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Water Rates, Debt, and That Cash Reserve

11/02/2015 / David Rodeback

Debt

One of the numbers AFCitizens gets right in its campaign to take down city council incumbents is American Fork’s debt. The number is inherently a moving target, but according to the 2016 American Fork City budget (page 68), the City’s total debt as of July 1, 2015 (the beginning of the fiscal year), was about $52.3 million. That number is projected to be less than $49 million by the end of the fiscal year, June 30, 2016.

On one hand, these are big numbers. Whether that’s too much debt for us is a judgment call. AFCitizens says it is, and we should blame the incumbents. I readily agree that much of it was avoidable, but blaming the incumbents is a bit too convenient and quite historically absurd.

On the other hand, the City is legally allowed to carry almost $200 million more debt than it has. That limit is not a single, universal number, and not all of the City’s debt is counted toward the limit (most is), but officially we’re at about 16 percent of our statutory debt limit. I am not saying we should borrow as much as we’re allowed, though I did favor borrowing a small fraction of that remaining margin for roads two years ago. (Most voters felt otherwise, though some now say they would vote differently.)

More than $41 million — over 75 percent — of our current debt relates to water, which brings us to our water bills. AFCitizens says they’re too high. That is also a judgment call, but I agree that they could have been lower, and I wish they were.

Kicking the Can Down the Road, 1990s Style

Several years ago, city leaders studied our increasingly poor water situation at great length and decided that the wisest and least expensive course of action was to borrow to install a pressurized irrigation system. They proposed a bond issue, which the voters overwhelming passed. Here’s the essential bit of history: had City leaders in the 1990s been willing to face the problem, the cost of the system would have been less than $10 million, instead of almost $50 million dollars. Instead, they did the “fiscally conservative” thing, kept taxes and rates low . . . and effectively borrowed $40 million from us in what was then the future. (They did much the same with roads, but that’s a separate discussion.)

The same timid City leaders allowed water rates to remain well below the cost of actually delivering water, so that our water bills were in effect subsidized by tax revenues. Meanwhile, nothing was being tucked away to help replace infrastructure (which is known to have a finite lifespan). Again, several years ago, later City leaders prudently raised water rates to a level that covers current costs and a good portion of known replacement costs.

As if this didn’t make our water rates high enough, most or all of the water bond payments could have come from impact fees from new construction, but then the economy tanked, and those fees dried up. So the debt the voters voted to incur has had to be paid through higher water rates.

Had City leaders and voters acted prudently in the 1990s, our water bills would be a lot lower. Fiscal conservatism is fine, and I don’t like high taxes and fees either. But sometimes saving a penny today costs us a dime down the road.

For what it’s worth, City leaders recently were able to find enough economies elsewhere to avoid passing on to the residents a sewer rate increase imposed by the sewer district.

The Rainy Day Fund

AFCitizens wants to blame the incumbents, so they keep saying — and candidate Allen Simpson has said — that the City has lots of money lying around that could be used to lower our rates. The none-too-subtle implications are these: current City leaders want the rates to be higher than they need to be, and water rates themselves, rather than being sensibly tied to real costs, can be whatever the city council wants them to be.

Which brings us to the City’s cash reserves. According to official sources, the statutory limit is 25 percent of the City’s annual budgeted revenue. Right now the City chooses to keep that between about 14 and 18 percent. (It fluctuates during the fiscal year.) It was 9 percent when the Great Recession hit, and more would have been a very good thing then.

AFCitizens says the City is at its statutory limit, when it doesn’t need to be. Their number is off by one-third or so, based on the FY2016 budget.

How large our cash reserves should be is a judgment call. Economic downturns, fighting a refinery fire which destroys much of the City’s firefighting equipment, or a natural disaster could suck up even the maximum allowable reserve very quickly — and two of those things have happened in recent years. To my mind, the prudent thing to do is to keep a generous reserve against the unpredictable, so we don’t have to go begging, borrowing, or taxing when a major, unbudgeted need arises.

Councilman Rob Shelton, the council’s resident financial guru, wrote this to me:

“I believe a true conservative plans a budget with revenue conservatively (thinking less income will come in) and expenses conservatively (thinking there would be an increase). At the end of the year, we use the excess to fund capital improvement projects like roads, waterlines, sewer, etc.

