Thumbs up, thumbs down: Teachers, graffiti, Pioneer Days and the BDO
Lomond View Elementary School teacher Alan Rhees is awarded Teacher of the Year at the school on Wednesday, May 6, 2020. Faculty and administrators from Weber School District paraded to fie teachers' homes to surprise them with Teacher of the Year awards.
Graffiti is seen along the North Ogden Divide roadway on Tuesday, May 5, 2020, in North Ogden.
THUMBS UP: To teachers! Theirs has been an especially difficult occupation these last few months. How do you effectively instruct hordes of pupils from afar while your primary means of interaction is a screen? Such a task would leave us feeling like a wide-eyed kindergartner, but they’re making do. It may not be ideal in every respect, as evidenced by local school districts opting to amend their high school grading policies and provide extensions to turn in incomplete assignments.
THUMBS UP: For the steps being taken to return us to normal. This has been difficult on everyone. As restaurants reopen, gyms are being used and shopping returns, let’s remember that COVID-19 won’t go away on its own. We’ve seen a great deal of progress, but lapsing on some of the techniques being used to stay virus-free may return us to some of these lockdown conditions.
THUMBS DOWN: To those responsible for the recent increase in graffiti on the rocks, barriers and roads of the North Ogden Divide. Not only are these spray-painting episodes unsightly and environmentally irresponsible, they’re also dangerous. The narrow, winding road features sharp drop-offs, and having these artist wannabes sneaking around on a road like that is a recipe for disaster. Why not consider taking an online art class from one of the local galleries or art centers?
THUMBS UP: And fingers crossed — for Ogden Pioneer Days, which is hoping to safely pull off its annual celebration surrounding the July 24 holiday. After Days of ’47 in Salt Lake City announced this year’s event was canceled due to COVID-19, the Ogden committee said it was taking a wait-and-see approach to this year’s events. If Pioneer Days has to be canceled for safety reasons, so be it. But, at least for now, it’s nice to be able to hope that maybe things will be better by July.
THUMBS UP: To the potential for exciting new development inside Business Depot Ogden. Cameron Cook, who oversees leasing and development of the BDO for property management firm Boyer Company, recently petitioned Ogden City to approve an amendment to building height limits in the area to accommodate the needs of an interested party — an unidentified manufacturer of amusement park rides, which is looking at the site for a new headquarters. Interest in taller building allowances goes beyond this one entity, Cook told the Standard-Examiner. Although nearby land inside the Harrisville city limits is zoned for residential and agricultural uses, this is an appealing request that could pay dividends for the local job market at a time when unemployment remains sky high.