I am writing regarding your front page article “Power company won’t budge on east bench route,” Sept. 29. First and foremost, thank you for bringing the issue to the public attention. About 4,600 residents signed a petition opposing the proposed power route. The county commissioners unanimously voted to oppose the proposed route. The Tooele City mayor and Grantsville City mayor signed onto a letter and alternate route proposal. In short, every government entity we have locally opposes the proposed power line. The Utah Public Utility Commission is taking comments on the issue currently. The BLM has yet to rule but have stated they like the alternate routes proposed by local entities. But the article gave me the feeling that the power route is a done deal. I would like to have seen a little more support of the local government entities. I personally sat through many hours of meetings where the cities and county governments worked together to determine feasible alternatives. The paper seemed to give the power company decision more weight than it gave our local governments’ decision. I believe that if the city and county governments stand firm and do not issue building or conditional use permits, the power company may be stopped. I would sure like to see a united effort to stand against a business throwing money around and ruining our environment. I hope the local paper can find ways to support the locals and oppose the money.

Boyd Spiker

Tooele