all parties they need to negotiate in good faith to reach a settlement.  If at some point a party walks away or fails to negotiate in good faith, then that party will be "punished" in the form of legislation or the lack thereof.

The problem as we see it is that there is no definition of "good faith."  Additionally, this puts nearly the entire weight of the issue on the backs of the Weber County Commissioners (more specifically Commissioner Craig Dearden) who are negotiating on behalf of the County and the Citizens.

Again from the Standard,

A memorandum of understanding between the parties is being negotiated, but Greg Curtis, an attorney for the developers, described the talks as "stalled."
Weber County Commissioner Craig Dearden was more optimistic and said more meetings are planned.
But a March 16 county-sponsored public gathering during which some of the issues would be discussed has been canceled.
"I canceled the meeting because there is nothing to present," Dearden said.

Yesterday's meeting was nearly 1.5 hours long and we are working diligently this morning to secure a recording of the meeting.  Once received, you can bet you will hear it first hear at the Ogden Valley Forum.  (scroll down to hear)

UPDATE: 3-4-2010 @ 10:30 am

We were forwarded this observation of the meeting from an attendee:

Powder Mountain team, I found the meeting yesterday worthwhile.  I hope everyone who attended feels the same.  I’m going to attempt a summary note while expecting other attendees will be able to add their insights.  The bottom line is that HB218 is in a state right now that positions it for revival in a special session if it is needed while it continues to provide some leverage on negotiations and the negotiations proper will continue to be done privately by Craig Dearden with the support of his staff and whatever email suggestions he gets from interested parties.

The gut wrenching, faith destroying detail of the infighting in the Senate is really not material at this point.  The facts are:

1.       Senate Leadership wants a settlement, while keeping HB218 in the wings.

2.       To successfully move HB218 to law we would need to change the mind of President Waddoups and 8 to 10 other senators in less than 1 week.

3.       The assessment of those closest to the situation is that the benefit of doing nothing with HB218 at this point outweighs the risk of failure in trying to accomplish item 2 (above).

The negotiations (as I read the situation) continue.  At least dialogue continues.  Craig Dearden is playing Solomon at this point.  He is open to suggestions and well reasoned arguments from all parties (including each of us).  We need to realize that our input probably won’t be responded to definitively by Craig, but he will receive it.  We all acknowledge the difficulty of the position he is in and the fact that the Senate is holding him “hostage”, even though he doesn’t like that term.  I’m confident he recognizes the voices of the “town” residents, of the other Valley residents, of his staff, and of the petitioners.

We also will link you to this morning's Weber County Forum where Rudi reveals details of a phone conversation with Representative Froerer.

UPDATE: March 6. 2010 @ 11:00 AM

Thanks to Rudi at the Weber County Forum and his tech savvyness and dedication to the Ogden Valley 'lumpencitizens', we were able to attach the audio recordings of Thursday's meeting at the capital.

The recording is not the greatest and there is some fuzziness, but if you turn up the volume you can certainly enjoy the free entertainment.

Because it was a large file, the recording has been broken down in to separate sections.

Audio Part 1

Audio Part 2

UPDATE on Public Meeting Thursday At The State Capital To Discuss Status Of Powderville Negotiations - Don't Miss It! (Room changed to accomodate more people)

UPDATE: There will be a public meeting to address the status of negotiations regarding the Powder Mountain Issue and HB 218:

What: A public information briefing and question & answer session on the subject of HB 218 and related matters.

When: Thursday, March 4, 2010, 12:00 (noon)

Where: Senate (East) Building, Utah State Capitol Salt, Room #215

Formal Agenda: AGENDA - HB 218 – Disincorporation of Powder Mt. Town

UPDATE  3/2/10 @8:00 PM :  We now know the room number and have listed it above.  Also, be sure to read Rudi's latest missive at the Weber County Forum along with all of the most excellent comments.

Guest Post From Frank C - HB 218 questions - UPDATED - an overview of the latest happenings on the hill

With HB 218 stalled in the Senate Government Operations & Political Subdivions Committee, we received this from Frank C.

