Crime in our community is a concern to the Mayor. He reported that even though it has been well under control due to the concerted efforts of Sheriff Brad Slater and the assigned deputy, Ray Day, our community has had increased crime calls. Having a Community Resource Officer assigned from the Sheriff's office is a great asset to the community. In 1990 the number of calls for our area was about 400. This past year saw 1,118 incident reports. The projection for 2002 is 1,400, a 20% increase. The mayor encouraged the Neighborhood Watch and McGruff programs for the community to help keep crime down. The annual audit for the past year, conducted by independent auditor, Steve Davis, indicated that the city is in a financially sound position, and that the finances are being well managed. Little did residents know of the traffic travails which lay ahead for them in 2002, when UDOT announced the commencement of work on the 12th Street and 1900 West intersection which they said "will cause at least some inconvenience to residents." This proved to be a huge understatement. In June, the City received a letter from UDOT informing us that construction "will cause heavy delays for motorists traveling through the area." Huge piles of earth lined the overpass along both 1900 West and along 12th Street at this intersection; one seemed to be driving in a narrow tunnel. The mounds were amassed to compact the materia! underlying where the overpass will be widened and heightened in all directions. A new bridge over the Weber River is being constructed. At the same time as this massive work was in progress, I-15 was also under construction from 31st Street to the exit at 450 North (Pioneer Road) in Marriott-Slaterville. With "great" planning, Wall Avenue in Ogden was under construction too, and torn up with constricted one-lane traffic both north and south. This resulted in three major roads essentially parallelling each other which normally provide travel through the area, being basically shut down. Huge lines formed as interstate and local traffic were forced into one lane. Residents of our city felt cut off from the world; (Can we even leave our boundaries?) At the same time, we were deluged with diverted traffic trying to find ways to avoid the stopped-still lines. Our rural streets buzzed with vehicles from motorcycles to semi-trucks often going far faster than the speed limits allowed. Travel in the area, by foot or in vehicles, has been challenging at the very least! Roads in the area, as well as residents, suffered from the increased traffic experienced while I-15 was under construction. Conditions improved with the announcement in August by UDOT that the I-15 project would be finished a month early. However, in October, roads involved with the overpass on 12th Street were closed for several days, which led to some innovative detours through our City. The closing of 700 South for some days made driving even more interesting. In July, Council President Dennis Ilium said it would be at least a year before the 12th Street overpass would be completed. As of the end of the year, the construction continues, with enough problems that many drivers try to avoid the challenging route. A contentious matter for the community arose in January. This involved the request by Pam C. and Kent Slater and Wesley Spencer to open the General Plan for amendment to change the zoning of approximately 75 acres along 1900 West to commercial. The request brought many citizens to the January 9, 2002, Planning Commission meeting. The representative of the proposed development did not appear at the meeting, and the Slaters' realtor had no specific plans to present to the Commission. The exchange became somewhat acrimonious as various people voiced opinions before the Planning Commission voted against opening the General Plan for amendment. Because there was no plan from the developer, the Commission members felt the request "gave no compelling reason to open the plan," which is the criteria for such action. In April, the conflict between Kent and Pam C. Slater's desire to sell this property, and the conservative majority's wish to limit growth in accordance with the General Plan, erupted with some bitterness over into an article in the Standard Examiner. The Slaters decried the January ruling of the Planning Commission which they considered unfair, as did Tony Versteeg one of the developers. The Slaters reported their property is now under contract to the New Day Christian Church who is seeking funding for a rehabilitation facility and church. One of the most thorny issues of 2002 came with an unfunded federal mandate from EPA concerning the Storm Water Regulations required by Phase II of the Federal Clean Water Act. This requires cities to formulate a Storm Water Plan, and implement an ordinance to carry out the plan. A map showing a storm water system to manage storm water, construction site runoff, and wetlands and drainage is required by EPA. Cities have the option to co-permit with the county, who would then cover some of the requirements. If a city does not co-permit with the county, they must indicate they have the resources, staff, equipment and support 4