By Kelly Cannon | [email protected] 

Cottonwood - Holladay - About a year ago, the Holladay City Council annexed an incorporated community into the city limits. Recently, the city council brought its meeting to that same community in a welcoming effort. 

“Instead of you coming to us, we thought we would come to you,” Councilmember Lynn Pace said. 

Pace explained the council wanted a chance to reach out to the community and receive feedback—both positive and negative.

The Feb. 18 meeting began with a special ceremony honoring United Police Department Officer Matthew Brownlee, Officer Jon Richey and Sgt. Ben Steiner for their bravery during an incident where Officer Doug Barney was killed. 

The meeting continued with hearing public comment. Because the meeting took place at Morningside Elementary specifically to reach out to the community, the public was encouraged to give feedback or voice concerns. 

One resident told the council 3100 East needs to be repaved because it is full of potholes and dangerous conditions for school children walking to and from school. Pace explained the city prioritizes paving streets based off of how much money is available. Pace encouraged the resident to contact Tosh Kano, the director of public works and streets, to discuss the possibility of paving the street. 

Another resident asked why the franchise tax is added to the utility bill instead of the property tax bill. Pace explained the council debated the issue of whether to add the tax to the utilities or the property tax. The tax was levied in order to fund road improvements. Ultimately, the council decided to add it to the utilities because more residents would have to pay it, not just private property owners. Pace said it was a judgment call, but the tax can be revisited. 

Another resident asked about how far back setbacks have to be. The resident said a new development being put in at 3900 South and 2700 East looks like it’s too close to the street. Community Development Director Paul Allred explained the building is a new assisted living community, and because of the slope of the ground, the building had to be built in a certain way to allow the floors to be level. This creates an optical illusion of sorts that the building is too close to the street. However, Allred assured the resident the building is within building codes and regulations. 

Other residents praised the council and thanked them for always being responsive to the community’s needs.

The council unanimously approved an amendment to the Millrock Technology Center Development Agreement. The amendment would allow a hotel to be built in that area. 

The council also approved a resolution supporting the legislation to tax and regulate electronic cigarettes. The council was approached by a youth group who is pushing for this legislation to be passed in this legislative session. The resolution passed unanimously. 

City Manager Randy Fitts gave his report to the council. He said the city is right on budget with its snow removal. Council members were concerned they might go over budget, but they believe the major snow storms are behind them. Fitts also told the council there are roads in Holladay in serious need of repairs, but they are waiting for warmer weather before fixing them. Another major issue is that storm drains are collapsing because the material used is corrugated iron from the 1960s. With the rate of deterioration, the entire infrastructure will need to be replaced.