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October-November 2016 Vol.16 No.13
Eagle Mountain resident David Blair wins Paralympic gold medal, sets world record By Christy Jepson David Blair will never forget the past 30 days. To most people, it would be just a dream: winning a gold medal while breaking your own world record, having your city welcome you home, joining the other athletes from the U.S. Olympic Team in Washington, D.C., and meeting the president of the United States. But for Blair is wasn’t a dream - it was reality. Even though Blair was born with a severely deformed clubfoot, he never focused on his disability; instead, he focused on his ability to work hard and compete. On Sept. 16, Blair stepped onto the track and into the discus throwers’ circle at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. With his third and final throw, he broke an Olympic record - and his own world record - by throwing the discus 64.11 meters. The throw broke his own former world record by more than a meter. His effort earned him the gold medal in men’s discus and he continues to hold the world record in the event. Although Blair hadn’t slept the two pre-
vious nights leading up to his competition and was nervous just before entering the track to throw, when he got on the track and into the ring he felt calm. “I have a routine I do at every meet. It got me calmed and ready for competing. The lead-up was much more stressful than the actual competition,” Blair said. His wife Cinthia and his four daughters were back home in Eagle Mountain watching and cheering him on with friends and other family members. According to Blair, it was about two hours after he won the gold medal when he was finally able call them from Rio and talk about his win because of the medal ceremony and other Olympic procedures. “When I turned my phone back on, it sounded like I had just won a slot machine. It kept beeping and dinging as all the messages were coming in. My neighbors (back home) and my family all ran out into the streets when they found out at the same time that I had won and were all cheering and hugging each other. Needless to say, it was a memorable moment for all of us involved,” Blair said. See GOLD, page A3
Despite being born with a clubfoot, Eagle Mountain resident David Blair has excelled in throwing the discus, recently winning a gold medal and setting a world record at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Lehi voters to decide on $50 million Now illegal bond issue for parks and recreation to feed deer in Alpine
By Linda Petersen Lehi City leaders have come to the conclusion that the only way to fund some much-needed parks is to bond for them - and they’re hoping Lehi voters will agree with them. On Nov. 8 when they go to the polls, Lehi voters will decide whether they’ll support a $50 million general obligation bond issue to pay for additional parks and trails in the community. City leaders say there’s an immediate need for additional parks and trails to “preserve our quality of life, maintain our city’s small-town feel and support desired sports programming.” In the October city newsletter, Mayor Bert Wilson wrote, “As a city we recently completed a blind study completed by an outside agency to determine attitudes and opinions regarding recreation in Lehi. The survey found that Lehi residents would just as soon pay for a $50 million bond when compared to $30 million in order to preserve our quality of life and improve our parks and recreation facilities. The difference is just a few dollars a month. After prioritizing necessary projects, we determined that $50 million is what is needed in order to make the necessary improvements and get our parks up to date.” Projects that would be funded with the $50 million, which is scheduled to be paid back over 20 years, include two new parks, Rhodes-Mellor Park ($21 million) and Peck Park ($8 million); land purchases for future parks ($11 million); trail improvements ($3 million); and capital improvements at more
By Linda Petersen
Above is an artist’s rendering of the proposed Rhodes-Mellor Park, which would be built if Lehi voters agree to support a $50 million bond issue. than 26 city and neighborhood parks. (A complete list of the projects can be found at letsplaylehi.com.) Rhodes-Mellor Park would include five baseball fields, three soccer fields, multiple playgrounds, competitive soccer/multipurpose fields, restrooms and a “shade structure.” Amenities for Peck Park are currently being determined. The trails funding would be used to develop trails in the southwest Lehi and Traverse Mountain areas. With the funding, officials say all the proj-
ects could be completed in three years. However, opponents say that a bond issue is not the right way to pay for these improvements. “This is not a vote about whether Lehi should have more parks and trails. Few would disagree that Lehi can benefit from more such amenities. What this vote is about is whether yet another tax increase is the appropriate way to fund such projects,” resident Conner Boyack writes in the voter information pamSee BOND, page A3
The Alpine City Council has passed an ordinance prohibiting the feeding of deer and other wild animals. In response to resident complaints that the deer are destroying property and pose a safety hazard, city leaders organized a deer committee to look at the issue earlier this year. The deer committee did research and conducted a survey, presenting their findings to the City Council back in August. One of those findings indicated that feeding the deer was encouraging them to encroach on residential property. As a result, the Division of Wildlife Resources recommended the city pass an ordinance banning that activity. It’s a first step, but city leaders are not sure what to do next given that residents are divided about what to do about the deer. At a public hearing on the issue Sept. 27, several spoke passionately about their love for the deer. Some say the deer should be left alone, that they were here before development and that residents should just accept their presence as a consequence of rural living. But several residents who spoke at two public hearings and responded to the deer committee study said that deer behavior has changed in recent years, leading to problems unknown in the past. Additionally, climate changes have allowed the herds to reach unprecedented levels. See DEER, page A3