Kane County declares State of Financial Disaster to open avenues for aid for local businesses

The meeting of the Kane County Commission, held on July 22, opened with no members of the public standing for the public comment phase. Following the opening cer­emonies, the meeting started on the agenda in earnest.

The commission rec­ognized the appoint­ment of Steve Shrope to the county water conservancy board, again with no comment from the public during the scheduled period.

The following two items on the agenda then appointed Troy Sundquist as county public defender and established a one-year contract.

The county then considered an update to the land use policy, to clarify what sorts of businesses were allowed to be conducted from within a resident’s home, such as bakery, informa­tion technology ser­vices, childcare and one-chair beauty and barber shops as a few examples.

The following item in the meeting was an update from the Five County Association of Governments, with a report from the Kane County Council on Aging and the Active Living Center. The Center delivered over 12,000 meals at home and over 7,000 meals served at the center’s locations - they also reported almost 1,000 volunteer hours in the fiscal year. Per the update from the association, the con­tract would allow more funds to the Active Living Center, which were planned for an ad­ditional food delivery truck. The commission approved the Council on Aging fiscal year and the update from the Association.

The commission then considered a contract for a cultural survey in the East Zion area, as funded by the state’s Economic Opportu­nity program. Per local Economic Opportunity liaison Kelly Stowell, “We’re looking to de­velop some trails south of the highway … we’re working through the environmental issues, looking to hire a group to do the cultural work. They would have to be done by the end of the year … checking for Native American ar­cheological sites most­ly.” The commission approved the proposal.

The following item on the agenda pro­posed integrating the entirety of the county into the Kane County Hospital’s special ser­vice district, called the Kane County Human Resources District, where before some parts of the county were excluded from agreements like mutu­al aid agreements and service contracts. The motion was made and passed unanimously, annexing parts of Al­ton and Big Water into the hospital’s special service district.

The Commission then considered a resolution supporting the rebuilding of the Grand Canyon North Rim Lodge and other facilities damaged by the Dragon Bravo Fire, which passed unani­mously in short order.

Ben Armstrong, Di­rector of Kane County Hospital Emergency Services, stood to pres­ent on some efficiency proposals with licens­ing of EMS operators; per Armstrong “Cedar Mountain has been a great partner to us, this would basically allow us to keep doing the great things our people do.”

The following item on the agenda was a discussion of a “Dec­laration of Economic Disaster” to provide economic relief for Kane County busi­nesses impacted by the destruction caused by the White Sage and Dragon Bravo fires. Said Commissioner Meyeres, “It may end up being called some­thing else, but I wanted to put it on the agenda so that we could talk about it.” With the North Rim closing all their trails and their visitation, tourism-reliant economies like Kane County are pre­paring for an economic downturn; in the words of County Emergency Manager Alan All­dredge, “That’s one thing this state of disaster would do, is unlock some of those avenues for local busi­nesses to pursue loans and other means of financial relief.” The commission approved the drafted version of the contract contin­gent on a few updated changes.

During the legisla­tive review at the end of the meeting, the Commission report­ed renewed contact with some new staff from Congresswoman Maloy’s office and en­couraged the public to be aware of some po­tential upcoming meet-and-greets. The county is also upgrading its security in response to new state AI poli­cies. The commission confirmed progress on the county’s new Justice Court Judge and Public Defender, who are preparing to be sworn in.