Town Hall Project Manager Karen Nelson informed the council that a bid on the pavilion that will also be located on the town lot came in at $25,500. Contractor Craig Haren, who is building the town hall, submitted the bid and is ready to start on the project this week. The council approved the plans and because of the cost, the project doesn’t have to be put out for competitive bids according to state law but the council is going to check that it doesn’t violate their own policy. The pavilion is funded through a grant from the county recreation board. Karen said it was really important that the council get an overview of the tremendous amount of detail regarding the projects on the town lot and spent time informing them of prices, priorities and other details. She typed a complete presentation for the council to muse over until their next meeting. She informed them that, because of safety concerns, the solid front door was changed to a half window door.
In other business, it was decided that a member of the council would visit Barbara Hicks, a certified public accountant in Moab to determine what of the financial duties she can do for the town. Because of the new state tax structure, it is unclear how much the town will receive next year, according to Mayor Keeler. They decided to file their budget with the state as planned and amend later if needed. Because of the unknowns, the town needs to financially “tighten up.” They talked about establishing job descriptions for employees and agents and start auditing and cataloging all of the town’s records.
* * *
Since 1991, an anonymous donor has made available to Castle Valley high school graduates a scholarship to help with their first year of college or a trade tech. The town council was given the responsibility for selecting the recipients and awarding the grants. Since that time, a total of $20,000 has been donated to our kids as they entered their post high school educational experience. Traditionally, the council has elected to split the scholarship money to all those who apply.
The town council is again accepting applications for the $2,000 grant money that is available again this year. All of those interested should submit their request to any member of the town council or mail it to the town at HC 64 Box 2705. The applicant should be a resident of Castle Valley and a graduate of high school. The scholarship will be sent to their college or trade tech or will be presented to the applicant if they produce a receipt from their school.
* * *
The Castle Valley Fire Department received notification that they received a grant for $13,000 from the Bureau of Land Management. The funds will be used for the purchase of wild land fire protective clothing, communications equipment, hand tools and fire shelters. The department has to provide a 10 percent match in funds or in-kind work. Fire Chief Floyd Stoughton, who submitted the grant request two months ago, said the ten percent will not be a cash outlay but from work that will be completed on the firehouse and other work already completed. The funds are from the BLM delivered through the state fire academy. The money will replace some of the money already spent for communication equipment this year and replace some of the old tools that have been around since the beginning of the department. The department personnel will also be equipped with proper clothing for fighting wildfires.
Ron Mengel, representing the Castle Valley First Responder team, took delivery on an ambulance that has been used by the Thompson Springs First Responders. The Grand County Ambulance Association bought a new vehicle for their fleet recently and gave one of their extra vehicles to Thompson for their use and we got theirs. Mengel says the vehicle runs well but needs work on lights and other equipment before it can be put on line. Like Thompson Springs, the Castle Valley First Responders cannot use it to transport patients to the hospital but to store medical equipment and supplies and possibly get people out of the weather if necessary.