FRFRONTONT PAGE A1 www.tooeletranscript.com TUESDAY TOOELE RANSCRIPT T Check out the features on our new Web site: GHS girls use whiteout to wipe tooeletranscript.com out Morgan See A10 BULLETIN January 27, 2009 SERVING TOOELE COUNTY SINCE 1894 VOL. 115 NO. 073 50¢ Pot busts boom in I-80 corridor Cops have seized 273 pounds of marijuana on busy smuggling route this month alone by Jamie Belnap 56-year-old California woman was STAFF WRITER arrested near the Tooele County line after a UHP trooper discovered 162 The I-80 corridor through Tooele pounds of marijuana in the bed of County is becoming an increasingly her pickup. busy route for smuggling marijua- Deborah Schlosser, of Ukiah, na, with law enforcement officials Calif., was traveling eastbound on saying they average one or two the interstate in a charcoal gray busts per week on the stretch of Toyota Tundra when the vehicle interstate. swerved across the road to the left “We are not getting everyone and into the emergency lane, then though,” said Lt. Troy Marx with back into the travel lane just after 8 the Utah Highway Patrol. “We know p.m. near milepost 102. This maneu- that.” ver was noticed by a UHP trooper Marx said the increase in pot patrolling the area, who then initi- smuggling on I-80 is a direct result ated a traffic stop, according to Sgt. of the legalization of marijuana for Larry Mower of the Utah Highway medicinal purposes in California. Patrol’s Salt Lake County office. Most smugglers drive to California Schlosser told the trooper that to purchase marijuana illegally, then she was en route to Minneapolis, transport the drug — often in large Minn., to visit family. photography / Maegan Burr quantities — to states farther east. “The details she was giving about Tooele resident Bryan Roberts snowblows the sidewalk in front of his home Monday night before perspective buyers stop by. Roberts’ home has been on “Before marijuana used to come her visit just didn’t make sense, so the market for six months. The total dollar volume of home sales in the county was down 36 percent from 2007 to 2008. from Mexico, so we’d see a lot of it that’s when the trooper became sus- on I-15, but now that it’s legalized picious and pulled his dog out,” in California, I-80 is the primary Mower said. route,” Marx said. Tank, a UHP K9, circled around The most recent bust on I-80 Housing market tumbles 36 percent occurred Saturday evening when a SEE BUSTS PAGE A5 ➤ Despite deep one-year drop, home prices still aren’t coming down by Doug Radunich ter of 2008, 113 single-fam- Homes also spent much ber of days on the market STAFF WRITER ily homes sold at an average longer on the market in 2008. was 45. Last year that wait price of $194,938. In 2007, the average num- lengthened to 75 days. Tooele County’s real estate Buyers aren’t the only ones industry plummeted in 2008 waiting either. compared to the previous Countywide single-family Tom McCarty, broker for year, according to data com- Stansbury Real Estate, said piled by the Wasatch Front home sales economic worries have hit Multiple Listing Service. Total Average Total $$ the market hard over the The total dollar volume of Units price volume past year. He said his office single-family homes sold in currently has 17 or 18 home the county fell 36 percent listings, but that he usual- last year, while the total ly only receives one or two number of homes sold fell calls per week from potential 34 percent. Average home buyers. prices declined only 3 per- “People are scared to lose 971 cent, from $206,714 in 2007 640 their job, and they want to $206,714 34% 3% $201,566 36% $201 million � � to $201,566 last year. � wait and see if the interest photography / Maegan Burr However, there’s evidence rates go lower,” McCarty said. Tooele County School District bus instructor Judy Wilcox waits for kids from the $129 million prices may be on the way � � � 2007 2008 2007 2008 2007 2008 Stansbury Park Elementary autistic class Monday afternoon. Wilcox has driven a bus down. For the fourth quar- SEE TUMBLES PAGE A5 ➤ for the district for 23 years. Source: Wasatch Front Multiple Listing Service School bus ridership up School di strict reshuffling 300 teachers by Tim Gillie biggest changes he has seen over STAFF WRITER those years is rampant enrollment growth. Each day, 4,432 students within “When I first started, we only had as Stansbury High prepares for opening the Tooele County School District 50 buses. Now we have 82,” Merino — or 32 percent all students — are said. by Tim Gillie brought to school by 65 bus drivers Bus drivers also have to complete STAFF WRITER covering 125 routes. more training now, Merino said. “Bus ridership is up this year,” Merino has a school district vehi- Stansbury High School said Richard Merino, Tooele County cle outfitted with a calibrated elec- will open this fall with 51 School District transportation coor- tronic odometer that can measure