County takes pride in its public works

PROVO — Last year, Utah County park pavilions were built, roads were repaired and mudslides were mitigated — and most of it happened without any pomp at all.

The lack of acclaim is nothing personal, and the Utah County Public Works department is used to it. Except for one National Public Works Week a year, which concluded Friday, the department mostly remains behind the scenes, anonymous.

Since Monday, the department has celebrated its accomplishments with breakfast, lunch and a public tour of the county's historic landmarks.

"(Public Works Week) is an effort to try to let people know what really is happening and what's behind the scenes," said Utah County Public Works Director Clyde Naylor. "It's an opportunity to show people that more things go into maintaining the county than meets the eye. Everything requires maintenance, whether it's a new building or a new trail."

In 2006, the public works department maintained 14,216 feet of sidewalks and 78,365 square feet of park space — work that largely went unrecognized, but that doesn't matter, Naylor said. Crews also maintained 22.5 miles of trails, planted 90 new trees and treated 850 acres for noxious weeds.

Each year the department focuses on adding to the county's park system, improving the county's roads and sticking to a budget that hasn't inflated as much as construction costs have, Naylor said.

But one of the things the department does best is care for the Utah County Historic Courthouse — which was built in 1926 and remodeled in 1974 — and the county's rare historic tree. More information on the courthouse can be found on the county's Web site, www.utahcountyonline. org, but the department says it's willing to give tours of the building — if they're scheduled in advance.

"There's kind of a balance ... between preserving bits of history in an appropriate way to show some of the unique character and things within the county that we can say, 'That's attractive,' so it creates a positive image," said County Commissioner Larry Ellertson. "There could be those that would say, 'Why do you care about the historic courthouse and keeping it maintained?' But I think we need to keep in mind the other side of the community who would say it would be a travesty if we didn't pay attention to those kinds of things."

Naylor and all three county commissioners — who recognized the public works department at a recent county commission meeting — say the department is the best in the state.

According to Naylor, the department has the fewest employees per capita in the state.

"We do more with less," Naylor said.

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E-mail: achoate@desnews.com