Davis Life
THURSDAY
A13
March 4, 2010
www.davisclipper.com
Sports Josh Turner coming to DAC
A25
Vikings fall to Skyline
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Gelwix primed to guide 2010 all-Davis Bee
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VOL. 119
ESTABLISHED 1891
NO. 4
BY SHALYN ROBERTS Clipper Staff Writer
BOUNTIFUL — One journey ends next Tuesday for Davis County spellers — and an even bigger one begins. For 60 elementary and junior high school students, months of effort in surviving classroom, school and county spelling contests will come to an end at the Davis County Clipper Spelling Bee, which begins at 7 p.m., March 9, at Woods Cross High School. For one survivor, it will mean a trip to the Scripps National Spelling Bee, May 31-June 5. That will mean a once-in-lifetime opportunity to see the sights at the nation’s capital, as well as the chance to compete on national television. “It’s the opportunity of a lifetime for one great speller,” said Clipper Executive Editor Rolf Koecher. “Our winner will head straight from Davis County to Washington, D.C., to compete with the best spellers in the land. Couple that with tours of the key sights in the nation’s capital, and it will be n See “GELWIX,” p. A4
Clipper photo
Larry Gelwix: Spelling bee host.
A big “No” to hunters
Centerville residents lambaste streetcars BY MELINDA WILLIAMS Clipper Staff Writer
CENTERVILLE — About 200 Centerville residents expressed outrage Tuesday night at a UTA proposed streetcar system. If built, the system proposed to run along Main Street here would wreck the city’s quality of life, cost too much and create a safety hazard, worried residents said. Robyn Mecham, a third-generation Centerville resident said she’s visited about 100 homes scattered throughout the city, and
Barbara Riddle, CEO of the Davis CVB, pleads with legislators and Davis Chamber Legislative Affairs Committee members on Capitol Hill this week to help stop proposed hunting on Antelope Island. Thinning herds isn’t needed, she said, and could harm tourism.
found only five residents who didn’t object to the plan. “The other 95 totally oppose it,” she said. Utah Transit Authority held an open house at Centerville Junior High School to explain the streetcar project and gather input and suggestions for a draft Environmental Study Report. The plan calls for the streetcar line to run from the intermodal hub in downtown Salt Lake City, along Beck Street to U.S. 89 to Bountiful’s Main Street, ending at Main and Center Streets in Centerville, with a bus connection taking commuters into Farm-
ington Station. UTA spokesperson Gerry Carpenter said they were pleased with the turnout. Noting the strong opposition to the plan, Carpenter said it’s not a done deal.“It’s never a done deal until the tracks are in the ground and the trains are running.” Centerville resident Scott Collins said the price tag of about $400 million is “nuts. I’d like UTA to tell us how much per person that works out to.” Bruce Smith presented a petition containing nearly 1,000 names to UTA, all in opposition to the plan, with more names to
come. He said residents are opposed to the plan for a variety of reasons, including the fact that Main Street was chosen as the street. “UTA is understandably in the business of building transit, but we are in the business of building community.” Bruce Pitt, a businessman with two properties on Main Street, said he’s presenting a separate petition to UTA on behalf of Main Street businesses. He said of 20 plus businesses on Main Street, 90 percent of n See “CENTERVILLE,” p. A4