“This approach allows us to use the ‘plan for the worst and hope for the best’ type of budgeting. This last year we came close to the 25% reserve amount, due mainly to an increase in sales tax revenues. Good budgeting allows us to be pleasantly surprised at the end of the year with excess, rather than a shortfall. You take the excess and then apply it to one-time projects in the capital improvement plans.

“So this last year we took the excess and put it to work in the budget, and that dropped [the rainy day fund] down to just under 18%.”

That’s conservative enough for me, thank you.

With Fiscal Conservatives Like These, Who Needs Liberals?

We are in the bizarre position of hearing self-proclaimed fiscal conservatives argue that we’re preparing too well for a rainy day, and that the price of a thing (here, water) should be below the cost of actually delivering that thing in the short term and (when we consider infrastructure) in the long term as well. Are they making sense to you?

Even if they are, they’re getting some of the numbers badly wrong, as usual, and misplacing the blame for the numbers they’re getting right.

Learn before you vote — and please share the facts with your neighbors and friends.

Note: this blog post and the infographic were edited after publication to correct an error.

Did American Fork Road Cut Its Road Budget by $450,000 This Year?

10/31/2015 / David Rodeback

There is widespread agreement that American Fork’s roads are crumbling, and that rebuilding them should be a high priority in the City budget. Beyond this the rhetoric diverges.

Facts

For most of the campaign, one candidate and the local PAC which supports him – and whose flier he’s been distributing – have been telling people that, in the face of this great need, and despite having $10 million in cash for which they have no specific plans, city leaders cut the road budget by $450,000 from Fiscal Year 2015 to Fiscal Year 2016.

That supposed $10 million surplus is a tale we’ll consider soon. Today, we’re looking at the road budget. Here’s what official documents from the City say.

FY 2015: $3,051,000

FY 2016: $6,296,200

In other words, there is no $450,000 decrease. There is no decrease at all. There is more than a $3.2 million increase. The road budget more than doubled.

Even without a $2.55 million grant to fund the 900 West project, the road budget would have increased by $697,200 – that is, about 23 percent.

In fairness to candidate Allen Simpson, I note that after he spoke of this imaginary cut at a meet-the-candidates event ten days ago, one of the incumbents took him aside and gave him (and also explained) the real data. He didn’t make the same mistake a few days later, at last Saturday’s event.

On the other hand, the PAC whose flier he’s distributing doesn’t back down from its numbers, even when they’re provably false. They’re just using the City’s numbers, they say. If they’re wrong, it’s the City’s fault.

I’m using the City’s numbers too. Here are links to two documents the City provided me last week. This summary is clear and sufficient for today’s point. This spreadsheet has more detail.

Perspective

Two years ago, the same PAC told voters that the City had no plan for the proposed bond funds, when there was a very detailed, carefully prioritized, very public plan.

They supported a candidate who said that it would be better to drive on gravel streets than to borrow one dime to rebuild roads.

They supported another candidate who threw all sorts of crazy numbers and accusations around, and who would not be moved even when City financial experts took great pains to explain things to him. He also claimed to have studied the City budget and found $3 million in obvious cuts that could be made right away, but then he couldn’t identify them – during or in the months after his successful campaign.

Both of these candidates won in 2013. One of them grew into the job quite respectably. The other, well . . . Word on the street is that even AFCitizens is embarrassed by him now. It puts one in mind of an adage which seems appropriate to Halloween: People with knowledge know that Dr. Frankstein was not the monster; he was the man who created the monster. People with wisdom understand that Dr. Frankenstein was the monster.

Allen Simpson is not a monster. He comes to the campaign with a much better resume of volunteer service to the city than one of these candidates I mentioned, and with a willingness to learn that the other 2013 AFCitizens darling has not shown. But Mr. Simpson still the PAC’s favorite, and he’s still passing out their stuff.

Meanwhile, the voters are learning too. In 2013, awash in a small flood of bad data, they defeated the road bond proposal. Two years later, a lot of them are saying they wish they’d voted for it.

This story has several morals. Here are two.

If AFCitizens bets the political farm on a number, it’s probably wrong. (But there’s nothing you or I can do to persuade them of that, because they know that they are nice, honest people who are not wrong.)

