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Motorized vehicles banned in Lambert Park - again March 16, 2018, 1:23 pmCity officials say that while motorized vehicle use in the park was regulated prior to and after the moratorium, park users were not adhering to those regulations. In a January 9 city council meeting, Mayor Troy Stout said that in past years, the city tried to impose speed limits on motorized vehicles but the compliance usually only lasted about three months. "I'd like the public to understand that a lot of what the city had to do was because those laws were not being respected," he said. "Everyone was affected by those who didn't follow the rules," he said. "Not just pedestrians and bicyclists who were endangered by people on motorized vehicles, but also the people on vehicles who complied with the regulations." For many people in the community, it has been a tradition to visit the park in early summer when the native poppies are in bloom. City Council member Kimberly Bryant said she is one of those people who are only able to visit the park in a vehicle to see the poppies. Stout said much of the problem comes from shooters who use the park to access a shooting range on Forest Service property adjacent to the park. If they could convince the Forest Service to shut the shooting range down, he would be comfortable with ending the moratorium, he said. "In winter the trails are wet, and vehicle travel makes them a mess," he said. "We could lift the moratorium in time for the poppies and it would give us time to lobby the Forest Service." The council briefly discussed increasing fines that are levied on violators but backed off that position after City Attorney David Church informed them that only a judge has the power to levy fines which are based on amounts outlined in the law for specific offenses. The city already has an ordinance, passed in 2004, that only allows motorized vehicles on designated park roads which are supposed to have signs indicating they are allowed. However, City Manager Shane Sorenson said most of those signs had been destroyed by vandals or bad weather. At the meeting, several neighbors complained about vehicles in the park. Lane Franks, who lives on Country Manor Lane, said there were "easily" 70 vehicles at the park on a Saturday. Fire was a danger as was speed, he said. Country Manor Lane resident Tara Franks said she is concerned about safety problems and the risk of fire from shooters who access the shooting range from Lambert Park "Someone is going to get killed up there," she said. Another concern addressed was parking at the nearby LDS church building. Stout told the council the church has asked the city to not to encourage park users to park in its lot. Jason Thelin (who was later appointed to the city council in the same meeting) who lives on Alpine Boulevard said there were times when he'd gone to use the park and the church parking lot was full of cars from high school kids. Lane Frank said it was not uncommon to see 20 or 30 cars in the church parking lot. Ed Bush told the council they needed to decide what they wanted the future of the park to be. The growth in the city would be reflected in the use of the park, he said. In the end, the council unanimously voted to extend the ban on motorized vehicles in the park until May 1. The motion indicated public hearings would be held in the interim. Stout said he would like the city to come up with a permanent plan for the park before that date. He said he'd like to have a public hearing on the issue at the first meeting city council meeting in February (this was not held), to post information about the issue it on the city website and Facebook page, and to send out a Parlant message and have information in local newspapers. The community news source for Eagle Mountain Utah, Saratoga Springs Utah, Lehi Utah, American Fork Utah, Highland Utah, Alpine Utah, and The Cedar Valley, including Cedar Fort Utah and Fairfield Utah. Copyright 2024 The Crossroads Journal LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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