Bluff council approves cemetery transfer, adopts general plan and greenlights several planning and roads actions

Bluff — The Bluff Town Council on Dec. 18 approved several actions meant to tidy up property ownership, advance planning work and keep capital projects moving as the town transitions into a new council in January.

Council members voted unanimously to accept an agreement transferring ownership of the active burial section of the Bluff Cemetery from San Juan County into town control, a move that requires a boundary-line adjustment and an addendum clarifying operations. The council recorded that the town will assume the cemetery board’s real and personal assets and manage access via Class C road funds while the Hole in the Rock Foundation will retain responsibility for the parking area on land it owns. The chair said attorneys for the town and county and representatives of the foundation had reviewed the draft and that typographical parcel-number errors had been corrected before the vote.

Why it matters: The transfer consolidates local control over the active burial area and resolves an outstanding county-managed account and administrative matters related to cemetery governance. The town also announced an open call for applications for a cemetery board to be appointed by the incoming 2026 council; application materials are due by 5 p.m. on Jan. 13, 2026.

The council also adopted a revised general plan that staff said is complete except for appendix references and ADA formatting. The plan was presented as the product of several months of revisions and was approved as the town’s guiding document for the coming five years.

On federal grants, staff recommended and the council approved closing out an Environmental Protection Agency government-to-government grant while "reserving rights" to pursue legal remedies (the reservation option) should broader litigation over related Section 138 grants produce a change in outcomes. Staff said they had requested an extension to finalize the substantial closeout paperwork and would continue pursuing clarifying guidance before the final submission.

Contracts and grants - The council retroactively approved a six-month extension to State contract number 240632202 (Rural Communities Opportunity Grant through the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity) that had been signed Dec. 12 so project work could continue. - The town confirmed a $20,000 pass-through food donation from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints via ECHO Inc.; logistics (pallet deliveries and a staff wish list) are being coordinated for early January distribution.

Roads and public works - Public works staff reported near-completion of work on Calf Canyon and 2nd East and scheduled drainage and culvert work on 7th West. A one-day closure of 7th West was announced for Monday to finish the work. - The council accepted Copper Cliff 2 Roads as Class C roads in exchange for required signage (the town will provide signs and traffic control) and accepted a 10-foot alley at the end of West 8 North offered by Craig Simpson; both items passed unanimously. Staff will update the Class C roads map.

Building department and ordinances - The council approved two special-project allocations for building-permit technician Kristen Bushnell to address an urgent sanitary-septic minimum-lot-size issue and to perform a comprehensive ordinance review. The first project (20 hours, $750) will draft language to reconcile San Juan County and state septic rules with Bluff’s existing lot pattern so homeowners on small lots are not left functionally unable to expand or build. The second project (an additional 20 hours, $750) will compile suggested edits to planning and zoning ordinances to be forwarded to the planning and zoning board. - Council members emphasized that any final ordinance changes will follow the normal planning-and-zoning and county-health approval processes.

Personnel and emergency services - Council members voted to classify the town’s roads manager as an employee at a proposed rate of $60 per hour, capped at $12,000 per year and retroactive to Dec. 1. The council also approved a completion stipend for Elizabeth ("Bess") Bennett after she finished required advanced EMT testing.

Process notes and next steps - The required Community Development Block Grant public hearing was scheduled for Jan. 13, 2026 at 3:30 p.m. - Staff were directed to continue seeking grant extensions and to coordinate with nonprofits and architects on contract and construction sequencing for the town’s GOEO-funded project.

Representative quotations from the meeting include the chair’s summary of the cemetery transfer: "What this does is it transfers ownership of the section that we're burying people in," and staff on the grant closeout options: "I did yesterday send a request for an extension." The meeting adjourned after brief other-business items and reminders about continuing roadwork and upcoming application deadlines.