And learn before you vote.

If you want to help counteract the misinformation some folks are spreading to sway voters, please tell your friends and neighbors, and post this infographic on social media.

American Fork Property Tax Rates Have Decreased 3 Years in a Row

10/30/2015 / David Rodeback

This infographic very nearly speaks for itself. But a few notes, if you please.

One candidate is out there saying that our property tax rates just keep going up, year after year. This is not the case.

It’s true that someone’s property taxes can go up even if the City’s property tax rate goes down — if the assessed value of the property increases, or if another taxing entity, such as the Alpine School District, increases its rate.

The calculation for primary (first) residences is: multiply the rate by the assessed value of the property, then discount 45 percent. That’s the annual tax on that property.

Here’s your extra credit for the day. Some candidates can’t explain this, but maybe that’s okay, because it’s a little messed up.

The City’s certified tax rate (CTR) is set according to state law. A given year’s rate is the answer to this question: Looking at the same set of properties that was taxed last year, what rate will bring in the same number of dollars (perversely, not adjusted for inflation) as last year, given current valuations?

If the City lowers that rate, it’s a tax cut. If they raise that rate, it’s a tax increase, with special requirements for public notice and such. This is true even if the “increase” produces a rate lower than last year’s, or vice versa. So we sometimes see “increases” in which this year’s rate is lower than last year’s, and we occasionally see “tax cuts” in which the resulting rate is higher than last year’s.

The Utah Legislature calls this “Truth in Taxation,” and yes, it can be Orwellian. The long-term effect in practice is to starve municipal governments of funds, because to raise the rate even slightly, just enough to keep revenues equal in real (inflation-adjusted) dollars — and even if the rate ends up lower than last year’s — is a “tax increase.” And we all know tax increases, real or imagined, are dicey politics for incumbents.

Based on what I’ve heard from the legislation’s authors, this slow strangulation was an intended consequence. It’s clever, and it’s destructive.

Speaking of politics, why do you suppose a challenger running for City office would misreport the facts, saying repeatedly that our property tax rates have increased, when they clearly haven’t?

Want to make a difference? Share this. Before Tuesday. Help others learn before they vote.

Here is a longer discussion of certified tax rates, on the off chance that you haven’t had enough already.

They Want You to Think American Fork Has the Highest Property Tax Rate

10/29/2015 / David Rodeback

What Utah Football Has to Do with It

Suppose you’re a University of Utah football fan (as I am, when they aren’t playing BYU, and I’m sad about the USC thing last week). But your grandfather is a died-in-the wool Cougar. You know the type. In his mind, it is a holy war, and you don’t remember the last time he was willing to concede that the Utes made a good play or got a good win. When the Utes beat the Cougars, as often happens, he blames the referees. If he cannot find the slightest cause to blame them for enforcing the rules unevenly or ignoring the rules when it’s to Utah’s advantage, he complains that the rules themselves are stupid and skewed, and blames the refs for enforcing bad rules.

Suppose that in a small fit of hubris and wrath, he said to you, “If the Utes are ever ranked first in the polls, I’ll give you $25,000.”

Fortunately, his eyesight is failing. So when the Utes were ranked #4 the other week, you dropped by (as you often do, because you’re a good, devoted grandchild). This time, you said, “Grandpa, I’m going to read to you from the college football poll in order, as usual. By the way, BYU got a few votes, but didn’t make the top 25. As always, I’ll start with the last of the ten on my list and work up, because I know you like the suspense.”

Conveniently — and so you couldn’t accused of lying — you had typed up a list with ten teams in order, starting with Utah at #4. You left off the top three, but you were careful to get the next ten in the right order, because accuracy matters. You started reading at the bottom, as you said, and you didn’t give their numerical rankings. You left him thinking that Utah was ranked #1.

“I guess I’d better write you a check,” he said, because his eyes are failing, but his memory’s fine. “Better yet, you write the check, and I’ll sign it.”

Grand Larceny

You would never try to put the wrong amount on the check — say, $125,000 — even though he’ll never notice. After all, you balance his checkbook too, and there’s plenty of money in his accounts. You could probably get away with it — and if he caught you, you could say it was a mistake, and he’d likely believe you. But you would never do any of that. It would be immoral. It would be criminal.

