Demolition has begun on the Western Hills Motel and Roosevelt City has continued to engage with the community in a discussion about the potential for future business growth within the City. After announcing the demolition plans, Roosevelt City provided the public with information about potential opportunities, using the Western Hills site as an example.
Utah Department of Environmental Quality wants Uintah Basin residents to be aware that January is National Radon Action Month. Radon is formed when uranium breaks down into radium and then decays into radon gas. Ideally, circumstances would have radon gas diluted as it moves through the soil into the atmosphere with little risk to human health.
Here’s something you may have missed in 2018. Nationally, there are sometimes stories of people giving very generously to those in the service industry, specifically to waiters and waitresses. It always warms the heart when someone opens their wallets in big ways but often such stories feel like they are far away, happening in the big city. Well that is not always the case. Earlier this December, in Vernal’s own Quarry Steakhouse & Brew Pub, a local had such an experience. One of their waitresses, who is also a single mom, had been the target of thieves and Christmas was looking bleak. While on shift at the Quarry soon after, a generous patron, who had no idea of the situation, left her a $500 dollar tip and a simple note on the receipt wishing her a Merry Christmas. Just goes to show you that heart warming things can happen anywhere.
A new year brings new changes. The Vernal Area Chamber of Commerce is helping businesses to understand how the Utah Medical Cannabis Act (the Act) that passed on December 3. 2018 will affect the workplace. According to Jeff Holdsworth of the Employers Council, although the legislature has approved the Act, it hasn’t clarified specifically what employers can or can’t do.
Uintah Basin Healthcare is getting ready to have a ribbon cutting to reveal their new mammography machine. General Electric (GE) has provided details on their machine, the Senographe Pristina with Dueta patient-assisted compression.
The chill in the air has people finding ways to warm their homes which can lead to some dangerous situations. As a friendly reminder, the Roosevelt Fire Department wants people to stay aware of fire safety in the winter months. According to FEMA, 890 people die in winter fires that cause over $2 billion in property loss each year. While home fires in the winter account for only 8 percent of the total fires in the United States, 30 percent of all fire deaths are from winter fires. The most common times for winter fires is 5pm to 8pm. Cooking and having a heat source too close to combustible materials are the top ways to start your home on fire so be aware. Be sure to clear your chimneys and fireplaces before lighting fires indoors. Never leave space heaters or candles burning unattended. Also read the label on the extension cord when using them especially with electric heaters. Finally be careful when dealing with frozen pipes. “This might sound obvious, but don’t use a blow torch on your pipes if they freeze,” Fire Chief Lee Rockwood advises. “It might work to thaw your pipes, but people often don’t notice what it’s doing to the wall behind the pipes. That’s how a lot of fires get started.”
As we start into a new year, we often reflect on the happenings of the closing year. Here might be something that you missed in 2018. The annual community Holly Days was a rousing success for Vernal with many great events. In the Parade of Lights there was a very special treat that you might not have recognized. Showalter Ford had a 2018 Mustang GT350 Shelby Cobra that traveled in the parade of lights.
Grab your rod, drill a hole, and go get some ice fishing in. Anglers are needed to address a worry of fisheries managers with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department. The recent cold has helped the ice to reach areas where small lake trout are abundant on the Wyoming side of Flaming Gorge Reservoir. Lake trout that are less than 28 inches are so abundant in the reservoir that they have lead to concerns with their growth rates having slowed because of the competition over limited food sources.
On December 29th, a Basin local took to Facebook to ask about the Ashley Valley Calvary Chapel under construction on 500 North in Vernal, asking why it remained in the same state of construction and what the community could do to help the project move towards completion. Responses poured in from other locals from a variety of faiths who had the same questions and also felt a desire to help move the project forward. Some members of the Ashley Valley Calvary congregation chimed in and explained that the church did not actively fundraise and relied instead on unsolicited donations, trusting that the funding and construction would continue on God’s timeline. With many community members asking how they could donate, a congregation member provided a link to the church’s website donation page in which a donation could be made specifically to the Building Fund. Obviously hearing about what was happening, the Calvary Chapel’s Pastor Phil Daggett shared on the Facebook post his gratitude for the concern and rallying of the community. Just the next day, Pastor Phil checked in again, this time with amazing news. In the short time the link to donate had been shared, over $4,000 dollars had come in. Pastor Phil also shared a summary of the project’s history, explaining that it is approximately two-thirds complete and the exterior was completed first by design. The interior is framed and plumbing roughed in. Electrical work is the next phase of construction and is expected to get underway after the middle of January. More donations have come in in the days since. What an amazing example of neighborly kindness that many have grown to expect in the Uintah Basin. Those interested in donating to the Building Fund can scroll to the bottom of the page on www.avcalvary.org. Many small donations are so far adding up to make a real difference.Link:http://www.avcalvary.org/paypal/?fbclid=IwAR2LHciTENdc5O-Ek0Jqh5_QIYU77xuq9IYTgR4rbu6WAlFDaIbB45_B0W4