Bluff council holds public hearing on petition to vacate alley adjacent to 156 West Street

Bluff Town Council on Monday held a public hearing on a petition by Mike and Pamela Yaris to vacate the southern portion of an alley adjacent to 156 West Street in the Cottonwood Addition subdivision.

Town staff explained the procedure and said the town posts required materials online. "The town does have a formal process to vacate alleys and rights of way," Erin Nelson said during the hearing, noting the procedure and Resolution 59 are available on the town website. The council opened the meeting to public comment but received no in-person or online speakers about the petition during the session.

The petitioners told the council the request stemmed from prior county action and from a need to clarify property lines after previous partial vacation in early 2018. Pamela Yaris said the 2018 matter had left a portion of the alley record unclear and that the Yaris family was seeking to "make it right." She said an initial need to acquire the alley for a solar project was resolved after engineers re-engineered the system, and the petition now seeks to correct the recorded ownership split so the Yaris property reflects the expected half of the alley.

Staff reported the town received utility responses. Erin Nelson said Rocky Mountain Power confirmed lines exist but did not anticipate a conflict and that the petitioner had forwarded other utility confirmations, including a signed access agreement related to a pole and correspondence from Emery Telcom and the Bluff Water Board. Pamela Yaris described an unsigned transfer of an access agreement between adjacent owner Amar and the utility as an administrative step being coordinated between the parties; she told the council Amar had indicated willingness to sign the agreement.

Council members asked clarifying questions about the 2018 county action and the timing of prior vacations recorded for the adjacent owner. Staff said the county-recorded vacation for the adjacent owner was recorded in early 2018 and that the town had received the petition paperwork and utility responses, but that the item was not on the evening's agenda for a vote. Erin Nelson told the council a formal vote would be scheduled only after the town receives final confirmation from utilities and any additional required documentation.

Members of the public have 10 days following the hearing to submit written comments to the town by mail, drop-off, or the town website, staff said. The council took no formal action on the petition during the hearing and later adjourned the meeting by motion.

The hearing record and related documents, including the petition forms, utility responses, and Resolution 59, were described as available on the Town of Bluff website for review.