Come to think of it, you would never deceive Grandpa with bad data, so he’d give you $25,000 on a false pretense. Not only would that also be a felony. It would be piling a sin on top of a sin. (The one on the bottom is loving money so much you’re willing to deceive people to get more of it.)

Here’s my question. If you wouldn’t do any of those things, why in the world would you publish a flier with a graphic showing that American Fork has the highest property tax rate among Utah County cities, when three cities have higher rates?

You could protest that all the numbers you put in the graph are true. And you could point out that the graph would be unreadably crowded if it showed all 25 Utah cities. So you had to leave them out. And you could protest that you never actually said that American Fork’s rate was the highest. And all of that would be true.

Do you really expect me to believe that you left out all the cities with higher tax rates just for the sake of readability? It looks like you’re trying to fool the voters, tricking them with partial truths so they’ll give you political power. (I’m sure it’s for their own good.)

You might argue, even if you did skew the visual results, the higher point you’re making is God’s Honest Truth: our taxes are too high. So that justifies taking some liberties with your graphics.

So I guess I have two more questions.

First, if it’s God’s Honest Truth, why do you have to deceive people so they’ll agree with you?

Second, would you ever trust someone like you with political power, control over tens of millions of dollars of tax revenues, and your freedom?

So You’re Not Really One of Those People

Gentle reader, I assume you’re not one them. So what can you do to help? Post the graphic below (or this one) on Facebook or somewhere, or e-mail it to your friends and neighbors. Talk to your friends, in person and on social media. Tell them what you know. Some of them will listen. And if you want the raw data, it’s here at Utah.gov: 2015 Utah Tax Areas with Tax Rates.

meet the candidates — (L to R) Moderator John Dougall with 2015 candidates: Councilman Brad Frost, Councilman Robert Shelton, Kevin Barnes, Allen Simpson

Meet the American Fork City Council Candidates (Parts 9-12)

10/28/2015 / David Rodeback

On Saturday morning State Auditor John Dougall moderated a meet-the-candidates event at American Fork Hospital. It was part of their Pancakes and Politics series, which is sponsored by the American Fork Chamber of Commerce.

Kevin Barnes

No one in the area has more credibility in the moderator’s role than John Dougall. And the free breakfast was good too. About 40 people attended, not counting the candidates and the moderator. The audience was noticeably older than Wednesday evening’s.

The format was a bit different from Wednesday evening, and some of the questions seemed a bit redundant, but there was more discussion of some key issues, as well as some treatment of issues which didn’t arise on Wednesday evening.

All four candidates were there: incumbents Brad Frost and Rob Shelton, and challengers Allen Simpson and Kevin Barnes.

My audio recording of this event is not of professional quality (that’s no surprise), and there’s a fair amount of background noise. But it’s easy to follow. I’ve broken it up into four segments of about 20 minutes each. For each segment, I’ll list the topics and the order in which the candidates responded.

First Segment

Audio link: 2015_Saturday_1

Councilman Brad Frost

Opening Statements (3 minutes each; Frost – Shelton – Simpson – Barnes)

Brad Frost: “Let me see the facts, and I will make a decision.”
Robert Shelton: “We were able to find over the last three years $1.8 million in budget cuts. . . . We were able to do more with less.”
Allen Simpson: “I’ve been successful at leading teams of people who were not used to following.”
Kevin Barnes: “I’m not mad at anybody. I’m not after anybody’s throat. I just want to serve.”

Questions (one-minute responses):

water rates (Shelton – Simpson – Barnes – Frost)
experience (Simpson – Barnes – Frost – Shelton)
more experience (Barnes – Frost – Shelton – Simpson)

Second Segment

Audio link: 2015_Saturday_2

Questions:

property and sales taxes, tax cuts (Frost – Shelton – Simpson – Barnes)
developers vs. residents (Shelton – Simpson – Barnes – Frost)
why running, what do you what to accomplish (Simpson – Barnes – Frost – Shelton)
top two priorities for City’s limited resources (Barnes – Frost – Shelton – Simpson)

