Take Off Pounds Sensibly, TOPS Chapter AZ#0516, will be hosting an open house on Thursday, January 28 at the Family Harvest Church across the street from Safeway. Women, men and teens are invited to attend. The meeting is from 5:30 to 6:30 with a weigh in at 5 p.m. TOPS is a low cost support group to aid in the loss of weight.
Tag Archives: Williams
Williams is thawing
WILLIAMS — People have gotten used to the temperatures which froze over the reservoirs at Buckskinner and Santa Fe dams. Since early January, however, the temperatures have rarely dropped to freezing. That is thinning the ice over the reservoirs. People should take care when trying to walk on the reservoirs. The condition should become more hazardous with higher temperatures throughout this week.
A hole has formed on the Buckskinner reservoir as seen in the picture. In addition, the melting snow is causing very muddy conditions. Four-wheel drives are recommended if you plan to take a trip to Dogtown, White Horse or other reservoirs around Williams.
You might also want to take note that some animals are coming out in search of food. Some may be sick. Take care if you plan to walk off path into the woods.
Sunny weather through the week
Moon over Williams early this morning.
Williams Council Meeting to accept resignation of City Manager
WILLIAMS — There will be a special meeting of the City Council on Monday at 7 p.m. in the City Council Chambers. The purpose of the meeting is to accept the resignation of City Manager Brandon Buchanan effective February 19.
The Council will discuss the appointment of an Interim City Manager and the recruitment process for the City Manager position.
Sean Casey of Bearizona wrote in an email, “We were lucky to have him for so long I guess. He added a high level of professionalism to our Williams team.
“Good luck in your future endeavors Brandon. I am sure you and your family will be very successful wherever you land.”
Al Richmond of the Arizona State Railroad Museum added, “Williams has been the beneficiary of Brandon’s tenure and hopefully his successor will come close to being as positive for the City and community. This move is good for him professionally and in the best interests of his family. I will miss working with him.”
Kaibab National Forest releases draft decision to add camping corridors
WILLIAMS — The Kaibab National Forest has released a draft decision to add camping corridors and make other improvements to the transportation system of the Williams and Tusayan ranger districts.
The project, which was designed to improve travel management on the two districts in response to public and internal feedback, will designate approximately 291 miles of camping corridors that extend 300 feet from either side of the centerline of certain roads; add 14 spur roads to the Tusayan Ranger District; close 9 miles of currently open roads on the two districts; add 24 miles of roads to the districts’ open road system; and establish an adaptive management strategy for making limited changes to the transportation system in the future.
The final Environmental Assessment and draft Decision Notice and Finding of No Significant Impact for the South Zone Travel Management Revision Project are available for review on the Kaibab National Forest website at http://go.usa.gov/kpQV.
Unresolved concerns about the final EA and draft DN/FONSI will be addressed through an objection process. In order to file an objection, a person must have previously submitted specific comments regarding the South Zone Travel Management Revision Project. Objections may be filed over a 45-day period. Details about the objection process are available on the Kaibab National Forest website at http://go.usa.gov/kpQV.
Changes to the transportation system included in the draft decision were all developed based on several years of monitoring following implementation of the Travel Management Rule on the two districts, which included documenting public concerns about recreational access and other issues.
“I believe our local community members and our visitors will be pleased with these changes and will recognize that they are responsive to the concerns we’ve been hearing over recent years,” said Williams District Ranger Danelle D. Harrison. “We took our commitment to listen to public and employee feedback seriously, and this decision is evidence of that continuing commitment. Our goal is to provide motorized recreational opportunities where we can while still providing for the protection of our natural and cultural resources.”
A final decision on the South Zone Travel Management Revision Project is expected in the spring with a new Motor Vehicle Use Map anticipated soon thereafter. Current Motor Vehicle Use Maps for the Kaibab National Forest are available at www.fs.usda.gov/goto/kaibab/tmr.
Missing person Lawrence Byrne found deceased
Lawrence Byrne was located deceased near the City of Williams.
Bearizona remains open
WILLIAMS — For over five-years Bearizona has entertained thousands of kids and adults. We visited the very first year when they allowed residents in free for a period of time. It was impressive, but not spectacular.
Over the years we have watched Bearizona grow. They have built an expansive gift shop with a fantastic diorama and separate room for close up introduction to animals and other activities. For Christmas, this year, they introduced the Wild Wonderland. This amazing light and music display I found as impressive as the Zoolights at the Phoenix Zoo. We got to see both.
This year—despite the most snow Williams has seen in some time—Bearizona even managed to stay open to the public. The snow even makes the animal displays more impressive just like the snow did for the Wild Wonderland display.
