and he was in favor of leaving compensation "as is." The council separated the two issues, and voted to increase the mayor's compensation by a vote of 3-2, with Commissioners Smout, Slater and VanLeeuwen voting yes and Commissioners Hodson and Ilium voting no. This will change the mayor's pay from $3,600 to $5,000 per year, with an additional $250 added per year in office. Next considered was compensation for the planning commission. Councilman Smout made a motion to approve this ordinance, stating that "they (the planning commission) are very dedicated and would do this for free." Smout also said, "This will not be a burden on taxpayers because there is no property tax." Establishing a $20 payment per meeting for the planning commissioners was defeated 3-2 with Commissioners Hodson, Slater, and Ilium voting no, and VanLeeuwen and Smout voting yes. Church fundraiser a success By Joyce VanTassell Correspondent The First United Methodist Church's October fundraiser was a success with about 100 people attending. Over $10,000 was raised for the congregation's new building to be located in Marriott-Slaterville. A highlight of the evening was auctioneer Lance Quinn's spontaneous demonstration of the value of a Fender guitar. With a strum of the strings, Quinn broke into a delightful version of "The Auctioneer Song" to enthusiastic applause. Organizers plan to make the auction an annual event. Crime rates down in Marriott-Slaterville City By Joyce VanTassell Correspondent Lieutenant Terry L. Thompson of the Weber County Sheriffs Office reports that overall, crime is down in the city of Marriott- Another reason for the decrease is that extra traffic patrols were assigned to special events during the summer. One place statistics show an increase is due to increased enforcement, with more traffic citations being given at some of the 'trouble spots' and high accident intersections in the city. City Manager Bill Morris said, "Focused enforcement of Slaterville. There are several reasons for the improvement, among them being that at the city's encouragement, gas stations have reduced gas thefts by requiring customers to pay at the pump or pre-pay for their gas. problems and public education has also led to a decrease in crime. The city lets people know of crime trends in the newsletter so people can watch for these things happening. Enforcement of the zoning ordinance to eliminate criminal operations and activities helped prevent theft and burglaries in areas that had such problems last year."