Box Elder News Journal's Podcast

The Box Elder County Planning Commission voted Oct. 29 to recommend approval of a proposal to zone roughly 2.1 million acres of currently unzoned land, despite substantial opposition from property owners who spoke at the public hearing. Much of that opposition centered on potential losses in property value and the absence of a publicly released economic impact analysis. The recommendation now goes...

Brigham City’s proposed indoor gym would require an ongoing city subsidy, officials acknowledged at an Oct. 29 work session as the city council prepares to vote Nov. 5 on whether or not to allocate 0,000 for the facility’s design. Brigham City Recreation Director Chris Horsley estimated annual operating costs of about 6,000 for the proposed 26,500-square-foot, three-court gym, or 0,000 after accou...

A 22-year-old motorcyclist has died from injuries suffered in an Oct. 27 collision involving Box Elder County Sheriff Kevin Potter near the mouth of Ogden Canyon, with investigators still working to determine what happened. Katie Sue Ruth Huggins died Monday, Nov. 2, according to a statement released by her family. She had remained hospitalized in critical condition following the collision, which...

Natural gas-powered electricity generation proposed for the Stratos data center in Box Elder County could contribute to premature deaths and millions of dollars in annual health damages, according to a study commissioned by an environmental advocacy group. The report, produced by EmPower Analytics Group on behalf of Natural Resources Defense Council and released last month, estimates that an initi...

The 18th annual Beehive Mile race for local fourth and fifth graders was held Thursday, Oct. 15. Each of the 174 students who completed the race received a ribbon for their efforts and win-ners received a medal. Winners of the race were: (front row) Noah Cordner, Jonas Thrapp, Hudson Eby, Amelia Jacoway, Easton Yates, Scott Farley, (second row) Peter Knight, Zion Stucki, Angela Haro, Sawyer Smoot,...

A 25-year-old Garland man facing kidnapping and sexual assault charges was previously convicted of severely abusing his infant daughter and was the subject of probation violation orders signed five days before the alleged assault. Nathen Aaron Lefevre was charged Oct. 21 in First District Court in Brigham City with aggravated kidnapping and object rape, both first-degree felonies, forcible sexual...

A 39-year-old Provo man faces 13 criminal charges following a Perry Police Department undercover investigation in which authorities allege he solicited sexually explicit photographs from someone he believed was a teenage girl. Russell Cory Nielsen faces six second-degree felony counts of enticing a minor, five class A misdemeanor counts of enticing a minor, one class B misdemeanor count of enticin...

In a finish for the ages, Woods Cross upset the Box Elder High School football team in the first round of the state playoffs last Friday, 29-26. Despite having run the table against competition from Utah this season, the Bees struggled to find an offensive rhythm against the stifling Wildcats’ defense. Woods Cross effectively stuffed the Bees’ typically potent rushing attack and also put a lot of...

The Box Elder High School girls volleyball season ended at the 5A state tournament last week, but head coach Kristine Harding doesn’t measure this year’s team by the final scoreboard. The Bees finished 16-14 overall and 7-5 in Region 5, good for third place. They ranked 16th in the 5A RPI and reached the state tournament as the last team to qualify. They always knew they’d have their work cut out...

The Brigham City Council wants more information about the operating costs of a proposed million to million indoor recreation facility before its next work session on Oct. 29, following an Oct. 8 meeting that drew both supporters and opponents. The council has yet to decide whether to spend 0,000 on architectural and engineering plans for the proposed facility, which would be built adjacent to the...

Two residents challenged Box Elder County’s constitutional authority to regulate private property through zoning during the Oct. 7 County Commission meeting, despite nearly a century of U.S. Supreme Court precedent establishing that such regulations can be constitutional. Deanna Hardy, claiming to speak on behalf of the Box Elder Committee of Liberty, and Janene Beal made their arguments during pu...

Three years after Brigham City discontinued its senior transportation services on Sept. 2, 2023, and directed seniors instead to UTA Paratransit and modified routes, senior citizens and healthcare workers say the change has left many homebound and has stretched safety net funding thin. For years prior, the Brigham City Senior Center had operated a dedicated, door-to-door transportation system usin...

