Grantsville woman fascinated by wild horses See A8 TOOELETRANSCRIPT S T C BULLETIN S TUESDAY July 17, 2018 www.TooeleOnline.com Vol. 125 No. 13 $1.00 Mayor Winn: Tax hike needed to avoid debt MARK WATSON doing it all at once. fund with a proposed certified Because the new budget will be on this fall’s tax notice in one year. STAFF WRITER “That’s what we should have tax rate that’s more than twice includes a tax increase, the for city residents. Winn pointed out that the Tooele City Mayor Debbie done, but it’s too late now,” as much as last year’s. budget and tax increase The city council held a pub- city has not raised taxes for Winn said she agrees with crit- Winn said in an interview The 2017-18 fiscal year will remain tentative until a lic hearing on the proposed 36 years. ics that the city should have Monday. “We can’t do it incre- tax rate was .001831 and the Truth-in-Taxation hearing on tax increase and budget on The mayor said she and the raised taxes incrementally over mentally at this point.” proposed 2018-19 fiscal year Aug. 15. If the tax increase is June 20 with about 60-70 resi- city council knew that raising the past few years to keep up Winn and the Tooele City tax rate is .003934, according approved by the city council on dents in attendance. Several the certified tax rate would with inflation and the cost of Council want an additional to information provided by the that date, the new tax rate — spoke during the hearing and doing business — instead of $3 million in the city’s general city’s finance department. and resulting tax increase — objected to such a big increase SEE HIKE PAGE A 10 ® Rezone referendum proponents may have violated law Sheri ’s o ce investigating signature veri cation TIM GILLIE Country Club Drive from com- STAFF WRITER mercial shopping and single- Sponsors of a referendum family residential to R-M-15. to undo a high-density zone The change allows for high- change in Stansbury Park were density development of up to successful in collecting enough 15 housing units per acre. signatures to get the rezone on A total of 629 signatures the November ballot. were disqualified because they But now some signature either weren’t registered to gatherers are facing a criminal vote, were duplicates, were investigation into the process unreadable, or for other errors, used to verify signatures. according to a report by Tooele Within the 45-day statu- County Clerk/Auditor Marilyn tory period, a total of 3,428 Gillette. signatures were gathered by That left 2,799 valid signa- volunteers on the petition for tures. With 2,749 signatures the referendum to repeal the needed, signature gatherers Tooele County Commission’s were ahead of the required decision to rezone 5.38 acres number by 50 signatures. of property on the southwest corner of Clubhouse Drive and SEE LAW PAGE A10 ® Porter Degraw and dog Addie roll down the Erda Days parade route Saturday morning on their family’s first-place float. AN ERDA DAY CELEBRATION PHOTOS SUE BUTTERFIELD The summer round of community days in Tooele County got officially underway Friday and Saturday with Erda residents and visitors show- ing up in droves to celebrate the community. It all began Friday night with a dinner and variety show at Warr Memorial Park. The festivi- FRANCIE AUFDEMORTE/TTB PHOTO ties continued Saturday with a 5-K run, a kids’ Developer Derald Anderson has plans to put townhomes on a piece of 1-K run, a parade on Erda Way, followed by property that was zoned residential but is facing pushback from some activities and a lunch of Erda Burgers at Warr Stanbury Park residents. Memorial Park. More community days across the county are scheduled. Next comes Stockton Days on Aug. 11; Rush Valley Days and Stansbury Days on Aug. 17-18; and Lake Point Days on Aug. 24-25. Fire crews gain control of wildfire Benjamin Gordon plays his fiddle on the Erda Days parade route. in Stansburys STEVE HOWE Last Wednesday, the STAFF WRITER Ellerbeck Fire, which was The wildfire that began sparked by lightning, was on the northern edge of the at 80-percent containment, Stansbury Mountains is con- according to the state Division trolled but not out, according of Forestry, Fire and State to Tooele County Fire Warden Lands. Daniel Walton. Other fires in the county A large fire goes through a included a fire north of series of phases, which include Interstate 80 near milepost 64 initial attack, extended attack, last Wednesday, which burned contained, controlled and 100 acres but was contained finally out, Walton said. The within four hours, according to Ellerbeck Fire, which burned Walton. The cause of the fire is approximately 4,000 acres, undetermined, but investiga- Ashland Evans (above) likely won’t be considered out tors suspect it