InfoWest to Give Back as High Tech Business Incubator

St. George, UT, August 25, 2010  — InfoWest, The Internet People, is looking to help incubate a brand new start up high tech company in Southern Utah.  According to InfoWest president Kelly Nyberg, “We constantly hear about smart, hard working individuals looking to start their new high tech business who often run into common start up issues such as lack of capital for startup business expenses.  We know how difficult this can be for a new business, so InfoWest would like to assist getting a company off the ground.”

One fortunate business will receive office space, front desk reception, desks and chairs, office supplies, utilities, phones, fiber optic Internet access, datacenter, server co-location, a $5,000 capital contribution, and consulting from InfoWest board and management to assist them during their startup process.

According to Nyberg, “Applicant criteria include companies that are high-tech related. They must be willing to give up a small percentage of the company in exchange for incubation, have no more than 5 employees, and not have substantial liabilities.”

Applications need to contain the following information and be submitted as a PDF, Word, or PowerPoint document.  Please include an overview of your business, your corporate structure (if applicable), a list of current staff, employees and partners, your business plan – including summary, target market, risk, and exit strategy, the current business financials - if your business is operational, and the primary needs from your perspective, along with contact information.

“InfoWest’s Board of Directors will review all applications and then choose the business they feel best meets their criteria and opportunity for success," stated Nyberg.  Applications will be accepted through the end of September 2010.

If you or someone you know may be interested in this opportunity, please submit applications for consideration to Kelly Nyberg at InfoWest, Inc., 148 E. Tabernacle, St. George, Utah 84770, or email files to nyberg@infowest.com.

Kane County wins its first R.S. 2477 road – the Skutumpah Road

PHOTO: Commissioners Mark Habbeshaw, Daniel Hulet and Doug Heaton along with Utah State Representative Mike Noel stand next to the recently erected RS2477 road sign on the Skumtumpah Road which is the first Interior Department recognized RS2477 road in the nation.  The United States Attorneys office stipulated to an order that grants title of the road to Kane County. After almost 3 years, the county can now maintain the road which is in serious disrepair.  Safety concerns prompted the county to ask for an expedited motion to grant title to the roads. The court agreed to hear the case and the United States decided to not fight the validity of the road stipulating that Kane County owned the road.

Kane County Commission
Douglas K. Heaton
Daniel W. Hulet
Mark W. Habbeshaw
76 North Main, Kanab, Utah
(435) 644-4901

August 31, 2010

PRESS RELEASE

Kane County wins its first R.S. 2477 road – the Skutumpah road

On August 30, 2010, in a Kane County quiet title suit in the United States District Court, the United States acknowledged Kane County’s ownership and jurisdiction of approximately 26 miles of the 33 mile long Skutumpah road.  The County will start signing, maintaining and repairing the road today. 

The Skutumpah road is believed to be the first Utah R.S. 2477 highway with title confirmed in court, and may be the first R.S. 2477 road adjudicated on lands managed by the Department of the Interior (Interior).

The State of Utah joined Kane County in the suit to quiet title to twelve roads, including the Skutumpah road.  Several environmental groups were denied intervention in the case by the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals.  Kane County will continue to press its case and expects to quiet title to the remaining roads, and the rest of the Skutumpah road, within the next few months.

R.S. 2477 public highway rights-of-way were granted to states and counties from 1866 to 1976 to facilitate the settlement of the West.  The majority of roads crossing public lands were established under R.S. 2477 and our communities depend on the secure and continued existence of these roads.  Although repealed by the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, all established R.S. 2477 highways were grandfathered as valid existing rights.

In 1997, Secretary Bruce Babbitt directed Interior to ignore R.S. 2477 rights and created unnecessary controversy and conflict.  Interior agencies, such as the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), have closed and restricted numerous county roads across the West claiming that R.S. 2477 rights must be “determined” before the agency will “respect them as valid existing rights,” and yet Interior has vigorously worked to avoid having any R.S. 2477 right-of-way recognized as valid. 

For the last two years in court Interior denied that Kane County had any right to the Skutumpah Road, but it separately informed the public that Kane County should maintain it.  U.S. District Court Judge Clark Waddoups recently advised U.S. attorneys that the federal government had placed Kane County in a “catch 22” and suggested that the attorneys coordinate with the county to resolve some of the roads in the county.

The failure of the BLM to maintain the Skutumpah road resulted in many public safety dangers along the road that warranted an expedited court hearing.  When pressed, the United States finally acknowledged Kane County’s ownership of the Skutumpah road.  Although the full extent Kane County’s rights are yet to be defined in the litigation, the County now has the necessary jurisdiction to properly maintain, repair and manage the Skutumpah road as it historically has done.

Kane County is in the process of securing quiet title or formal recognition of all of its roads documented as R.S. 2477 roads.