Water Documenters: Read meeting notes from the Utah Lake Authority
The April 3 meeting of the Utah Lake Authority was the first meeting with the new Executive Director Luke Peterson at the helm. The Utah Lake Authority (ULA) Board meeting began at 9:11 a.m. Despite some technical issues, the next meeting will be held at the airport. The meeting was largely attended by representatives from the Department of Environmental Quality, Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands, and the Utah State House of Representatives. Chair Michelle Kaufusi introduced the board members and LaNae Millet offered an inspirational thought. The ULA's primary goal is to support the dignity of the lake and preserve it for the future. Public comments can be submitted no later than seven days before the meeting to [email protected] and will be shared with the board. The next big event is a Paddle with Care event on May 18th, with 1,400 students expected to join.
Published : 4 weeks ago by in Environment
• None Jamie Barnes (Department of Environmental Quality, Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands)
• None Lisa Shepherd (was standing in for Tom Sakievich, but he showed up in person a few minutes late)
• None Brady Brammer also joined about 12 minutes late (Utah State House of Representatives)
They actually started the meeting at 9:11 a.m. There were some technical difficulties with getting zoom audio to be projected into the room.
The next meeting will be hosted at the airport, hopefully there will be fewer technical problems next time.
Chair Michelle Kaufusi invited everybody to briefly introduce themselves, then LaNae Millet offered an inspirational thought
• None They actually started the meeting at 9:11 am. There were some technical difficulties with getting zoom audio to be projected into the room.tial to help and support the lake and create solutions.
• None The ULA is there to support the dignity of the lake and preserve it for the future
No reports, disclosures, or recusals to be made at this time
“Public Comments” is defined as time set aside for citizens to express their views. Each speaker is limited to two minutes. Because of the need for proper public notice, immediate action cannot be taken in the ULA Board meeting. If action is necessary, the item will be listed on a future agenda; however, the Board may elect to discuss it only if the item is an immediate matter of concern. If a person is unable to attend the meeting, public comments can be submitted no later than seven days before the meeting to [email protected] and the comments will be shared with the board.
• None He expressed excitement for the new group and said that he has hosted several of the ULA members in his home to get to know them already.
• None He referenced the Walkara Way project and said that he is excited for new progress to happen with the new ULA board.
• None Excited to work together to keep the grazing program growing on his property that the ULA has previously been involved with.
• None Holdaway invited everyone on the board to come and meet with him if they haven’t already.
• None Kaufusi expressed support. She has been working with Holdaway for the past five or six years on this project.
Sam Braegger mentioned that since the online public members can’t talk right now, they can email any public comments to him at [email protected] and he will share those with the board.
Marty Larson motioned to approve both items, Tom Sakievich seconded. No discussion on the matter. All in favor of approving the minutes and budget reports.
Addy Valdez was at another meeting but came later on in the meeting. Notes from her are at the end of the notes.
Anna Hall, who started about 2 months ago as the outreach coordinator gave a brief report:
• None Her main responsibility is social media, and she is working on creating consistent content and developing a specific “voice” in the content she creates.
• None The ULA is having four days of field trips over the next few months and are expecting 1,400 students from all around Utah County to join over those four days.
• None Hall has also been working on new flyers and stickers to promote engagement with the lake.
The ULA also recently hired Heather McEwan?(not sure on spelling and she isn’t on their website yet) as the events manager
• None She is originally from St. George and expressed excitement to work with the board
• None The ULA’s next big event is a Paddle with Care event on May 18th
• None Another event is the Utah Lake Festival on June 8 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
She is also working on developing a sponsorship program for the ULA. This will create private and public level opportunities to donate to the ULA.
• None Peterson has spent a lot of time over the past several months meeting with people and just listening to their perspectives.
• None Peterson then presented his proposal for the 2025 ULA goals.
• None Braegger expressed appreciation to the board members that commented on the bylaws.
• None Two major changes to the bylaws
6.2 Updates to Existing Policies and New Policies
• None The ULA made a change to the procurement section. Braegger mentioned that it is about 80% different than before.
• None The first portion of the handbook is based on a standard public employee handbook that other agencies in the state already use.
• None The addendums at the back of the handbook include the ULA’s specific needs for employees.
• None There is a plan to have a regular review of the handbook, bylaws and policies and procedures with the board.
• None Airtable is an online interface to keep track of projects, documents and other items for the ULA.
• None Presentation from Braegger on proposed committees and workgroups.
• None Peterson asked for a review of the budget that he and the staff created.
• None No questions about the budget, Kaufusi mentioned that she went through the budget with Peterson yesterday and feels good about everything.
• None Peterson mentioned that this is just the tentative budget and the official budget will be approved in the future.
8.3 Approve Updates to Existing Policies and New Policies
Larson asked about modifications that were brought up earlier in the meeting and if they needed to also be approved by the board. They did need to be approved so Braegger stated them again for everyone.
Carn motioned to approve all times, including the modifications. Larson seconded. The motion was approved unanimously.
• None The ULA is hosting planting parties throughout the next several months. These are community engagement activities where community members can come and help plant native plants around Utah Lake. They currently have four scheduled with three more in the works.
• None The ULA reapplied for the Utah Pollinator Habitat Program Grants. They received the grant last year and hope to renew it this year.
• None They also partnered with Provo delta waterfowl group to put in a bunch of new duck nesting platforms along the Provo River.
• None Lundberg asked about a poster for the carp fishing tournament, Valdez will get that out soon to the board.
The next ULA Board meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, May 15th, 2024, at 9 a.m. and will be held at the Provo Airport.
Motion to dismiss by Larson, Lundberg seconded, all approved. The meeting ended at 11 a.m.
• None Executive Director Luke Peterson’s big focus for the ULA is to keep everything transparent and to engage both the board and the public in decision making.
• None The ULA is hosting several public events over the next few months such as a carp bowfishing tournament, planting parties, and a Utah Lake Festival.
• None There are a lot of new policies in place to help ULA staff, but also to ensure accountability and transparency for actions taken by the executive director and other staff.
• None Almost everything discussed was focused on administrative topics, will the ULA do more to specifically manage the lake in the future?
• None Additionally, will the ULA use the management plan that was discussed in the previous board meeting?
• None When will the bylaws and policies and procedures be available for the public to review?
Water Documenters is a collaboration between The Salt Lake Tribune and City Bureau and funded through grants from the Great Salt Lake Collaborative and the Rita Allen Foundation. College student journalists from all over Utah are hired to attend and take notes at public water meetings in Utah. These notes are then published for anyone to read or use. The project is aimed at providing better public access to meetings where major decisions are made about a limited Utah resource. For more meeting notes, click here. For more information, click here.