Third Segment

Allen Simpson

Audio link: 2015_Saturday_3

Questions:

police questioning of people who haven’t broken the law (Frost – Shelton – Simpson – Barnes)
the study saying American Fork is the 4th or 5th most-taxes city in Utah (Shelton – Simpson – Barnes – Frost)
areas of City government that need changes (Simpson – Barnes – Frost – Shelton)
roads (Barnes – Frost – Shelton – Simpson)

Fourth Segment

Councilman Rob Shelton

Audio link: 2015_Saturday_4

Questions:

building department (Frost – Shelton – Simpson – Barnes)
what to cut in the budget (Shelton – Simpson – Barnes – Frost)
off-street parking and snow removal (Simpson – Barnes – Frost – Shelton)

Closing Statements (two minutes each; Barnes – Frost – Shelton – Simpson)

You may also enjoy notes and audio from the Wednesday evening candidates event.

Meet the American Fork City Council Candidates (Part 8)

10/28/2015 / David Rodeback

Link

Here’s a link to audio of candidates’ one-minute closing statements at last Wednesday evening’s meet-the-candidate event at American Fork Library:

2015_Wednesday_8

Closing Statements (in summary)

Councilman Brad Frost after the October 21, 2015, meet-the-candidates event at American Fork High School.

Kevin Barnes: We’ve talked about a lot of things tonight, and talked a lot about money. When you go to vote, look at the person. What’s their experience? How do they work with other people? Are they willing to work with others as a team to solve problems? We are not dictators. We are public servants.

Rob Shelton: Look for a candidate who can get things done. My track record is, I get things done. It takes a lot of work. Make sure you look for individuals who will roll up their sleeves and get to work, and get results.

Brad Frost: I care about the city. I love hard work. I go looking for it. I’ve enjoyed getting to know new people and things. I see the whole city and the delicate balance that’s needed. I’ll give my time to make sure the city moves forward.

Allen Simpson: When I got married last year, I realized how important fiscal responsibility is. I never give up, and I am really, really, really good at finding solutions.

[Closing remarks by Kelly Smith follow.]

Here’s a link [forthcoming] to the first segment of Saturday’s meet-the-candidates event.

Kevin Barnes American Fork — Councilman Kevin Barnes

Meet the American Fork City Council Candidates (Part 7)

10/28/2015 / David Rodeback

Link

Here’s a link to audio of a few questions and candidate responses at last Wednesday evening’s meet-the-candidate event at American Fork Library:

In this segment, each candidate asked a question of the other three candidates. The questioner had one minute to ask the question and offer his own comments. The other candidates had one minute each to respond.

2015_Wednesday_7

Questions and Responses in this Segment

Candidate Kevin Barnes after the October 21, 2015, meet-the-candidates event at American Fork High School.

Question by Kevin Barnes: How do you feel about quality of life issues being funded by taxes and the City budget (e.g. a swimming pool, a library, and a golf course)?

Kevin Barnes: I’m in favor of them. They usually don’t pay for themselves; they take some tax money. But I think these things are part of what makes American Fork American Fork.
Rob Shelton: Most of them have been voted on by the residents, such as the recreation center, the library. Even though they’re funding by the City, it’s important that they be accountable. Recently the rec center has taken less City funds, and the new head librarian is getting grants to supplement the budget.
Brad Frost: What Rob said. I live here because I love it. I could live in rural Utah where I have none of these things, but I live here in part because of the fun I have here. These programs are a real benefit to residents, and they help to attract businesses. You do have to be wise, prudent, and balanced.
Allen Simpson: I love the pool. I love the rate that I pay. My concerns about buying and paying for these are ameliorated when the citizens vote on them. I like the quality of life in American Fork.

Question by Rob Shelton: How do you plan to be able to work with the members of the council, when you’re only one vote, to accomplish the good of the community and serve the people?

Brad Frost: You become a part of a team, with the mayor, the City staff, and the residents. It’s important not to isolate yourself as a councilman, and come in with accusations and bullish opinions. You’d better learn how to work with other people. Dale Gunther taught us, when we disagree, as soon as it’s over, we shake hands. Some on our council can’t do that.
Allen Simpson: Every councilman has a vision for the city. I’ve admired that. Each current councilman has communicated with me. I have a history of working well with people.
Kevin Barnes:The key is being able to work together. I get along with people. I can listen. I don’t have my mind made up on every issue. I need to learn some things; that’s part of this job. It’s not always easy to stand up and make a decision, but that’s what council members are paid for.