teachers reassigned from dinator. “Buses that used to have distance in feet, miles or kilometers. other schools throughout room are getting crowded.” The device measures accurately to the Tooele County School Ridership went up earlier this year the thousandth of a mile. SUN AND MOON SEVEN-DAY FORECAST FOR TOOELE District. That total, however, UV INDEX as gas prices rose, but has not come Mileage for bus routes is mea- The Sun Rise Set WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAYdoesn’t SATURDAY tell the full SUNDAYextent of MONDAY TUESDAY down as gas prices have dropped, sured from the nearest public Wednesday 7:42 a.m. 5:42 p.m. the reshuffling of teachers Merino said. entrance of the school property to Thursday 7:42 a.m. 5:44 p.m. Friday 7:41 a.m. 5:45 p.m. the district has had to do The school district determines the homeowners property line, not Saturday 7:40 a.m. 5:46 p.m. to accommodate the new 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 what students are eligible to ride from the front door of the school to Sunday 7:39 a.m. 5:47 p.m. school’s arrival. buses following state regulations on the front door of the home, accord- Monday 7:38 a.m. 5:49 p.m. “Altogether there will be Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue distance and local decisions based ing to Merino. Tuesday 7:37 a.m. 5:50 p.m. The higher the AccuWeather.com UV Index™ The Moon Rise Set about 300 teachers in the number, the greater the need for eye and skin on safety. This distinction creates some Wednesday 8:47 a.m. 8:24 p.m. district that will have new protection. 0-2 Low; 3-5 Moderate; 6-7 High; 8-10 In order to be eligible to ride interesting patterns, Merino said. Thursday 9:09 a.m. 9:27 p.m. Very High; 11+ Extreme Friday 9:31 a.m. 10:32 p.m. assignments as a result of a school bus, elementary students “With Tooele High and Junior Saturday 9:55 a.m. 11:39 p.m. Stansbury High opening,” ALMANAC must live more than 1.5 miles from High school being next to each Sunday 10:21 a.m. none Statistics for the week ending Jan. 26. Considerable Intervals of clouds and Sunshine and patchy saidSunshine Terry and patchy Linares, Tooele the school. Junior high and high other, there are some homes on Monday 10:53 a.m. 12:49 a.m. Mostly sunny Sunny to partly cloudy Mostly sunny Temperatures Tuesday 11:31 a.m. 2:02 a.m. cloudiness sunshine clouds Countyclouds School District school students must live more than the east side where a family’s junior High/Low past week 51/14 First Full Last New superintendent. Normal high/low past week 40/21 2 miles from the school. high student may be eligible [for 40 23 40 19 43 21 All44 teachers25 were43 asked23 45 23 48 29 Average temp past week 34.1 “Those regulations are set by bussing], but their high school stu- to indicate if they wanted Normal average temp past week 30.3 the state and not by the district,” dents are not, because of the addi- TOOELE COUNTY WEATHER Daily Temperatures High Low Feb 2 Feb 9 Feb 16 Feb 24 Shown is Wednesday’s to move to the new school, Merino said. tional distance from the high school Linares said. District officials Merino has worked as the trans- to the junior high,” Merino said. Forecasts and graphics provided by weather. Temperatures are 48 51 photography / Maegan Burr Wednesday night’s lows and 41 42 42 AccuWeather, Inc. ©2009 then sat down with princi- 36 33 portation coordinator for the school Because a line must be drawn Wednesday’s highs. Grantsville High School girls basketball coach and PE instructor Kenzie Newton and her teacher’s assistant district for 12 years, after retiring Mallory Oltjenbruns record scores Tuesday morning. Newton, who will be teaching at Stansbury High School SEE SHUFFLES PAGE A7 ➤ 30 31 34 33 from the Tooele Army Depot. The SEE BUS PAGE A6 ➤ next year, is one of 300 teachers reshuffled around22 the district. UTAH WEATHER 14 21 Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Logan Grouse 33/14 Wendover Precipitation (in inches) INSIDE Creek 39/21 BULLETINKnolls BOARDClive A8 WEATHER Lake Point 39/17 39/23 40/23 40/23 1.91 1.91 Ogden CLASSIFIEDS B6 Stansbury Park 1.17 1.17 38/21 Erda 40/23 0.91 One family’s 4-H and Tooele City Vernal HOMETOWN B1 Grantsville 41/25 Pine Canyon 0.35 Salt Lake City 32/10 40/23 33/18 musical legacy team up for art show Tooele 40/23 OBITUARIES A7 Bauer 40/23 Last Normal Month Normal Year Normal 40/22 Tooele Week for week to date M-T-D to date Y-T-D See B1 See A3 Provo Roosevelt See 40/23 37/11 OPEN FORUM A4 40/18 Complete Stockton Snowfall (in inches) Price SPORTS A10 40/22 42/17 38.5 Nephi Forecast Rush Valley 41/20 TV LISTINGS B4 40/22 Ophir on A9 35/18 14.2 Delta Manti 6.5 46/20 41/18 Green River Last Month Season 46/19 Dugway Week to date to date Richfield Gold Hill 41/22 44/19 Moab 42/18 SNOWPACK Hanksville 46/21 Beaver 48/19 Vernon Tooele Valley-Vernon Creek Basin 46/18 Ibapah 40/20 43/17 Snow Water Equivalent as of 12 a.m.