SMITHFIELD—Senator Lyle Hillyard met with the City Council Wednesday to address the concerns of the council. The Smithfield native said how thrilled he was to be back in his home city, and had nothing but good things to say about it.

“My wife said to me, ‘You are going to the Smithfield City Council without a tie?’ Well yes, I’m going home,” Hillyard said.

“The things I’ve done and accomplished are a direct result of the people in this town.”

As he is not running in this election, Hillyard said he was not there to campaign but to hear the council’s concerns. He said his role was to make sure the city is being treated fairly by the state.

Mayor Simmons asked for help with the “growing pains” the city has been experiencing. He also asked for better communication between the school district and the city council. He explained that it’s been difficult with all the new schools, like Birch Creek Elementary.

“The school district seems to trump whatever we address and we seem to cover the cost,” Simmons said.

Hillyard said he would bring up the communication problem with the school board, as he is meeting with them in two weeks.

Councilman Michael Oliverson asked Hillyard what his position was on the subject of illegal immigration. The senator said there are so many illegal immigrants here that it becomes a federal issue. There are too many to handle. He also said that these are still good people who work in the community.

Councilwoman Kris Monson asked Hillyard for a bigger budget for education. “I know the budget is small, but our youth is our budget,” Monson said.

Hillyard said Utah has largest percentage of intact families and people that own their own home. Utah also has 50 percent more children. He explained that even though he is proud of those statistics, that’s the burden that is put on the schools.

The council also discussed turning over Health Days to the Recreation Center due to the chair, Stacy Dority, resigning. A representative for the Rec Center agreed that they would take responsibility and will have Stacy work directly with them in November to help with the transition.

Junior Mayor Brent Perez also addressed the council with a report on the youth council for Smithfield. A representative from the youth council will be at city council meetings monthly to give a report.

The council will be discussing the Spice Outlaw ordinance at the next meeting, and will open discussion toward a noise ordinance.

The next council meeting will be Wednesday, Nov. 10 at 6:30 p.m. Meetings are held at 96 South Main, in the city offices.

Published in cooperation with the Hard News Cafe. Original story is here.