Question by Brad Frost: Our economy is strong, at least in Utah, and a lot of development, commercial and residential, is coming. It’s important to understand your role in development, how to facilitate it, how to encourage good development. How would your experience be an asset with the new development that’s coming to the city?

Allen Simpson: I don’t have experience as a developer. But experience in the insurance industry helps. I’ve been very good at knowing who to look to for advice. That’s where I would have to go.
Kevin Barnes: I served on the Planning Commission, where projects start and have to be approved according to the rules of the City. My experience of life includes seeing a lot of development in American Fork.
Rob Shelton: I work with investments, including quite a bit of work with developments. This was valuable when Dick’s Sporting Goods came to town and wanted to negotiate. We’re also getting the only Field and Stream west of the Mississippi. I served for eight years on the Board of Adjustments, solving development problems.

Question by Allen Simpson: My first three questions were taking. We need more involvement. How would you increase citizen involvement?

Kevin Barnes: We need to use volunteer whenever we can. The mayor is always urging Scouts who attend council meetings to come to the City when it’s time for their Eagle projects. We need to continue to encourage public involvement. We have a lot of volunteers.
Rob Shelton: I wanted to do just that, three years ago. I wanted to broadcast city council meetings online. We did that for the first time last week. Our council packets, the City budget, and other documents are now available online. We need to be out in the community, listening to residents’ concerns.
Brad Frost: “I believe that most people in the city look at their leaders, and if they feel comfortable with them, they tend to disengage.” We have a lot of volunteers — the Steel Days Committee, youth, etc. But when it comes to the nuts and bolts, like the budget, “we have crickets in the room.” (Nobody’s there.) We need to continue to encourage people to get involved.

Here’s a link to the last segment.

Meet the American Fork City Council Candidates (Part 6)

10/28/2015 / David Rodeback

Link

Here’s a link to audio of a few questions and candidate responses at last Wednesday evening’s meet-the-candidate event at American Fork Library: These questions were submitted by residents attending the event.

2015_Wednesday_6

Questions in this Segment

What level of debt is healthy for our city? Are we there? If not, how do we get there? (Order: Frost – Simpson – Barnes – Shelton.)
Why does the City not have a justice court? We give all the money it would generate to the state circuit court. (Order: Simpson – Barnes – Shelton – Frost.)

Notes

Each candidate had one minute for each response. Note the response order above with each question, because candidates aren’t named before every response.

Highlights

Candidate Allen Simpson after the October 21, 2015, meet-the-candidates event at American Fork High School.

Brad Frost says the proper debt level is up to the residents, but having no debt is unrealistic, and it’s illegal to save so much money that we don’t have to bond for anything. A justice court is premature. But “the last thing you ever want your citizens to think is that you’re making money off their speeding tickets.” He thinks an American Fork justice court is three to five years away.

Allen Simpson said the proper level of debt is up to the citizens. He didn’t have an answer about a justice court.

Kevin Barnes said out debt ratio is not out of line. We’re not upside down. He explained the difference between revenue debt (paid for when services are delivered) and general debt (paid for from general funds). He didn’t have an answer about a justice court.

Rob Shelton said Orem is looking at a 101% water rate increase. Pleasant Grove is also looking at an increase, and Lehi had a water crisis two years ago. We shouldn’t use debt the way the federal government does, but debt has its uses, and the residents need to decide the big stuff. He explained that we get about 6 percent of the revenue from a traffic ticket, without a justice court. Finding a venue is difficult; in 2018 some space will be available, so that would be a good time to institute one.

Here’s a link to the next segment.

Meet the American Fork City Council Candidates (Part 5)

10/28/2015 / David Rodeback

Link

2015_Wednesday_5

Questions in this Segment

How can American Fork protect its interests in American Fork Canyon? (Order: Simpson – Barnes – Shelton – Frost.)
What do you think about Proposition 1? (Order: Barnes – Shelton – Frost – Simpson.)
Why are water rates so high? Is there something the City can do to reduce them? (Order: Shelton – Frost – Simpson – Barnes)

Notes

Each candidate had one minute for each response. Note the response order above with each question, because candidates aren’t named before every response.

