KZMU News

Dear listener, we are experimenting with Mondays! Today we revisit an audio portrait of Annie Thomas, the founder and executive director of Our Village Community Center. The nonprofit stewards an orchard that once belonged to the late Ray Alger. This audio portrait first aired in May 2022. Thanks for listening!

// Original Broadcast:

https://www.kzmu.org/friday-may-6-2022/

KZMU is saying goodbye to an unforgettable staff member…Serah Mead. She leaves her post as leader of our small but mighty station to work for the National Federation of Community Broadcasters, where she’ll support community radio stations across the country. Today on the news, we hear from Serah about her life changing journey at KZMU. “Part of what makes KZMU so special is the people,” says Serah. “…all of the people involved have helped put a little extra brick on the pile to bring me to where I am.”

// Plus, the Weekly News Reel! Doug McMurdo of The Times-Independent discusses the ongoing mystery of how much water is in Moab’s aquifers. He also tells us how the city plans to spend its Recreation, Arts & Parks tax. And, we discuss the Moab Police Chief’s response to a recent stabbing in town. Alison Harford of the Moab Sun News also talks to us about Moab’s water supply and explains one city council member’s frustration with the planning committee. She also tells us about the new public art installations around town and an incoming visit by former NASCAR driver, Kyle Petty, and his entourage of motorcyclists, who will be rolling through Moab on Thursday.

Show Notes:

Photo: Serah Mead, celebrating with staff during her last week as general manager/executive director of KZMU. Serah has spent nearly a decade at the station, from volunteer DJ to music director and then leader of the station.

// Moab Sun News: Serah Mead leaves KZMU

https://moabsunnews.com/2023/04/13/serah-mead-leaves-kzmu/

// The Times-Independent: Rakos takes the Reins at KZMU

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/rakos-takes-the-reins-at-kzmu-radio/

// The Times-Independent: Aquifer uncertainties vex Moab City Council

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/aquifer-uncertainties-vex-moab-city-council/

// The Times-Independent: City approves $93k in RAP tax grants

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/city-approves-93k-in-rap-tax-grants/

// The Times-Independent: Moab woman stabbed in parkway attack

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/moab-woman-stabbed-in-parkway-attack/

// Moab Sun News: A snapshot of Moab’s water issue

https://moabsunnews.com/2023/04/27/a-snapshot-of-moabs-water-issues/

// Moab Sun News: Local art by local artists

https://moabsunnews.com/2023/04/27/local-art-by-local-artists/

// Moab Sun News: NASCAR icons head to Moab

https://moabsunnews.com/2023/04/27/nascar-icons-head-to-moab/

The Moab Museum wants to help you record oral histories from the community. The museum loans equipment for free and periodically hosts workshops to teach people how to collect the best stories. Plus we hear from our partners about preparations for the spring runoff at Lake Mead, a governmental program to pay water users to scale back, and a trip to The Butterfly Pavilion in Colorado.

Photo: A Grand Heritage: Stories from the Oral History Archive is on display at the Moab Museum until the end of April.

Show Notes:

//KUNC: An extra boost of water is flowing into Grand Canyon after a wet winter

https://www.upr.org/environment/2023-04-27/an-extra-boost-of-water-is-flowing-into-grand-canyon-after-a-wet-winter

//KGNU: Will the government pay water users to scale back to boost Lake Mead?

https://www.ksjd.org/podcast/ksjd-local-newscasts/2023-04-26/ksjd-local-newscast-april-26-2023

//KSJD: The Butterfly Pavilion near Denver supports pollinator conservation efforts locally and globally

https://www.ksjd.org/2023-04-26/the-butterfly-pavilion-near-denver-supports-pollinator-conservation-efforts-locally-and-globally

The City of Moab only uses about 27 percent of the water allotted in its water rights. But demand for water is expected to rise significantly in the coming decades as Moab’s population grows. During a city council meeting on Tuesday, city engineer Chuck Williams said Moab will consider diverting water from the Colorado River if groundwater supplies dwindle. Plus we hear from our partners about northern lights sightings across the Mountain West, a rise in Utah’s birth rate, and a settlement between the Southern Ute tribe and natural gas companies over health concerns.

Photo: Moab is the only city in Utah in which the Colorado River is contained within city limits. Photo by Matt Walter via Flickr.

Show Notes:

//Moab City Council Meeting, 4/25/23

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsoSR5R4aII

//Utah News Connection: Utah See Child Population Increase Despite National Decline

https://www.newsservice.org/viewstory.php?ProducerCallSign=UTNC&StationID=148&Fmt=print&shortheader=1&StoryGroup=84190&StoryID=1&l=84190,1,P

//KHOL: Northern lights flash over Jackson Hole

https://891khol.org/northern-lights-flash-over-jackson-hole/

On Saturday morning, a 68-year-old Moab woman was stabbed multiple times while walking dogs in town along Mill Creek. Today on the news, we hear from Moab City Police Chief Jared Garcia, who calls the incident “shocking” for our local community. Plus, our radio partners profile an addition recovery program that combines conventional therapy with Native American health and wellness traditions. And, we hear a report on making clean air and healthy environments a constitutional right. Finally, our partners at the Moab Sun News preview the upcoming Moab City Council agenda.