He brings up some excellent points and asks some difficult questions:

I listened to the recording of the Senate Committee meeting this morning on Gage Froerer's HB218. One particular thing jumped out at me. Lobbyist/lawyer Curtis, I think it was, stated toward the end of the meeting that those who are negotiating have created four drafts, or are working on the fourth draft of the agreement, or words to that effect. I have participated in enough negotiations in my career to know that parties do not get as far as working on the fourth draft of an agreement until and unless there exists the guts of an agreement in principle. There may be some number of minor terms to be worked out, or some differences of opinion about language or other minutiae, but by the fourth draft, the parties have clearly reached agreement and it only remains for the lawyers to huff and puff and wordsmith to create or maintain an advantage over the adversary in the course of memorializing the agreement to which the parties have already agreed.

So who's kidding whom, here? Or put another way, who's hiding what from those of us who, while we may not be parties to the litigation, have been intimately involved and will be directly affected by the settlement as residents of and property owners in this Valley? Are we wasting our time and emotions supporting a piece of legislation that will be rendered moot by an agreement that has already been reached, without our knowledge and participation? Have we wasted our time and our money supporting a cause when those whom we support have bargained away that cause for the sake of cutting their losses, or getting the matter behind them? Are we in the process of sacrificing principle and creating dangerous precedent without even knowing that we are doing so, because our elected and non-elected representatives are tired of dealing with it, or are getting cold feet, or whatever their motivation might be, to the point at which they are making deals they want no one else to know?

Once again, I have been involved in enough negotiations to know that they typically are conducted in private, lest those who have no real stake in the outcome have the chance to intermeddle just because they can, whether they know the real issues or not. In this case, an end to this controversy will directly affect all of us who live here, no matter how it ends. I would like for that end to be the product not of secret, back room deals struck perhaps as a result of less-than-universal interests, but rather the product either of the judicial system, or the legislative system, or that of an informed and affected public given adequate time to study any proposed agreement
and an opportunity to meaningfully provide input concerning it.

This is no social studies exercise; this is real. So, those of you in the know: how about it? What's really going on?

We remain concerned about the back room negotiations, but will keep a watchful eye out in the coming days. Now is not the time to be blindsided!

Gage Froerer's HB 218 is Finally Assigned to Senate Committee - It is time to LOBBY!

From our friends at the beloved Weber County Forum, we find that:

Gage's bill has now been assigned to the Senate Government Operations and Political Subdivisions Standing Committee, for 8:00 a.m, on Thursday, which committee hearing will be the last procedural hurdle before it's moved onto the Full Senate, for an up/down vote.

 To view this most excellent post in its entirety, click here.    There you will find Rudi's handy

• 2010 Senate Government Operations and Political Subdivisions Standing Committee contact link page

From there, you can contact the Committee members to enlist their support of this important piece of legislation (of course we think it is the MOST important piece this year as well as last).

Now is the time Ogden Valley.  The 2010 legislative session is at its mid point and there is still much work to be done as extreme opposition toward HB 218 still exists.

Our efforts are gaining steam as one of the most powerful lobbying groups on the hill, the Utah League of Cities and Towns, has dropped their opposition to HB 218.  They lobbied strongly against the Disincorporation bill in 2009 as well.

Also, one of the largest newspapers in the State, the Salt Lake Tribune, recently voiced their support of HB 218 in a recent editorial.

It is time to ride the momentum.  Start sending those emails and make some phone calls.  Your neighbors deserve their constitutional right to vote!

More Powder Mountain Ink... This Time From the Deseret News

Hot off the press from the Deseret News by way of the Weber County Forum is an article about the latest Saga at Powderville.

Click here to read Rudi's most excellent post, complete with all of the requisite links.

HB 218 Garners Support Of The Salt Lake Tribune

Today's Salt Lake Tribune weighed in heavily on the issue of HB 218.  HB 218 is the bill sponsored by Representative Gage Froerer which will allow the residents in the proposed boundary of Powderville to seek an immediate election for disincorporation.

We applaud the strong stance the Tribune has taken and we urge our humble State Senators to vote in favor of the bill as the state's media is now watching. 

Read the editorial here:

• Powder Mountain -- Let the citizens have a say

 Also, our friends at the Weber County Forum have weighed in this morning.  Be sure to read Rudi's post here:

Salt Lake Tribune Editorial: Powder Mountain - Let the Citizens Have a Say

Comments anyone???

Why Negotiate With The Powdervillahns

Guest Post by Ernie

Why negotiate "at this time?"

