As regular Weber County Forum readers are well aware, over the course of the period since Rep. Froerer's HB 218 stalled in the Senate Government operations Committee by a 3-3 vote, the Powder Mount Developer, the Weber County Commission and representatives of litigants in the Powder Mountain citizens' lawsuit have been engaged in intense negotiations, in a last minute effort to arrive at an agreement which would settle issues in contention, take the Powder Mountain town incorporation proceeding off the table and render Rep. Froerer's remedial voter rights legislation moot. Unfortunately, it's now evident that these negotiations have broken down, according to information which we received via email yesterday from Rep. Froerer:
I just got off the phone with Comm. Dearden and he communicated too me that they are not going to sign any deal at this late hour.... Let me make myself clear there will be no deal before the end of the session. If this is something the citizens in Ogden Valley want done now is the time to pull out the stops and put the energy into passing my bill...Within yesterday's email, Rep. Froerer also informed us that he has scheduled a public information session at the State Capitol for Thursday, the details of which Rep. Froerer provided to us in a telephone conversation late yesterday evening:
What: Public information briefing and question & answer session on the subject of HB 218 and related matters.Rep. Froerer further informs us that both he and Commissioner Dearden will be present to provide updates on Rep. Froerer's bill and the status of negotiations between the various adverse parties, as well as information about how Ogden Valley citizens (and indeed Utah citizens in general) can now (and once again) assist Rep. Froerer in his effort to push his bill toward passage in the Senate.
Where: Senate (East) Building, Utah State Capitol, Room #215
When: Thursday, March 4, 2010, 12:00 p.m. (noon)
Formal Agenda: AGENDA - HB 218 – Disincorporation of Powder Mt. Town
We'd also like to salute Rep. Froerer and Comm. Dearden for their continuing efforts to permanently resolve this matter one way or another, and for scheduling a public meeting which will add much-needed transparency to the process and hopefully alleviate the most recent lumpencitizen heartburn.
We likewise urge citizens who are interested in this matter to put Thursday's meeting on their calenders and make a special effort to attend this important event. In a very real sense, the ball is now decidedly "in the citizens' court."
We'll have our own WCF reporter in attendance, of course, and will accordingly report back upon the conclusion of the meeting with details and proposed citizen-activist strategies.
That's it for the moment, Gentle Readers.
Who would like to offer their comment?
Update 3/2/10 3:01 pm.: We've now updated this article with the specific assigned committee room number, and added a link to the Formal Meeting Agenda above.
