Barring a possible court ruling to the contrary, Utah County voters will go to the polls Tuesday to authorize or reject issuance of $4 million in bonds for construction of a new judicial-security building.
Final word apparently won’t be known until after a Monday hearing in Fourth District Court on a suit filed by a group of citizens seeking to delay the vote at least so days.
Utah County officials plan the new structure just east of the existing County Building – modern of design, yet harmonizing with the neo-classic architecture of the latter. A corridor will connect the two buildings.
The new structure would house the sheriff’s department, county clerk, county attorney, courtrooms, judges’ offices, etc., with the third floor reserved for county jail plus rehabilitation and other related facilities.
The bond also would provide for updating facilities in the existing County Building. whose space would be reallocated. grouping all county offices which today overflow into five or so other buildings. County officials call the expansion a “must” to relieve over-crowdedness.
The opposition citizens group, organized less than two weeks ago in an 11th hour bid to block the project as proposed, pins its court case primarily on the allegation that the county acted illegally in hiring a public relations firm to promote “only the affirmative side” of the case, and on a claim that the notice of election was defective.
Opposers say they favor new jail facilities but feel these should be located elsewhere, separate from the county offices; they also object to [missing word] the proposed bond and dispute county claims that the new facility would deter crime.
The Herald has endeavored to keep the public informed on all developments, pro and con, in connection with the proposed project. As for our own vote, we believe the new building is needed, and that the need will get more acute with the years.
Utah County, second largest in the state, is destined for continued growth, requiring more agencies, space, and facilities. In our opinion, to merely reshuffle existing space would be a stop-cap measure at best, only delaying the inevitable – a building program.
The 1.9 mills allocated three years ago for building purposes will not be increased, county commissioners have pledged. This has been used to date to purchase land east of First East for parking, and for architects fees. It is calculated to cover the annual bond payments over the 20-year period.
Utah County currently is debt-free, and its total tax levy of 11 mills is among the lowest in the state, thanks to good planning and economy-minded county officials over the years. Only five of Utah’s 29 counties have a lower levy – Box Elder, Millard, Sevier, Summit and Uintah. Salt Lake’s levy is 21.82 mills; Weber’s, 19.65. Neighboring Wasatch County’s levy is 18.75, Juab’s 13 mills.
Perhaps we’ll never have a more favorable opportunity to build, tax levy-wise. We oppose debt without good and justifiable reason, but with this project, bonding appears the most logical course. Waiting to save the money would be a doubtful alternative in view of spiraling building costs and the immediate need for the added space.
To be sure there are some qualms. For example, we feel that the emphasis on crime control in the campaign, while certainly a worthy objective, has been given a disproportionate amount of emphasis – overshadowing the very vital need of more space for county operations. And the ”$2.39” slogan, well-meaning as it was, has resulted in misconceptions, including an incorrect assumption by some that the individual citizen’s share of the cost would be an added tax, over and above the 1.9 mills already on the books.
However, these do not obscure the basic need for the new building. We believe it would be the farsighted thing and in the public interest for the electorate to authorize the bond. Refinements of the building plans and utilization of the space can still be discussed.
We have been assured that the commissioners would still welcome any constructive suggestions that are practicable at this point, and think it would be a healthy thing for the commission to hold one or more meetings specifically for this purpose at an early date.
If word comes that the election is still on, then be sure to vote Tuesday. The polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. A heavy vote will insure that the outcome will be the true will of the people.