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Hyrum bans dogs from parks, cemeteries
By Lara Gale
Despite the city leash law, owners are allowing dogs to make their mark in places where people walk and children play, and it has become a problem, said Gordon M. Olson, Hyrum mayor. "It's hard to get off your shoes and it smells bad," said Dixie L. Clawson, council member. "I don't think we need to put up with that in our parks and our cemeteries." The council voted unanimously Thursday to amend the leash law to restrict dogs from city parks and other public places such as hiking and walking trails. Olson recognized people's need for a place to play with their dogs. The council discussed possible places for exemption from the new ordinance, but concluded no public area is suitable. The city square is the site of family picnics and concerts where people lay blankets on the grass, East Park's grassy area is a baseball diamond, and the city cemetery is an inappropriate place for dogs to be, the council said. They also discussed supplying dog-litter bags and enforcing their use, but decided this would be too difficult and expensive. "No Dogs Allowed" signs will be posted in all affected areas. For the next few months violators will receive warnings but in time will be subject to a fine. In other business, the council voted to match a $9,000 state grant to supply the city with computerized documentation of information about the city cemetery. Garnett James, deputy recorder, spent many hours entering information, including the names of those buried, their kin, and the person who bought the plot, as well as tombstone locations, into a computer database. This information will be combined with photos of tombstones and entered into a computer program that will be available in the library and other locations throughout the city. A web site may eventually be available to access the information online. It is hoped this program will assist visitors on Memorial Day and people researching genealogy, as well as community members, said Olson. The council also voted to reduce water rates for master-metered housing
areas such as the mobile home park from 45 to 65 cents, to 40 to 60
cents, which will result in a $1,600 per year expenditure to the city.
Brent Johnson, city administrator, said this is only fair because the
city maintains only one meter for the whole area, for example one meter
for about 110 mobile homes in the mobile home park, and users shouldn't
be charged the same as if every home in the park had a meter. |
Archived Months:
September
1998 |
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