Midland City held a public hearing on Nov. 6 to take comment on a proposed South Cache Valley Recreation Special Service District, a legal framework the city says would allow Nibley and neighboring municipalities to jointly plan and — if they choose — later ask voters to fund one or more regional recreation facilities.

City staff explained the process and timeline. Justin (city staff) said the August resolution that started the process initiated statutorily required public notice and an opportunity for protests; Eric, the city attorney, told the council: “The creation of the district does not grant the district any taxing authority. The district has to be created, and only after it is created can then the question be presented to the citizens of whether to grant the district taxing authority.”

Why it matters: Establishing the district would be a first step that allows municipal partners to formally join and pursue a coordinated plan; any taxation or borrowing to fund construction would require separate voter approval. Staff said other municipalities contacted so far include Providence, Millville, Hyrum and Wellsville, and that Wellsville and Millville had shown the most interest.

Public comment came from residents and parks committee members who support a regional approach, arguing it would avoid building a facility too small for the overall need. Marla Wolfman asked about deadlines for other municipalities to join; Eric said there is no strict statutory short deadline but suggested a practical outreach window of roughly six to eight months to decide partners before design and financial work would proceed. Caitlin, a member of the Parks & Rec committee, said a joint facility would ultimately “give us more opportunities and more to work with.”

Council next steps: Because the public has the statutorily required comment and protest period, staff will wait the required time for protests to be filed and will continue outreach to neighboring councils. If the threshold of protests is not reached, council may consider formal creation of the district at a later meeting; if the district is created, subsequent ballot questions would be required to grant taxing authority or to allow the district to borrow against the faith and credit of citizens.

(Reporting note: direct quotes above are from city staff and the city attorney at the Nov. 6 hearing.)