Genola council rejects $45,000 truck study after 3-2 vote

The Genola Town Council debated whether to move ahead with a truck-route ordinance and an engineering study on May 20, ultimately voting 3-2 against funding the proposed $45,000 Horrocks engineering study needed to support restrictions.

Mayor Neil Brown summarized legal advice from the Town’s insurance-affiliated counsel, noting that a truck restriction is legally possible but requires a nondiscriminatory ordinance, an engineering and safety study, clear signage, proper notification and active enforcement. According to the council summary of counsel’s findings, the town could still face litigation; council materials reported defense costs could start near $200,000, court costs could exceed $300,000, and counsel estimated about a 30% chance the town would lose if it “did everything right.” The summary also noted that the Utah Local Governments Trust likely would not cover defense costs arising from the town’s actions.

Councilman Grant Lundberg moved to fund the $45,000 engineering and safety study with Horrocks Engineering so the town would have the information needed to draft a defensible truck-route ordinance; Councilman Curtis Thomas seconded that approach in debate but the funding motion failed on a 2-3 tally (Lundberg and Thomas yes; Mayor Brown, Brenan Jackson and Chad Coburn no). Earlier in the meeting, Councilman Thomas had attempted to move immediately to adopt a draft truck-route ordinance he brought to the meeting; that motion received no second and therefore died.

Several residents who spoke during public forum urged council action. Carolyn Greenwood delivered an open letter she said had 182 resident signatures supporting a truck-route ordinance and argued the town’s roads are not built for large through trucks. Nancy Baird, who identified herself as a former deputy clerk and planning commission member, said the truck route reflected the town’s general plan vision and that residents were "not anti-truck" but wanted the plan followed. Corrine Aagard cautioned the council about risking the rights of property owners and warned against simply shifting truck traffic to other streets.

Council debate centered on trade-offs between immediate action and following a cautious, litigation-aware process. Councilman Thomas argued the council "had a right to set this truck route," saying he wanted to avoid the cost and delay of testing. Other members—citing legal uncertainty, the town’s procurement and grant requirements, and the risk of costly litigation—favored a study and additional legal work before adopting restrictions.

After the failed vote, Mayor Brown offered to solicit multiple bids for an engineering study (Genola policy requires multiple bids) and to ensure any study would be sufficient to support potential grant applications and ordinance drafting; the council agreed to review bids at the next meeting.

The council did not adopt a truck route on May 20 and did not commit to a specific vendor; the matter will return to a future meeting after the mayor gathers bids.