After spending 30 years flying planes during the Cold War, retired U.S. Airforce Col. John O'Connor will face a different kind of challenge when he takes his seat at Sun Valley City Hall as the newest member of the Planning and Zoning Commission.
"Anyone who can keep a B-52 upright for a long period of time is good with me," Sun Valley Mayor Wayne Willich said during a City Council meeting on Thursday, Feb. 21.
Council members were also quick to praise O'Connor, who has also served seven years on the Ketchum Area Rapid Transit board, six years on the board of the Elkhorn Association, two as president, and worked with the city of Sun Valley on its comprehensive plan.
"John was a great asset to the comprehensive plan steering committee," Councilman Nils Ribi said.
O'Connor enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in 1956, and during the Vietnam War he was regularly called on to fly DC-6s and Boeing B-47s transporting troops out of Vietnam to destinations throughout Southeast Asia for well-deserved "R and R" (rest and relaxation).
In 1996 he retired full time to Sun Valley with his wife, Elaine, who passed away last year.
With one commission member yet to be named, Councilwoman Joan Lamb recommended that a female be appointed in order to bring some gender balance to the commission, which now has men sitting on four out of five seats.
In other Sun Valley news:
· The City Council approved a conditional-use permit and design of the Edge Wireless tower that will be located adjacent to the Sage Creek pump house, just west of Crown Ranch Road.
In January, when the council gave its initial approval to the project, which allows the company to erect a 20-foot pole about 3 inches in diameter, a number of neighboring homeowners argued that the pole would impact the rural scenery on the hillside.
However, the approval comes with the condition that the wireless cell phone carrier will take steps to mitigate the visual impact by planting a half dozen aspen trees near the pole to help it blend in to the otherwise barren hillside.
The landscape plan, approved by the Sun Valley Elkhorn Association, the city and the Sun Valley Water and Sewer District, which owns the pump house, has to be in place by June 30.
City Attorney Rand Peebles said the conditional-use permit could be revoked if Edge misses this deadline and is found not to be acting in good faith.
· The council also gave its third and final reading of an ordinance setting new rates for solid waste collection, replacing an ordinance from last fall that angered many residents with its sliding fee scale. The new ordinance requires residential users to pay $23 per month, which includes both rubbish removal and recycling. The increase in the fee was deemed necessary since the fee hadn't changed since 2001. Previously, residents paid $15.57 for garbage removal or $20.50 if they also recycled.
However, at least one Sun Valley resident found fault with the new plan due to the voluntary recycling program.
"I found the instructions for recycling completely clear and am amazed that it's not required," said a visibly frustrated Susan Perin. "With the high level of education in this community, it should not be a problem."
John O?Connor