Nobody can blame the PM Town Captives from wanting a deal and nobody has to take my suggestions. But:

1. The biggest obstacle to passage in the Senate, Senator Killpack, is gone because of his resignation due to a drunk driving charge. According to the Tribune, Killpack, sponsored HB 466 in June of 2007. It was KIllpack who last year closed the session early to prevent the bill allowing the Powder Mountain Captives a vote to Opt. out of HB 466. For shame on the Senate.

2. Right now proceedings relative to incorporating Powder Mountain Town are stayed pending appeal.

This means the parties to the law suit brought by the Powdervillahns' against The County and several of the Powder Mountain Captives are ordered and sanctioned by possible contempt of court to do nothing until the case is heard by The Utah Supreme Court. Has the conduct of the parties recently violated the stay? Well, it is complicated. The time to get a hearing in Supreme Court is six months to two years. Point. Parties involved are ill advised to do anything in a hurry.

3. Nobody should be heard to object to the bill that is now passing through the Utah Senate. HB 466 as amended is totally illegal because now only the PM Captives can be dragged into a town with no immediate right to vote out. This is an obvious violation of  the "equal protection" provisions of the Utah Constitution Art. 1 Sec. 2  & 3. 

It makes no sense to risk illegal conduct or an illegal result by shortcutting the Judicial and Legislative process. No negotiations should take place until there is a hearing date set in the court because most rate chances of proceedings in the Senate rescuing the Powder Mountain captives great. 

                                                                                                                ernie

Observations From Yesterday's County Commission Meeting, aka An Old Fashioned Dog and Pony Matinee -UPDATED

This is one of several important posts today, so scroll down to read them all.

Guest Post by IMA Believer

I attended the Commission farce yesterday. These people just don't get it. Both Zogmaister and legal beagle Wilson stated openly that their job is not to shut people down, but to bring people into compliance. Translation: they never met a commercial venture or a development they didn't like, no matter how bad it is. How about a casino, or a whorehouse, or an opium den? Sure, if it pays taxes, find a way to "bring it into compliance"!

They take their guidance from a slick little video put out by the Utah League of Cities and Towns (ULCT) that tells them that's what their function is. The ULCT? That's the developer/real estate lobbying group that opposed Gage Froerer's legislation last year to stop Powder Mountain Town. BTW, ULCT opposes it again this year. So the Commission and its minions take their instructions from lobbyists, for openers.

Next, the meaningless public comment period offered after the deed was done was truncated by the ever-rude and blustery Bischoff, complaining that Shanna Francis had exceeded her generous three minute allocation, when in fact almost all her time was taken up by legal department wizard Wilson who stuttered and stammered his way through a seemingly endless discussion of whether a comma means "and" or "or" or nothing at all. He even seriously suggested that the commission could have disposed of the whole matter by simply lifting Iris Hennon's cease and desist order. Just how would that be done legally, sir?

Bottom line: if you want to do something controversial, something marginal, maybe something really stupid and dangerous and noisy and dusty in the summer, just go ahead and do it--the commission will find a way to bring you into compliance. Forgot to plan ahead enough to follow the rules and file your app in time to get permission (if you can) the right way? No problem. Call Zogmaister; she'll approve anything.

And last, in fairness to Diamond Peaks, lest we forget, this application for an exemption did not come from Diamond Peaks, which has operated heliskiing operations for years without bothering anyone. It came from Wolf Creek Resort (with obvious handholding effort from the county)in its effort to buoy up trade at its no-doubt-struggling Red Moose Lodge by offering heliskiing right out its back door.

Make a bad business decision, say, to buy a motel with no customers, or a ski resort without checking the zoning first? No problem; call Zogmaister. She'll bring you into compliance.

Someone needs to remind these commissioners that they have a duty to the people who live here, not just to the people who want to come in and make money off the people who live here. Pehaps November might be a good time to deliver such a reminder.

Blogmeister Note:
 
Next, the issue goes before the The Ogden Valley Planning Commission in a meeting to be held:
Tuesday night, Feb.23rd
at 5:00 p.m.
in the Commission chambers in Ogden.

