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Garfield County • After an emotional public hearing during a Jan. 27 special Garfield County Commission meeting, commissioners Leland Pollock, David Tebbs and Jerry Taylor voted 2-1 against renaming either the Burr Trail Scenic Backway or the John’s Valley Road after Donald Trump. Their first-order proposal, and the main subject of the hearing, was to consider renaming the Burr Trail ‘The Donald J. Trump Presidential Burr Trail Highway.’
The proposal, which was first shared via Facebook and the Garfield County Commission’s public notice page on Jan. 13, was quick to receive widespread attention, with overwhelming commentary against the proposal. The commissioners also received hundreds of phone calls and emails, also largely against the name change. “I think John Atlantic Burr might be the most Googled person in America. I’ve gotten calls from as far as Wisconsin, and people seem to know all about him,” said Commissioner Taylor.
In response to the outreach, Taylor organized an informal town hall meeting in Boulder on Jan. 21 to gather public opinion to inform his vote. The feedback he received was largely against the name change for reasons citing historic significance, family heritage, impacts on tourism and the Burr Trail’s status as a scenic backway, which precludes the addition of Trump’s moniker on the grounds that he has no affiliation with the road. Commissioner Tebbs also circulated a short survey asking for opinions which yielded similar results.
In anticipation of a large turnout, the Jan. 27 commission meeting was held at the Garfield County Fair Building instead of the courthouse in Panguitch. More than one hundred people turned out for the hearing, including twenty-three members of the Burr family who traveled from around Utah and Arizona to attend.
Commissioner Pollock opened the meeting by explaining his reasons for seeking to designate a “presidential road.”
“The county you’re in right now is 93% federal land. It is the size of the state of Connecticut,” Pollock said. “It’s a world of difference when you’ve got somebody like Trump that wants to give us back multiple use of our public lands, stop closing these roads, stop trying to kick people off that are trying to make an honest living, Put the loggers back to work, put the sawmills back to work, put the construction jobs back to work. So, when somebody wants to know why we want to recognize a president, that is exactly why.”
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