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Former commissioner and residents urge support for new animal care facility, cite population growth and site studies
Summary
Public commentators, including former Commissioner Randy Elliot, urged the commission to proceed with a planned animal care building, saying site geotechnical work shows it is not on a fault line and arguing the existing 1981 facility is outdated amid county growth; speakers also raised tax and land-use concerns.
Several residents used the March 31 public-comment period to press the commission on animal-care infrastructure and land-use decisions.
Randy Elliot, a former county commissioner, voiced strong support for the planned animal care facility and said the project has been studied for years. "We did a geo study to see if that is on the fault line which we found out it was not on the fault line," Elliot said, adding that the current 1981 building was designed as a kill facility and is no longer adequate for a county that has grown substantially.
Elliot told the board that per-acre prices in Davis County make finding an alternative site expensive and that the existing site offers good access to major roads: "You can jump on 89. You can get down to the freeway pretty quickly."
He also encouraged the county to accept community donations and fundraising help to finish the project, saying he and other citizens would be willing to contribute labor and funds for upgrades such as aluminum doors.
Other public comments raised related concerns: one speaker questioned siting of a proposed veterinary hospital near a fault line and warned that a seismic event could create taxpayer liabilities. Another commenter urged the commission to preserve Fruit Heights golf course, saying it produces more than $1 million in annual profit and should not be converted to high-density housing.
The commission did not take a public roll-call vote or otherwise modify the animal care project during the March 31 meeting. Those who support the facility asked the commission to continue moving the project forward and to consider community fundraising as a supplement to county funds.