UPDATE:  2/17/10 @ 12:00 pm

Be sure to read today's article in today's Standard:

• Weber commission stands by exemption to ski helicopter service

Gage Froerer's H.B. 218 Passes in the House By a Stunning 63-0 Vote

This just in and we will refer you to the Weber County Forum for details along with audio from today's meeting.

Be sure to catch an update to yesterday's post regarding a "deal" in which Powder Mountain will withdraw their petition.  See below.

Early Report From Capital Hill: Powder Mountain Will Withdraw The Petition To Incorporate

UPDATE:  More sketchy details below.

The "deal" is still under wraps, but a source close to the negotiations between Powder Mountain, The Weber County Commissioners, members of the citizens group, Representative Gage Froerer and Senator Alan Christensen tell us that "they have conceptually agreed to terms that would include the withdraw of the petition to incorporate."

We will be crossing our fingers and toes in anticipation of the details being released about the "deal," but hope the commissioners did not give away the 'farm' so many have worked on for decades in the form of zoning ordinances, master plans and the general plan. 

We also hope the public will be offered an opportunity to provide input through the public process.

After all, the devil is in the details! 

UPDATE 2-12-10

Lips are still tight regarding the 'conceptual agreement' but we will offer this.  According to Gage Froerer, there is no SIGNED agreement.  Furthermore, Gage has stated that his legislation does not go away until and unless the incorporation is pulled from the table.

It has also been suggested that any "deal" will be contingent upon full citizens input and the proper public hearings.  This will take some time. 

With that in mind, we must keep our eye on the ball and be ready to pressure the Senate with mass emails and capital visits when the time is right.   


Stay tuned!

Counter Attack!

Guest Post by Cujo

Counter Attack!!  Last Saturday's paper indicated that Rep. Froerer was
approached by the powdervillahns to dissolve Powder Mountain Town in exchange
for our giving up the valley to them. Everybody should E-mail Rep. Froerer
and tell him any deal with the powdervillahns should include a plan for
revegetation of wolf creek trail and a new access road with a less than seven
degree pitch. If possible,it should require the powdervillahns to submit to the
Weber County permitting process without exception. E-mail GFROERER @Utah.gov
now!

Boycott!    Nobody with whom you carry on a discussion or communicate
should ever give money to patronize Powder. Tell the truth.

Will town of Powder Mtn. dissolve?

UPDATE BELOW

By Dan Weist (Standard-Examiner Davis Bureau)

Last Edit: Feb 5 2010 - 11:08pm

SALT LAKE CITY -- An agreement to dissolve the town of Powder Mountain is in the works between the Weber County Commission and the business development group that incorporated the land.
The potential agreement, a memorandum of understanding, could end a two-year legal dispute that has resulted in two lawsuits, both of which landed in the Utah Supreme Court.
"I've been working on this, along with the commission, since August," said Rep. Gage Froerer, R-Huntsville,
Froerer and Greg Curtis, an attorney for the managing partners of the resort development, confirmed Friday the heart of the memorandum is to disincorporate Powder Mountain, which came into existence in 2007.
"Conceptually we have reached an understanding but we are still working on some technical issues," said Curtis, a former speaker of the Utah House.
The overall dispute spawned legislation from Froerer that again is making its way through the halls of the state Capitol.
It all started with a zoning disagreement over development of the Powder Mountain resort area.
The developers then used a former state law to incorporate the land, which has about 100 residents.
But the county function of seating leadership for the town stalled between the incorporators who petitioned for representation and Weber County Commissioners.
"It's been an interesting two years," said Weber County Commissioner Craig Dearden as he started his testimony at the hearing.
Instead of waiting two years as prescribed by law, Froerer's bill would give residents the immediate right to vote on dissolving Powder Mountain.
The legislation failed to make it out of the last session, but passed out of a House committee on Friday.
Shortly after the hearing, both parties met to work on details of the proposed agreement but did not talk about a completion date.
Citizen groups have been active in this overall situation, including filing one of the two lawsuits, but none spoke at the hearing.
"I think we should be listening to their voice, their best interest," said Rep. Neil Hansen, D-Ogden, as he moved to support and then vote on the bill.
When and if it is completed, the agreement could release the Utah Supreme Court from ruling on the cases connected to this dispute, said Curtis.

UPDATE 2-6-10 @ 10:30 pm

Be sure to read today's latest at the Weber County Forum addressing today's article.