ATV Trail Discussions Continue at Sunnyside Council Meeting

By Sun Advocate

Sunnyside parents are frustrated with the lack of activity in the area for their children.
And they want the city council to know about it.
“Kids fall into drugs. That’s what I don’t want to see,” commented Tracy Stratton, a concerned Sunnyside parent. “We gotta have something for the kids to do.”
The Sunnyside city council is currently debating whether or not to allow an ATV trail to run through Sunnyside into East Carbon.
East Carbon has already approved the trail.
In conjunction with a recent Wellington ATV run, riders had a trial run of the Sunnyside/East Carbon trail.
According to the city council, the trial was fairly successful and they will be discuss how to proceed on the trail in the next council meeting.
Several elderly members of the community are contesting the approval of the trail, saying it kicks up too much dust into the air.
“I’m going to be living in a permanent dust bowl,” argued one Sunnyside citizen at Tuesday night’s council meeting.
Stratton and fellow Sunnyside parent Dora Westbrook asserted that funds to pave the trail are available through the county if the council will only apply for it.
However, on Wednesday morning county commissioner Mike Milovich said no such funds have been approved.
According to the city council, Sunnyside now has a city ordinance which does not allow ATVs within the city limits. In order to implement the new trail, the city ordinance will have to changed.
Stratton and Westbrook said they have attended both the Sunnyside and East Carbon city council meetings anytime the issue has been discussed.
Westbrook said that she attends the meetings because she is sure as soon as she misses one, the council will veto the addition of the trail.
According to Westbrook, local parents just want to be heard.
“We don’t want to take our Sunnyside dollars to Wellington,” she noted. “I plan to raise my children here.”
The ATV trail issue will be discussed at the next city council meeting on Oct. 21 at 6:30 p.m.
In other council business, Sunnyside is looking to apply for a $10,000 block grant for curb and gutter replacement. As part of the grant, the city would match the $10,000 with funds of their own.
A representative of Carbon County’s Geographical Information System (GIS) was also in attendance at the meeting, asking for a contact on the council to help GIS correctly map the city.
GIS is compiling a database which will get correct addresses and phone numbers for each house in the city combined with a photo of the home.
GIS representative Barry Horsley said the project will make emergency response in the area much more efficient.
Aside from houses, the project will also map street signs and hydrants in the city.
“We hope to have this up and running as soon as possible because it would benefit you as citizens,” Horsley told the council and Sunnyside citizens in attendance.
The council appointed a member to work with GIS on the project.
The ongoing debate to consolidate East Carbon with Sunnyside was also briefly discussed.
Council member Carol Johnson said the two cities are currently going over the pros and cons of consolidation.
The committee on consolidation meets every other Wednesday.