A former Garland Elementary School teacher arrested four years ago on allegations of sexually abusing students, but who was never prosecuted, now faces eight first-degree felony charges, including rape of a child, in two criminal cases filed Oct. 6 in Box Elder County. Patrick Alan Green, 63, of Nibley, Cache County, is charged with rape of a child, sodomy upon a child, two counts of object rape o...

The Perry City Council tabled a proposed animal shelter agreement at its Oct. 8 meeting as the cost of housing unclaimed dogs continues to strain the city’s budget. The agreement would increase the daily boarding rate at Ellie’s Pet Hotel in Willard from to per dog, a 27.3% increase. Perry City Administrator Bob Barnhill said Ellie’s requested the increase because the existing rate no longer cover...

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H.J.R. 10 Proposal to Amend Utah Constitution - Publication Amendments2025 General SessionLONG TITLEGeneral Description:This joint resolution of the Legislature proposes to amend the Utah Constitutionregarding the publication of a proposed constitutional amendment. Highlighted Provisions:This resolution proposes to amend the Utah Constitution to:• require a proposed constitutional amendment to be...

The Willard City Council is considering applying for a federal grant to help pay for a new fire station building, but faces a tight deadline to prepare the plans and cost estimates needed for the application. At the Oct. 8 meeting, Willard City Planner Madison Brown outlined the requirements for a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), which could help finance a proposed 50 foot by 100 foot ste...

Opposition to Brigham City’s proposed indoor gym facility continued at the Oct. 1 meeting as residents raised new questions about operating costs, existing gym space and maintaining current facilities, and the council scheduled the first of at least two public work sessions for Oct. 8. The council agreed by consensus to hold the work session at 6 p.m. in the council chambers. A second session requ...

With thousands of new homes in various stages of development, Brigham City’s westward growth is now driving plans for a future elementary school. The Brigham City Council voted 3-0 at the Oct. 1 meeting to sell 13.53 acres on the city’s west side to the Box Elder School District for [post_excerpt].5 million, and authorizing Mayor DJ Bott to execute the real estate purchase agreement and related cl...

The fight over Box Elder County’s proposed Stratos data center is playing out both in court and in the community, with a judge scheduling December arguments in the referendum lawsuit as a national organization campaigning for greater local control over data center development brought its cross-country tour to Brigham City. Oral arguments are scheduled Dec. 22 before 1st District Court Judge Spence...

The Brigham City Council approved a zoning rewrite Oct. 1 that removes numerous uses previously permitted or conditionally allowed in at least one of the city’s multiple-use, agricultural or rural residential zones and makes several other uses more restrictive. The changes are part of an ongoing rewrite of Chapter 156 of the city code. Brigham City Community and Economic Development Director Tom K...

Last year, the Box Elder High School girls soccer team ended a more than three-decade drought with the program’s first region title in a three-way tie with Clearfield and West Field. The Bees repeated the feat again this year, securing at least a share of the region championship with a win over Fremont last Tuesday, Sept. 29, and an opportunity to claim the title outright with a win over West Fiel...

With just under two minutes to play in the game, it looked like the Box Elder High School football team would need a miracle to pull off a win as the Bees trailed Fremont, 16-7. But two minutes proved just enough time for the Bees to create a wild ending and score 10 points to keep their undefeated region record intact. As has been the case all season long, the Bees didn’t do a ton of damage throu...

The Box Elder High School girls’ volleyball team learned a tough lesson last week: Every opponent must be taken seriously in region play, especially in a region as tough as Region 5 has historically been. It was Clearfield that brought that lesson home Tuesday, Sept. 29, as the Falcons scrapped their way to a straight set win in Brigham City to notch their first real upset of the season. The Bees...

A new Utah State University statewide survey examines Utah residents’ views on data centers. The results indicate that 75.8% of respondents oppose or strongly oppose building new or additional data centers in Utah. The survey offers insights about what drives this opposition. The findings appear in the first executive summary from a broader research project led by Gina Gilson, Stacia Ryder, and Je...