may have been scrambled for a frozen treat on the Erda Days parade route for a couple of weeks, and fire sparked by recreation equip- Saturday morning. Grand crews will continue to patrol ment such as an all-terrain the area and evaluate post-fire Marshalls Carolyn and Cordale Sunny Davis rides her horse down the Erda Days parade rehabilitation work. SEE CREWS PAGE A6 ® Gull (right) wave from their route Saturday morning. carriage. INSIDE BULLETIN BOARD B4 CLASSIFIEDS B6 Stansbury Baseball fields Grantsville HOMETOWN A8 library reopens will get new beats Highland OBITUARIES A6 See A3 concession in baseball OPEN FORUM A4 stands See B1 SPORTS B1 See A2 A2 TOOELE TRANSCRIPT BULLETIN TUESDAY July 17, 2018 Keebler, in poor health, released from prison by judge STEVE HOWE to the AP. to the 2014 armed standoff in office would be a poor target requested he create more STAFF WRITER Keebler was the command- Bunkerville, Nevada, between due to the high commercial explosive devices and outlined The Stockton man who er of the Patriots Defense the BLM and cattle rancher and homeless activity in the his target — a BLM building at pleaded guilty to attempting Force, a citizen militia group Cliven Bundy over unpaid area. Mount Trumbull in Arizona. to bomb a federal Bureau of based out of Stockton, accord- grazing fees, according to the Keebler’s rhetoric esca- On June 20, 2016, Keebler Land Management building ing to a probable cause state- FBI. Keebler participated in lated about a month later in left Stockton with militia in Arizona has been released ment from the FBI. For sev- the standoff at Bunkerville a March 19 training exercise members and the under- on time served after spending eral months, undercover FBI and claimed on Facebook he with the militia when he cover FBI agents for Mount two years in jail. agents infiltrated his militia spent 13 days at the Bundy discussed the government’s Trumbull. Inert explosives William Keebler, 59, plead- and had contact with Keebler Ranch. harassment of people and that were placed at the door of ed guilty in April to one count both face-to-face and by cell In February 2016, Keebler repercussions would start, a BLM cabin and Keebler of attempted destruction of phone. met with Patriots Defense the FBI said. After determin- pressed the remote detonator federal property by use of an Keebler organized train- Force members to discuss ing the group would target several times before the mem- explosive. Keebler’s release ing exercises that involved gathering intelligence on BLM facilities in the “middle bers of the militia returned to was ordered on July 9 in fed- shooting targets and receiving potential targets, according of nowhere,” Keebler said the Utah. eral court in Salt Lake City, Bill Keebler instruction on firearms, and to the statement. The group militia would sneak in to dam- The following day, the according to the Associated military and survival tactics. drove by the BLM office near age vehicles or buildings. FBI arrested Keebler and he Press. ments, including prostate can- Keebler was preparing his the Gateway Mall in Salt Lake After an undercover FBI remained in federal custody Judge David Sam cited cer and heart disease, as rea- militia to participate in anti- City to assess it as a poten- agent showed Keebler a video for more than two years. Keebler’s age and physical ail- sons for his release, according government activities, similar tial site, but Keebler said the of a 6-inch pipe bomb, Keebler [email protected] Tooele City sets priority list for park improvements MARK WATSON STAFF WRITER Winn said half of the cost for Work on new concession the concession stands at the buildings at two Tooele City fields will be paid for by the baseball parks should begin Tooele County School District. this week, according to Brian She said the Tooele City Roth, city parks director. Council has approved a England Construction $100,000 upgrade to the Company of Tooele is the con- Carnegie Library or Tooele tractor for constructing the Pioneer Museum at 47 E. Vine similar concession buildings at St. both parks. “We would like to take the One of the buildings will be old paint off the building and installed at Red Delpapa Babe restore it to its brick finish,” Ruth Park, 70 S. First Street, Winn said. “Also, part of the and the other at Dow James southeast corner of the build- Baseball Park, 435 W. 400 ing has sunk and needs to be North. repaired. Five years ago the Roth said the Red Delpapa the cost was $60,000 to do this building, at a cost of $161,000, work, now it is $100,000.” will be a mechanical build- A new pavilion at Oquirrh ing for lighting controls, Hills Golf Course is high on concessions, storage and an the priority list and will cost announcer’s area.