During the summer the animals tend to sleep during the heat of the day. With the cold weather, they are more active throughout the day. Especially the wolves and the bears. The same for the animals in the walk-through area. The otters are out and the bear cubs are playing in the snow.
If you plan to come to Williams, you should plan to visit Bearizona and the Grand Canyon Deer Farm petting zoo. For about the same price as the entrance to the Grand Canyon, you can get up close and personal with various animals of north America. If you are on a planned tour to Williams, you should urge the driver to visit these Williams attractions.
Women in Wildland Fire boot camp opening soon
The USDA Forest Service Southwestern Region is seeking a small group of career focused women to be on-call Wildland Fire Fighters for the 2016 fire season. These on-call positions will provide support to wildland fire operations over the summer when needed and can help pave the way for future employment and career advancement inside of the Forest Service.
If you are selected for this opportunity, your first assignment will be a Women in Fire Boot Camp. The Boot Camp will provide comprehensive, formal physical wildland fire training and orientation. Upon successfully completing this training each person will receive a Wildland Fire Fighter certification and protective gear.
If you or someone you know may be interested in this opportunity, please carefully review the attached documents for additional information and instructions. The application deadline is Feb. 5, 2016.
The Arizona contact for the Women in Wildland Fire Boot Camp is:
Cory Ball
(928) 477-5024
cjball@fs.fed.us
Visitor center hosts “Kaibab National Forest, A Historic Snap Shot” display
WILLIAMS — The Williams Visitor Center is hosting a showing of historical images, maps and documents of the Kaibab National Forest from the late 1880s to 1960 as part of the “Kaibab National Forest, A Historic Snap Shot” visual display, which will be available for public viewing through this summer.
This photo and map display represents the historic evolution of public land from the early Grand Canyon Forest Reserve to the Grand Canyon Monument, the Tusayan National Forest, and then eventually the Kaibab National Forest. The photos, which were taken on both sides of the Grand Canyon, are a representative sample of historic activities and places on the national forest. The maps show a stark contrast in boundaries from the early forest reserve to the 1949 version of the Kaibab National Forest. Display visitors will also note additional changes in forest boundaries even after 1949.
“The historic development of the Kaibab National Forest has played a significant role in the overall history of the City of Williams and our surrounding communities. But few have looked at local history from the perspective of the Forest Service,” said Margaret Hangan, heritage program manager for the Kaibab National Forest. “Therefore, the emphasis of this display is to show how the identity and function of the Kaibab National Forest have shaped our region using the forest’s own historic photos and maps to tell the story.”
In 2009, the Kaibab National Forest and Williams Public Library formed a partnership to preserve historic images and documents of the City of Williams and the surrounding area. To date there are more than 2,464 photos, documents and oral histories in the collection, and new collections are always being identified. The collection boasts items representing iconic places and themes such as “the Mother Road” Route 66, cattle and sheep ranching, logging and the timber industry, railroads and more. In 2012, 127 of the collection’s images were posted online as part of the Arizona Memory Project.
The collection, which is entirely digital, is stored on a computer dedicated to the project at the Williams library and is made available to the public free of charge. The purpose of the project is to preserve these precious treasures of the past and to make them available to the public for historic research. Hangan and Williams Public Library director Andrea Dunn have led the multi-year effort to create what is now an indispensable resource for learning about the history of the local area.
The Williams Visitor Center is located at 200 W. Railroad Ave. in Williams.
Tree marking to begin on Williams Ranger District
WILLIAMS — Timber and silviculture staff on the Williams Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest will begin tree marking operations next week and continuing through the spring, between Forest Road 141 (Spring Valley Road), and Forest Road 76 in advance of eventual tree thinning operations to improve forest health conditions.
The area to be marked is part of the 4,400-acre Moonset Task Order, which will eventually be issued for treatment under the 1st Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI) Environmental Impact Statement. Active forest restoration work will occur once the task order has been issued to a contractor, which is expected in 2017. In the meantime, residents and visitors to the area can expect to see trees and internal boundaries marked with orange paint, which will eventually serve as visual guidance to the contractor regarding Forest Service expectations for treatment.
A portion of the tree marking operations will take place on National Forest land that borders private property. Land owners in these areas may notice an increased number of Forest Service personnel and vehicles in the area over the next few months while tree marking operations are completed.
The objectives for treating the area within the Moonset Task Order are to reduce fuel loading and the potential for future high-intensity wildfires and to improve wildlife habitat and overall forest health.
The goal of the 4FRI is to accelerate the pace and scale of restoration within 2.4 million acres of ponderosa pine forest in northern Arizona to increase resilience and proper functioning. Restoring this fire-adapted ecosystem is accomplished with a suite of restoration activities – from watershed maintenance and habitat improvements to prescribed burning and thinning.