Regional Bus Service To Start On April 1

By Naomi Hatch
   Taylor Finance Director Gus Lundberg represents the town on the Rural Transportation Committee, and he advised the town council Feb. 25 that they have a proposed regional transit connector schedule.
   Bus service is tentatively scheduled to begin bus service on Wednesday, April 1.   There will be three runs each weekday, beginning at 6 a.m. at the Safeway store in Pinetop, picking up in Taylor at 6:35 a.m. and stopping at the Holbrook County Complex at 7:15 a.m. On the return trip, the bus will stop in Taylor at 8:45 a.m. and at the Department of Economic Security building in Show Low at 9 a.m.
   The second run stops in Taylor at 11:35 a.m. and returns at 1:45 p.m., and the third run stops in Taylor at 3:35 p.m., at the county complex in Holbrook at 5 p.m. and in Taylor at 5:45 p.m.
   “The main purpose of the transit connector is to get people to the county seat,” Lundberg explained.
   Vice Mayor Jim Gibson said he felt it would be valuable to go to Show Low or Pinetop.
   Mayor John Cole expressed concern that the drop off was at the DES office and then they would be on foot.
   Lundberg said that the Show Low/Pinetop transit system stops every 15 minutes at the DES office, and runs to the hospital and Walmart.
   Town officials spoke with the new owner of the Silver Creek Shopping Center, who reportedly does not want the Taylor bus stop on that property.
   Town Manager Eric Duthie said he explained the purpose to no avail. He also had the opportunity to sit down with local Bashas’ management and explain the situation to them. They have taken the request to corporate officials, who would like the bus to stop there.
   Duthie said that the issue has not been resolved, so they will use the public parking area next to the Taylor Museum as the bus stop until Bashas’ can resolve the issue with the shopping center owner.
   “We would prefer to see it at Bashas’,” said Duthie. “We want to be clear that we have tried every avenue we can to get that location, and we are in concert with local and corporate Bashas’ to get it at that location, but the landlord has not approved it.”
   In other business, the council unanimously approved an intergovernmental agreement for flood control project funding with Navajo County in the amount of $50,000. This will be used for detention basins south of town hall.
   Duthie noted that this had previously been discussed, with the detention basin cost estimated at $400,000. Last year it came down to $200,000. He said the intent is to have this as a partnership with the Navajo County Flood Control District.