In today’s episode we’ll talk about:
- County weed mitigation efforts
- Updates on the Long Range Transportation Plan
- Newly adopted Waterwise Landscaping Regulations in the Snyderville Basin area
- Volunteer opportunities for stream restoration within the county
- The upcoming Easton Corbin Concert THIS Labor Day Weekend
Weed Mitigation
Dave Bingham, Summit County Weeds Superintendent, and Sara Jo Dickens of the Summit Cooperative Weed Management Area or “CWMA” updated Council this week on their busy season of weed mitigation efforts.
During his briefing Dave shared…
- That he has loaned out more equipment to residents this year than ever before.
- People are coming in to ask questions about noxious weeds and taking positive action to help stop their spread.
- And, that the public engagement opportunities available through the division, including the Weeds Tour in July and projects with students in South and North Summit School Districts, were well attended this year.
The biggest takeaway from Dave and Sara Jo’s presentation is that you-—the public— are interested in education on noxious weeds in the area and in mobilizing to help with noxious weed mitigation efforts throughout the County! Woohoo!
If you ever have questions about noxious weeds on your property, you can reach Summit County’s Weeds Division, HERE.
You can also see updates and info that the Summit CWMA publishes about noxious weeds in our area, and details about the Garlic Mustard Games at summitcwma.org.
A last reminder you can still rent this equipment this season, Monday – Thursday from 6:30 AM to 4 PM at 1775 S Hoytsville Road in Coalville. The following spray equipment is available for rental:
- Back Pack Sprayer
- Four Wheeler Sprayer
- Slide-In Truck Sprayer
- Tractor Sprayer
Please contact David Bingham at 435-640-5496 for additional information.
Waterwise Landscaping Regulations for the Snyderville Basin
Moving on to some landscaping news…Council approved new Waterwise Landscaping Regulations for the Snyderville Basin on Wednesday. This draft ordinance has come before the Council four other times before and after extensive revisions and public input, the Council adopted the new regulations this week in consideration of Utah’s ongoing drought and the Council’s commitment to sustainability.
These regulations will impact ALL NEW DEVELOPMENT: commercial, single-family, multifamily homes, parks, golf courses– everything.
The purpose of these new regulations is to:
- Begin addressing the need to reduce outside watering.
- Encourage preservation of the natural landscape and the use of native drought-resistant plants and vegetation in landscaping choices
- Promote use of water-efficient irrigation systems
- Ensure a substantial reduction In the amount of turf/irrigated lawn area that is being installed. The amount of lawn permitted will be determined by a certain percentage of the lot’s square footage.
Once again–Don’t worry, this is not to make anyone retroactively make people tear out their lawns. This is on NEW development. But there may be some incentivization programs coming in the future. Stay tuned and keep being water wise, Summit County!
Long Range Transportation Plan
Summit County Engineer Brandon Brady presented at Council this week, going over a final rendition of the Long Range Transportation plan which maps out 30 years of projects for roadways and trails in Summit County. The project is broken into three phases.
The department gathered input this Spring and Summer at multiple well-attended public hearings, open house events, and also took feedback from the Eastern Summit County Planning Commission and the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission to develop this final iteration of the plan.
You can see an updated list of projects and project details online at bit.ly/summitlrtp, but here are some big changes that were made before the plan was ultimately approved by Council last night:
- First, they removed the Democrat Alley project from the plan altogether…This was going to be a project to pave the remaining 1.5 mile section of unimproved road to rob young lane as another entryway into the Kamas Valley.
- They also removed the McCleod Creek Trail project after the Engineering Department listened to and adhered to negative feedback and concerns about this project from the community.
Once again you can see a full updated list of projects online at bit.ly/summitlrtp.
Volunteer Opportunities
Shifting gears to an opportunity for residents to give back to their community—September 24th is National Public Lands Day and you can celebrate by participating in a Stream Restoration Volunteer Day with one of Summit County’s partners: Sageland Collaborative.
They will be hosting restoration opportunities all month long—but we are encouraging you to join Summit County’s Public Lands Manager Jess Kirby on September 23 or 24 to clean up East Canyon Creek which is a Summit County property!
To participate or see what other restoration opportunities are out there, you need to register at sagelandcollaborative.org.
Easton Corbin Concert
Summit County is proud to present country music artist Easton Corbin in concert at the Summit County Fairgrounds on September 3rd at 8:30 PM!
Opening artists Honkey Blue Tonkey, Triggers and Slips, and Jagertown will also join in on the fun! Tickets are on sale for $25 at summitcountyfair.org under the events tab. We hope to see you there!
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