GREATER AVENUES COMMUNITY COUNCIL Minutes
July 11, 2001 Held at the Sweet Library
conducted by by Richard Smiley

beginning 7:00 pm

Richard announced the Memory Grove turnout was very good. About 150 people helped on July 17, `01. Thank you very much for your help.

Reports:

Karen Derrick is out of town and will report at our next meeting in August. She will bring the Superintendent to discuss the school closures. Her Email address is karren.derrick@slc.k12.ut.us< /a>. You can phone her in two weeks when she has returned and she will answer questions then as well.

Tom Rogan: City Council. 2 things. No big items expected between now and fall. 1st item ties in with Karen and Darlene being here next month. Hope parents haven't given up on that issue. If there is a desired commitment within the community against the school closure--don't give up. It's not a done deal and progress can still be made.

2nd item-- the subject of annexation. Utah legislature passed a bill requiring the cities and counties and incorporated areas to incorporate the unincorporated areas of SL county. It affects SL county greatly. Should be done with the support of the city. We shouldn't focus on pros and cons at this point--but in the process of this really important issue. It has the potential of almost doubling SL City. Are we going to be able to manage our city more effectively than now? QUESTION: what could SL annex? Entire east bench going out I-80 and I-215 to the canyons. Also the whole canyon rim area. And Magna. Large areas could be annexed. COMMENT: SLC supplies the water for just about the entire East bench. It would make some sense to put our boundaries in line with our water. The fear is that the legislature will monkey around with SLC water rights. Tom is unavailable from tomorrow (July 12) until AUG 2. (will be out of town).

Police and legislature are late. No reports yet.

Peter Corroon with the Olympics/Community committee. Historic homes tour includes the McCarthy and JC Penney House (others as well). LDS Hospital will allow the Colonial House. Athletes family hosting homes. Table for 8 has space for 67 visitors right now. Host or guest can provide topic for discussion. Tour Utah will be tours provided at local sites for anyone wanting to see them. Utah heritage foundation is not having tours during the Olympics but will provide docents. This committee is rying to focus on Capitol hill and Avenues area homes.

Shriner's Hospital Parking request by Craig Patchin. He is the administrator of the Shriner's Hospital. No decisions have been made. Shriner's is in the process of gathering options. They have been working with the city. They and the city don't like the idea of usurping open space but don't see any alternatives. When the hospital (Gary York is here and should be introduced--he is an avenues resident and member of our board of governors) was first built the parking was undersized greatly. We have 67 slots, 180 employees, fire lanes, 2 hour parking. There are a total of 86 slots there including handicapped, fire lanes, etc. What we did to address the problem initially was to encourage our employees to car pool and to subsidize mass transit. We had an actual incident when cars were parked in the fire lanes and the fire dept. needed them and so now that is highly enforced. Neighbors are now complaining about hospital people parking in front of their houses. Parking on Virginia was a problem--parking on lawns. They park on Fairfax to the extent that the law allows. He showed an Aerial map explaining the issue. Difficult to hire staff right now because medical help is highly competitive and parking is the number one complaint. Parking on Popperton is not wise because the street isn't wide and it's fenced in. Shriner's is considering 5 options and would like to present them to the GACC for your input. Option A is to take vacant land north & behind the hospital and make a parking lot. It is not well suited for parking because of the slope but is the preferred option of the hospital. Reserve this spot only for hospital staff. Would use low level lighting -don't want it to look ugly or be offensive in any way. They hand carried letters to all surrounding neighbors to ask their input and permission. Option B is on upper sight of grassy area in front of hospital. Could build a 2 level tiered and very unsightly parking facility. Would make view of hospital very unsightly. Option C is head-in parking along Popperton Ave. Attractive to Shriner's but city and traffic nixed it on very 1st meeting because of a safety issue. Don't understand that but doesn't seem to be a possible option. With either option A or C, Shriner's would open up to the park on weekends for their use. Would like a right of way to building entrances from that area to the hospital. Retaining walls would be required because it is narrow and has a slope. Option D is a large parking structure by the hospital where parking lot is now. It would be very unsightly and not liked by the neighbors. Could be built down and not so much up but that would be very expensive. Option D is to take entire grassy area in front of hospital and making it a parking structure. This is the least desirable of all the options. Shriner's is looking for an area of its own. The staff can be controlled if they have a spot--but visitors can park anywhere they want. Shriner's would like to provide them a spot and not offend them. John Sittner was involved in this before and brought up Option C, which was the proposal he had submitted a few years ago. There is not enough parking for the use of Popperton Park. There are neighborhood problems because of the hospital and the park. Option C seems like a natural public/private association. Let public use it on nights and weekends and have it provide private use during day. QUESTION: What's feedback on homes that back up that property? What is their preference? Answer: There are 4 homes. One resident was away. Mr. Patchin visited with 2 homeowners. The 4th, Mr. Hobbs is here. They don't support Options A or C but do see a need for a solution. Mr. HOBBS bought the last unimproved lot. It belonged to SLC and had a 20-year restrictive covenant. It is not to be used for developed land until 2004. He did not see the diagrams of these plans until last week. He could not stop Popperton Road from being developed. His principle concern is option 1 but prefers none of the above. He asked Shriner's to use the church parking nearby but the church option is not a real option. It is out of sight and a visitor couldn't find it . It is unlit and has no sidewalk. Security is a problem. Church is already having problems with break ins and vandalism. COMMENT: Add 45 degree parking on both sides of the street and provide a turn around. City might reconsider if GACC supported it. Motion: We as a GACC support making the angle parking, Option #C, the answer - Motion seconded. Option #C. that improves parking on South side of popperton park (turnaround could be discussed) Motion to Amend the motion (& seconded): to Limit it to immediately north of hospital and not include the area East. Vote: All in favor 5. Opposed everybody else. (approx. 20 or so) Amendment to Motion Failed. 1st motion vote: 18 in favor. Opposed 5. Motion carries.

