December 11, 2025 - Hanksville Town Council

The Hanksville Town Council convened its regular meeting on the 11th day of December 2025 in the Hanksville Community Center; meeting commenced at 6:00pm.

Present: Mayor Jeffren T. Pei, C. Robert Gilner, and C. Mona Wells 

Absent: C. Morgan Stephen and C. Eric Wells

Employees: Clerk Lisa Wells and Treasurer Jessica Alvey 

Public in Attendance:  Slate Banner, Sue Fivecoat, Brennen Rees and Jack Jeppson - Ensign Engineering, Duke Alvey, Brittani and Adam Wells.

Pledge: Mayor Jeffren T. Pei

Prayer: Mayor Jeffren T. Pei

Roll Call: Mayor Jeffren T. Pei

Motion to approve minutes from the October council meeting: C. Robert Gilner; Second C. Mona Wells Aye: All in attendance.

Report of Officers:

Council member Mona Wells:

  Nothing to report

Council member Morgan Stephens:

ABSENT - Unit #2 is empty.  The mayor inspected the apartment and it’s in need of new sheet rock, paint, carpet cleaned, the tub had a big hole, there has been water leaking down the wall so that needs to be addressed.  The unit is not rentable as is and will need to be fixed before it is rented again; Megan Pearson has expressed a desire to rent it.

Council member Eric Wells:

ABSENT - Eric and the clerk met with Daniel Hawley, Jones & DeMille regarding the left over funds on the sewer project.  George Meados with Utah Department of Water Quality is requiring an asset management plan as outlined in the conditions of the funding.  Jones & DeMille has a lot of that information and they are willing to complete the requirement.  Mr. Meados approved the use of the extra money to pay for this, which will be approximately $20,000, which will leave around $40,000.  Daniel Hawley will gather an estimate of the cost to install a grinder pump on the sewer system, but the extra funds will not be sufficient to cover this expense so he will see if they State is willing to re-open this package to include this and then check with Brown Brothers about the possibility of doing a change order for the project.  The town will have to secure additional funding if this is pursued.  There is a possibility that the funding can be applied to the loan on the lagoon system, which might be a good option.

Council member Robert Gilner:

The mayor is considering hiring a part-time employee to help maintain the roads.  C. Robert Gilner is waiting until it gets warmer to do the crack seal of the streets.  UDOT sent a form to update Class B or Class C mileage data; C. Gilner said he will calculate the miles of paved, gravel or dirt within the town boundary.

Mayor Jeffren T. Pei:

The mayor and Eric Wells met with UDOT regarding the Hanksville Airport.  They are currently making a master plan for the use of the airport.  They would like to invest in Hanksville and discussed needs like bathrooms or a pilots lounge.  Steve Domino had been hired by UDOT to compile this master plan and they will continue to work with the town regarding the needs and ideas of Hanksville.

Treasurer Jessica Alvey:

Jessica Alvey will do some budget training with the council next month and would like to start discussing the budget for FY2027.  The mayor mentioned another tax like the transient room tax that doesn’t require the truth-in-taxation process.  

Clerk Lisa Wells:

• Bills presented to council for approval (spreadsheet attached)

• Motion to approve bills: C. Robert Gilner; Second C. Mona Wells. Aye: All in attendance

• The clerk requested Dec 30th and 31st off.

• The Hanksville Special District Audit findings from Kimball & Roberts - Fraud Risk Assessment report wasn’t filed.  A report was presented to the mayor and CFO to review and sign a Fraud Risk Assessment report for fiscal year 2026.  

• Due to New Year’s Day on the first Thursday, the next council meeting will be held January 8, 2026.  New council member, Pete Devonshire, will be sworn in at that meeting.  

• Follow-up with the mayor regarding cell phones and should the town pay for council members' phones.  The mayor would like all the council to attend various trainings throughout the year and he would like an incentive, such as cell phone stipend, to motivate council members.  The mayor would like to raise the expectation of each council member and how much time required for projects and service.

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Planning Commission:

Slate Banner - The planning commission reviewed any new bills that will impact Hanksville, as per a training from R6 this past spring.  They will be reviewing the general plan and submit any needed updates to that plan to the council.  (See attached report).  The clerk will make sure to put on the agenda for the next council meeting the revised subdivision ordinance that has been through a public hearing and now needs the approval of the council.

Hanksville Tourism Advisory Board:

Brittany Wells - reported on the formation of this board. Current members include, Brittani Wells, Adam Wells, Jessica Alvey, Kurt Thompson, Ashton Brian, Cathy Rosenbaum, and Colton Roberts.   The purpose of the tourism advisory board is to promote smart, sustainable tourism in Hanksville and strengthen the local economy.  We are here to protect Hanksville. Support local families. Improve safety. Preserve our way of life.  We are not growing tourism - we are managing the tourism that already exists.  She is in need of a liaison from the council to attend this board.  The board has planned two upcoming events.  A New Year’s Eve Scavenger Hunt and Community Celebration and is requesting $1300 for this event to help with photography/videography, prize items, and food, and other event materials.  The second event will be the S'mores & Stars Weekend event, January 16-18, 2026.  She is requesting $1,750  to be used for photography/videography, telescopes for future use, and other products needed for setup, supplies, and enhancing the guest experience.  

 Motion to approve funding of $3,300 from TRT tax to be used on these events.: C. Mona Wells; Second C. Robert Gilner  Aye: All in attendance.

 Tabled Business:

Brennen Rees and Jack Jeppson - Ensign Engineering - gave their full report and completed copy of the Hanksville Town Water Master Plan.  In summary from the report - Hanksville Water System provides culinary water to approximately 205 residents.  The main economy of Hanksville consists of tourism to local parks, agriculture, ranching, and the service industry of local businesses.  There is a secondary water system that the majority of residents use for outdoor use, however, there are some locations that use a substantially larger amount of culinary water during the summer months.  This document discusses the existing system and will make recommendations that will help the Hanksville Town Water System meet state requirements for their current circumstances and for their future demands.  

Brennen Rees said we have to figure out the MAGI for Hanksville before he can explore the funding options completely.  He suggested contacting Rural Water for help with this.  

New Business: 

Jessica Alvey - Red Desert - presented 3 different properties that she is in the process of splitting.  All the lots will meet the requirements of at least a ¼ acre and she isn’t splitting any property into more than 3 lots.  The council discussed this with the planning commission.

 Motion to approve the lot splits as presented by Red Desert: C. Robert Gilner; Second C. Mona Wells  Aye:All in attendance.

 Public Comment: 

        Slate Banner is willing to manage the Affordable Housing for the council to help with collections and coordination of tenants.

 Motion to adjourn to a closed secession to discuss the sale of real property: Mayor Jeffren T. Pei; Second C. Mona Wells  Aye: All in attendance.

Motion to adjourn: C. Mona Wells; Second C. Robert Gilner. Aye: All in attendance. The meeting adjourned at 8:15pm.