Monday September 20 2021 Update

 Happy Monday, everyone.  I hope you had a nice weekend.  We were busy this weekend.  We began another cabinet stripping and painting project this weekend.  After doing our kitchen and our laundry room last year, we decided to try to tackle our bathrooms.  So, once again, the garage has been converted to a sanding and painting shop.  We are about halfway through the sanding and painting work, and will hopefully finish in the next week or so.  It will be good to get all of these cabinets done, repairing years of raising kids and just wearing out the finish on these 25 year old bathroom cabinets.

We also took a little time-out Friday morning for an early hike up in Hobble Creek canyon.  It was a cool and refreshing 4 mile hike away from the stresses of the city and reconnecting with nature.  We really do live in an amazing place!

I know that not all of our employees are BYU football fans, but I think the remarkable 3-0 start (all against Pac-12 teams) is good news.  It has been fun to have the last two games at Lavell Edwards Stadium.  And despite the traffic challenges and health concerns, it has been fun to have a full house for the games.  There were some great moments during Saturday's game against Arizona State, but this one was one of the most exciting - from despair at what was likely a "pick-6" play to a big stop preventing a touchdown.

UPCOMING CITY EVENTS

Dazzle Dogzz! I September 20 6:00pm

Sabrina Allen Excellence Concert I September 20 7:30pm

Learn It: Cooking with Fall Spices I September 21 7:00pm

Employee Appreciation BBQ I September 22 11:30 am

Fall Food Fest I September 24 5:00pm

Time Management and Organization for Teens I September 30 7:00 pm

The Alibis I September 30 - October 23

Provo City Library Writing Group I October 2 1:00 pm

Acting Up: Beauty and the Beast I October 4 7:00 pm

Learn It: Inking for Inktober I October 5 2021 7:00 pm

Recipe Swap I October 6 7:00 pm

TRIBUTE presented by Utah Metropolitan Ballet: Art and Heart I October 8 - 9

Conversaciones/Conversations I October 12 7:00 pm

Superhero Academy I October 16 11:00 am

Catapult I October 26 7:30pm

Ammon and Liahona Olayan I October 27 7:30pm
Blue Skies Concert Series I Wednesdays through September 22

NEWS YOU CAN USE

• Intermountain Healthcare is planning to merge with Colorado-based hospital system, Catholic-affiliated SCL Health.
• Do you remember the scientists who wanted to resurrect the wooly mammoth? They just got $15 million to make it happen. Anyone else getting Jurassic Park flashbacks?
• The Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity’s Utah Broadband Center announced applications for its Broadband Access Grant are open from Sept. 20 to Nov. 1, 2021. The $10 million Broadband Access Grant program offsets capital expenses in deploying high-speed broadband end connections to households and businesses in unserved rural and underserved economically distressed areas statewide. 
• Data compiled by the Utah Department of Natural Resources shows Utahns, especially in certain areas, are listening to pleas by state leaders to save water.

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HOT-BUTTON ITEMS IN PROVO

So, our school district board of education has had some very difficult decisions to make in the last few years. Beyond the pandemic which every school district has had to address, the Provo Board of Education has been confronted with some major capital expenditures including the need to rebuild portions of Timpview High that have been failing.  A bond election a few years ago including funding to rebuild Provo High School and replace three elementary schools.  A bond issue two years ago to replace Dixon Middle School on a new site, to replace Wasatch Elementary and to rebuild Timpview failed at the ballot box, causing the board to consider other strategies.  

The decision about Dixon Middle School has been particularly difficult for the board.  A strong contingency of voters have wanted to rebuild Dixon on site in an effort to retain an important asset in the central part of Provo which has been a fixture of the neighborhood for 80 years.  Others have believed that the site is now too small for a middle school and have encouraged the district to build a new middle school on property the district owns near Footprinters Park where much of the growth in Provo is occurring.  This is the classic case of having very good arguments for both sites.  Last week, the board of education voted 4-3 to build the new school near Footprinters, and adopted a resolution setting up the funding mechanism.  The voters who favored building the new school where the existing school is are planning to gather signatures to put the decision on the ballot in November of 2022.  

These are tough issues for a community like Provo (and likely any community) where there are good options on the table to address critical needs.  We can all agree, I think, that student safety and quality educational offerings are super important.  There are multiple ways to achieve those goals, and I know our school board members and they are very conscientious about important decisions like these.  It has been a difficult and heart-wrenching process for all concerned.  And given the effort at a referendum, we may not know the final outcome for the better part of a year.

FUN STUFF

Time for another Tonight Show hashtags.  I know I had my share of weird roommates, including one I had to visit at the county lockup - it's a long story.  

Thanks once again for all you do!  We appreciate your collective effort at making Provo such a great place to live and work.  

Wayne