Stephanie Duer had to leave for another meeting but left information about water use in the back.

Dell Cook will report on the Salt Storage Recreational Pavilions project. City has wanted to develop it on current piece of property on Bonneville (the road around the canyon). It is to be a triangular shaped building that would hold salt storage . Walls only come up part way--concrete. Pavilion-like open steel truss with roof. Store salt in winter months and clean it out and be a picnic pavilion during summer months. One building is to be built now, and as money comes in, another building and parking will be provided. Trees will be planted that will buffer the edge of the park. EPA has mandated this be done to prevent a trail from it down to the canyon water. There is no point of contention -this is just a point of information. QUESTION: This was going to be done this summer but funding was taken, is it now restored? -Answer: Rotary Glen got slashed and this got the money. Salt will be stored there by November. Will provide open parking more than is current now. Rock veneer is still there. Landscaping will also be included. Cleans this sight up immensely. NO spill from salt storage will go into the ground water. That's part of the mandate. Question/Answer: no toilets or playground - just drinking fountain and power. Lights? Don't know, probably under pavilion.

Legislature report from Ralph Becker. Paula apologizes for not being here. She has been unwell. Supposed to be slow season of legislature. Not so. Regarding the settlement agreement of lawyers. They will receive $75 million for representing the tobacco case. Could claim $250 million for their work in settlement. 14 bills have been passed of the 18 introduced. (most were clean up) One the house decided not to consider. It was that lawyers need to have a license to practice. (Somehow the law requiring this had been repealed and a clean up bill to reinstate was being considered). It didn't get passed. Anyone can practice law now because no law prohibits it. No restrictions. This was to fix that. The next issue is Instate redistricting. Special session probably in Sept. to discuss this. It could mean that a portion of Aves. might be represented by a person from Bountiful. All kinds of discussion going on about how districts may be combined. 2 house seats in some form will have to be combined. Could split Salt Lake County so we have no representative from here. Rural counties don't seem to like that. State capital restoration is proceeding. Some construction will proceed by end of year. 2 years for new buildings to be done. 4 years restoring capital after that.

No police to report.

Gwen Springmeyer from the U of U Olympic Activities/Olympic coordinating office. Can only answer what U of U knows and is doing but nothing else. Handed out venue perimeters map. Impact will start on Thanksgiving Day and last until tax day on April 15. South Campus drive will be closed Nov. 12 to the end of March. Parking lots will start to disappear near the end of fall semester. The U turns over the village on 9th of Jan. Schedule of events was handed out. Anyone near U of U will be impacted greatly. U will close at noon on Feb 6 and not open on the 8th. Campus will remain open and operating during the Olympics like it does during spring break or at Christmas. Med. Center will never close. What will be fun on the campus: exhibits. We will be an international community. QUESTION: What's the noise volume to be like adjacent to stadium? Answer: They won't turn it down. Everything should be back to normal by April 15. (That's the goal). QUESTION: Where does money come from? Answer: Some of money has come from SLOC -otherwise is self-supporting. QUESTION: Is BYU going to do anything? Answer: Not aware of anything. U. is to suspend classes from Feb 2-26.

Open Forum: None.

Meeting adjourned at 8:42 p.m.