Highlights

Councilman Rob Shelton after the October 21, 2015, meet-the-candidates event at American Fork High School.

Allen Simpson said, about the canyon, talk to the county commissioners, then talk to Councilman Frost. He talked about UTA’s large debt load and bad fiscal management. He thinks the whole point of Prop 1 is to get money for UTA. He likes the way UDOT handles the roads, though. He will vote no on Prop 1. He claimed that water rates are outdated, that there’s a million-dollar surplus, and the City chosen to make the rates keep rising “when they don’t need to.” (This got applause from Councilman Carlton Bowen in the audience, which was out of order.)

[Again, this seems like a good time to point out that I’m reporting and summarizing what they said here, not asserting that it is true.]

Kevin Barnes said that when the canyon discussions started, we didn’t have a seat at the table, even though the canyon bears our name. Now we’re involved, and “the whole city needs to thank Brad for that.” Roads are the good part of Prop 1; it bothers him that UTA gets 40% of the revenues from the proposed sales tax increment. The more he learns, the more he leans against Prop 1. He would like the legislature to rewrite the law so UTA gets less. The water system should have been done a long time ago, but wasn’t, so we have to do it now. We still have to manage funds carefully, but “it’s not always as easy as some people make it seem.”

Rob Shelton praised Councilman Frost for shouldering the burden of the canyon. We cooperated with other cities. As to Prop 1, a lot of legislators in Salt Lake County wanted to make sure Utah County was committed to UTA. He would like two separate bills, one for roads and one for UTA. Sometimes we don’t get much back from these statewide sales tax initiatives; he’s like a more local solution. In part, water rates are so high because the impact fees it was hoped would pay for the pressurized irrigation system dries up when the economy declined. He talked about some very old culinary water pipes being replaced recently; “we got our money’s worth from that pipe.”

Brad Frost said we’ve put a lot of time into the canyon development questions. The county has jurisdiction over development. “We used a small hammer . . . Finally we had to use a sledgehammer” to prevent land trades negotiated by Salt Lake County. The city council voted down a resolution the county wanted, supporting Prop 1. He’s not satisfied that UTA will do anything with the money to help American Fork. He’s voting no on Prop 1. As to water rates, he talked about some unexpected (but necessary) investments in infrastructure and the cost of pressurized irrigation.

Here’s a link to the next segment.

Meet the American Fork City Council Candidates (Part 4)

10/28/2015 / David Rodeback

Link

2015_Wednesday_4

Questions in this Segment

Do you support mass transit generally? What can the City do to get bus service to and from our Frontrunner station? (Order: Frost – Shelton – Barnes – Simpson.)
Please comment on the level of fire protection in the city. Is it adequate? Is there more we should be doing? (Order: Simpson – Frost – Shelton – Barnes.)

Notes

Each candidate had one minute for each response. Note the response order above with each question, because candidates aren’t named before every response.

Highlights

Councilman Brad Frost after the October 21, 2015, meet-the-candidates event at American Fork High School.

Brad Frost said he supports mass transit but doesn’t use it. Frontrunner is full and thriving; the buses are less so. He wishes UTA managed their funds better. He is comfortable with the current state of fire protection, after we transitioned from volunteer to professional firefighters. We will need a satellite fire station in the northeast part of American Fork soon.

Rob Shelton is on a regional committee looking ahead to plan transit. By 2040 our population will outgrow our freeway system. He wishes UTA managed funds better. We bought a new fire engine in the last four years; the one it replaced was made in the 1970s. He had a fun anecdote about trying to cut an old fire hose with the jaws of life. Recently, to save money, the City contracted with Gold Cross Ambulance for some services.

Kevin Barnes wished UTA managed funds better. He likes the crowded trains but has never ridden Frontrunner or a UTA bus. It doesn’t meet his transit needs. He talked about the importance of a good fire department rating to keep insurance premiums low. Currently, the city has a good rating, which keeps homeowners insurance rates down.

Allen Simpson rides UTA regularly. It is “severely underutilitized” and manages funds badly. The buses he rides are almost empty. It’s really hard to have to accommodate bus schedules instead of having the freedom of a car. He had no answer for the fire protection question, but offered to find out.

Here’s a link to the next segment.