Eagle Mountain residents not amused by officials' antics

EAGLE MOUNTAIN — A things-we-have list for Eagle Mountain residents could go something like this.

Stoplight: check.

Gas station: check.

City officials who repeatedly humiliate the 20,000 people who live here: check.

After the number of odd events that have emerged from Eagle Mountain, some residents are getting used to having their town be the butt of many a water-cooler joke. But for new resident Russ Riggs, his small city's embarrassing reputation is already getting old.

"I moved out here because the houses were cheap ... but honestly, it's kind of embarrassing," Riggs said. "The first thing people say when you tell them where you live is, 'What's going on in Eagle Mountain?"'

Riggs said he moved to the city a year ago because he wanted to live in northern Utah County, but the housing market made neighboring cities too expensive. Seeing the stars at night, listening to the coyotes howl and enjoying unobstructed views of nearby mountains have made Riggs appreciate Eagle Mountain.

But recent reports of City Hall scandals such as that involving City Councilwoman Linn Strouse, who is running for re-election, have Riggs wondering if it's already time to move. Strouse faces a felony charge of accepting an undisclosed $10,000 gift from a developer.

It doesn't help that former Eagle Mountain Mayor Brian Olsen was charged with seven third-degree felonies for misusing public funds almost a year ago. Or that two other council members in the past six months have been investigated for possible conflicts of interest. Or that the mayor before Olsen pleaded no contest to providing false information to police for faking his own kidnapping.

Riggs says he thinks Eagle Mountain's scandals have happened because the city is so new and growing so quickly.

Still, the excuse of inexperience can't continue forever, Riggs said.

"I think (the city) will get it figured out eventually, and I think they'll do it sooner than later because they've been embarrassed," Riggs said. "If it continues to be this way, I can see myself moving my family out of Eagle Mountain."