// Show Notes:

// Moab City Police Department 4/22 Press Release

https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=576518281242163&set=pcb.576518717908786

// KSUT: Indigenous Wellbriety blends Native healing with addiction recovery

https://www.ksut.org/health-science/2023-04-21/indigenous-wellbriety-blends-native-healing-with-addiction-recovery

// Moab City Council 4/25 Meeting Agenda

https://moabcity.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/1179?html=true

It's Regional Roundup Monday! Today we feature a new, biweekly production of the Rocky Mountain Community Radio Coalition, of which KZMU is a proud member. We hear stories from public and community radio stations in Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico. Today's show features a roundtable about reporting on harm reduction, overturning a Utah bill that would have allowed people who sell drugs to be prosecuted in overdose deaths and ongoing environmental concerns about the Rocky Flats Wildlife Refuge.

Grand County Commissioners are considering handing off the Moab to Monument Valley Film Commission to the Red Cliffs Foundation, a new non-profit affiliated with the Moab Museum of Film and Western Heritage. We also hear from our partners at KUER and KDNK about Utah’s dwindling flood budget and drag queen storytelling in Colorado.

Plus, the Weekly News Reel! Sophia Fisher of The Times-Independent has comments from the lead auditor tasked with looking into government performance in Grand and San Juan Counties. Plus, Grand’s commission once again nixed the Rally on the Rocks event and Lianna Etchberger is leaving the helm of USU-Moab. Alison Harford of the Moab Sun News discusses critical infrastructure repair at the wetlands preserve, noxious weed eradication and the return of the April Action Car Show.

//Show Notes:

//Photo: The county’s film commission could soon partner with the Red Cliffs Foundation, an affiliate of the Moab Museum of Film and Western Heritage pictured here. Photo by Dave Hensley via Flickr.

//KUER: Utah will dip into rainy day funds to keep up with flood relief, says Gov. Cox

https://www.kuer.org/politics-government/2023-04-20/utah-will-dip-into-rainy-day-funds-to-keep-up-with-flood-relief-says-gov-cox

//KDNK: Storytime just got glamorous

https://www.kdnk.org/local-news/2023-04-18/storytime-just-got-glamorous-roaring-divas-host-a-reading-at-the-bluebird-cafe

//Weekly News Reel Mentions:

//The Times-Independent: Grand barely mentioned in ‘sham’ audit

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/grand-barely-mentioned-in-sham-audit/

//The Times-Independent: Commission again nixes Rally on the Rocks event

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/commission-again-nixes-rally-on-rocks-event/

//The Times-Independent: Etchberger leaving USU-Moab June 30

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/etchberger-leaving-usu-moab-june-30/

//Moab Sun News: What’s happening at the Matheson Wetlands Preserve?

https://moabsunnews.com/2023/04/20/whats-happening-at-the-matheson-wetlands-preserve/

//Moab Sun News: A conversation with the plant detective

https://moabsunnews.com/2023/04/20/a-conversation-with-the-plant-detective/

//Moab Sun News: Peruse the region’s best hot rods

https://moabsunnews.com/2023/04/20/peruse-the-regions-best-hot-rods/

The Canyonlands Regional Airport will stop providing services to Salt Lake City and Denver starting on June 30, 2023. Grand County is in the midst of negotiating a new contract with Contour Airways, which will provide daily flights to Phoenix. Plus, we hear from our partners with Rocky Mountain Community Radio about bighorn sheep hunting in Wyoming and the United Nations’ conference for Indigenous leaders.

//Show Notes:

//Photo: Canyonlands Regional Airport will switch service from Salt Lake City and Denver to Phoenix starting this summer. Photo by Emily Arntsen.

//KHOL: Biologists say hunting Jackson bighorn sheep could help the herd

https://891khol.org/biologists-say-hunting-jackson-bighorns-could-help-the-herd/

What do Miss Volunteer America and Grand County’s middle school principal have in common? They both have a deep commitment to encouraging youth to make and pursue life goals. And? They’re cousins. Plus, our radio partners report on an unofficial BYU graduation that lets LGBTQ+ students celebrate as themselves.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Miss Volunteer America Alexa Knutzen with her cousin Margaret L. Hopkin Middle School Principal Joseph Olson. They both are encouraging youth to pursue their goals.

// Miss Volunteer America

https://missvolunteeramerica.net

// KUER: An unofficial BYU Lavender Graduation lets LGBTQ students celebrate as themselves

https://www.kuer.org/education/2023-04-18/an-unofficial-byu-lavender-graduation-lets-lgbtq-students-celebrate-as-themselves

A recently released legislative audit looking into the performance of local government found no misconduct involving Grand County staff or elected officials. Grand County Commission Chair Jacques Hadler says these results prove what he says county officials knew all along: Grand’s government is operating “very much aboveboard.” For neighboring San Juan County, the audit made several recommendations, including adopting stronger conflict of interest disclosures.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: San Juan County Commissioner Bruce Adams spoke before the Legislative Audit Subcommittee on April 12th related to the conduct of two former San Juan Commissioners.

// Office of the Legislative Auditor General: A Performance Audit of the San Juan County Commission

https://le.utah.gov/interim/2023/pdf/00002369.pdf

// Legislative Audit Subcommittee – April 12, 2023

https://le.utah.gov/av/committeeArchive.jsp?mtgID=18718

// Grand County Commission – April 18, 2023

https://grandcountyut.portal.civicclerk.com/event/21/overview