Howdy neighbor! Colten here.

Honestly, it's 3:00 a.m. as I finish writing this. I've got to figure out how to manage my time better… But I still enjoy doing this, so it's worth it to me. Here's hoping I'm still asleep as you open this at 7:00 a.m.

The Planning Commission met Tuesday, September 22 at City Hall. Here’s what happened.

A local family that owns 41 acres on the south side of 1000 North Street, right where the city ends at the Utah County line, is asking the city to change the zoning of their land to allow data centers to be built on it. If you have driven past the rows of construction trailers and the workers' parking lot out there, those sit on this property. The Commission reviewed the proposed zoning change and sent it to the City Council with its support.

The owners are also asking for a contract with the city that sets what can be built there, and the Commission sent that to the Council with its support too. Here are the key items in the contract:

Two residents spoke during the public hearing, and besides the owner, nobody spoke in favor. A resident of Spring Run said the confidentiality language felt "sneaky, if nothing else," and asked why, if water is no problem, "does it have to be confidential?" A resident of more than two decades said, "I feel like we shouldn't be for sale." Two comments also came in online, both opposed to the change.

Reagan Peck, one of the owners and a school counselor at Cedar Valley High School, said the family came forward because "we wanted to control how we went forward with the process," rather than being owners who "live in five states away." They still keep cows, horses and pigs out there.

Peck said the family owns its own water with its own well, and that their right is older than those of half the residents in the city. Commissioner Jason Allen said a 2026 state law requires data centers to publicly disclose how much water they use each year. That law applies to new data centers that use at least 75 acre-feet a year, about 24 million gallons, and open on or after July 1, 2026. The state posts each one's yearly water withdrawal online. Some other details the company reports can still be kept confidential.

The Commission's votes only move the zoning change and the contract forward to the Council's review. No date for that review was given at the meeting. If the Council approves both, city code lets a staff committee approve site plans and subdivision maps for qualifying projects here, with no public hearing. To learn more, you can read the full agenda and packet here. If you have something to say about it, I recommend that you contact the city. And once this item is added to the Council meeting's agenda, you can submit a public comment about it here.

Jason Hall, who coordinates the city's sports and recreation programs, laid out the challenges facing the city's rec programs. The city took youth soccer back from an outside group this fall, and more than 800 kids signed up. Here's what he said:

I want to introduce you to Kyle Ashby, a local product designer who wanted a simple way to track his three kids' allowances. So he designed Digital Piggy Bank.

I don't know about you, but every time I give my kids cash, whether that's from extra chores or the tooth fairy, they somehow manage to lose it. Even after it goes in the piggy bank, they get so excited about having money that they want to look at it and play with it. Next thing I know it's gone, and I've got a crying kid. Not to mention, that was my money to begin with. If you're sick and tired of this, Digital Piggy Bank is for you.

Instead of handing your kids actual cash, it becomes their piggy bank on your phone. Did your parents give your child money for their birthday? Put the cash somewhere safe and add that balance to their account. Did your child do an extra Saturday chore? Just increase their balance. When your child is ready to spend it, you can either hand them the cash or use your own debit card. Either way, you record it and your child watches their balance drop. Just like yours does every time you go to Costco! They'll learn exactly what it's like to become an adult in no time. 😉

Joking aside, it's $0.99 a month with a 14-day free trial, and one subscription covers every kid in the house. You can get Digital Piggy Bank on the App Store or Google Play, or see how it works at digitalpiggybank.com.

Free and reduced school meal benefits from last year expire at the end of September. You have to apply again every school year, and the benefit cannot be applied to meals your child has already eaten. Alpine School District posted the notice, and you can apply through LINQ Connect.

The free Shocktoberfest CPR and AED class is open for registration, and there are 25 seats. It runs Wednesday, October 14 from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers, taught by Public Safety Director David Ulibarri. The class itself costs nothing. A certification card is $20 if you want one. Sign up here.

A public observatory is coming to Walden Park, at 4322 N. Frontier Street. Meta is putting $450,000 toward it, which brings its total contribution to $700,000, with Utah Valley University, Utah County and the city also supporting it. UVU said it aims to break ground this winter or early next spring and to finish around September 2027. Instead of a dome, the building gets a flat top with a roll-off roof that slides away to open up the sky. KSL has more.

Direct Communications restored internet service Monday afternoon, September 21. The company traced the outage to a denial-of-service attack on the upstream providers it connects to.

The EM30 Challenge runs through November. Finish it, submit the form, and you get an EM30 sticker while supplies last, plus an entry in a drawing for 30th anniversary prizes in December.

Thursday, September 24

Friday, September 25

Saturday, September 26

Tuesday, September 29

At the Senior Center, 1632 E Heritage Dr. — Senior Social · Senior Exercise · Arts, Crafts & Lunch · Senior Crocheting · Senior Lunch · More

That’s it for today. Happy Thursday!

See you around,

— Colten

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