What Was Before the Cedar City Council Nov. 4? Quick Answer
The Cedar City council held an action meeting and a work meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026. The packets show:
- Coal Creek Gravel lease: an amendment letting the company mine 500,000 more cubic yards from city land and raising the city’s rate to $1.00 per cubic yard.
- User fee study: staff recommended Willdan Financial Services to review every city fee, for up to $40,760.
- Airport: a $51,548.73 bid from DSI National to expand terminal security cameras, and Adurra as airport planning consultant.
- Zoning: a public hearing on a new process for uses that are not in the city’s use table, required by a 2026 state law.
Minutes have not been posted, so we cannot yet report the votes. The action items were on the consent and action agendas; the work-meeting items were up for discussion.
Coal Creek Gravel Lease
According to the city manager's memo, the council asked at its previous work meeting to renegotiate the lease rate to $1.00 per cubic yard, and Coal Creek Gravel agreed. The amendment says:
- The original lease, signed Sept. 29, 2014, covers about 16.14 acres of city-owned land, runs 20 years and capped mining at 500,000 cubic yards.
- The company is nearing that cap. The amendment says the property can be mined further "while maintaining all applicable safety factors."
- The amendment adds another 500,000 cubic yards and sets compensation at $1.00 per cubic yard, citing higher raw-material market rates since 2014.
The packet does not state the old per-yard rate.
A Review of Every City Fee
Cedar City sought proposals for a Comprehensive User Fee Study and Overhead/Cost Allocation Plan. Its purpose is to evaluate existing fees, find the true cost of providing each service, and make sure fees are reasonable and legal. Seven firms responded. Six evaluators scored them:
| Firm | Proposal score (of 600) | Proposed cost |
|---|---|---|
| Willdan Financial Services | 542 | $40,760 |
| ClearSource Financial Consulting | 508 | $53,300 |
| LRB Finance | 478 | $37,400 |
| Matrix Consulting Group | 476 | $49,800 |
| MGT | 456 | $124,500 |
| Revenue & Cost Specialists | 442 | $38,400 |
| Zion Public Finance | 373 | $84,975 |
Willdan and ClearSource were interviewed by the mayor, City Manager Paul Bittmenn and Lindey Matheson, and Willdan scored higher again (283 to 241). Willdan estimated about 212.5 hours of work against a $50,000 budget. A study does not change fees by itself. Any new fees would come back to the council.
Uses Missing From the Use Table
The city attorney's memo says a 2026 state law, SB284, requires Cedar City to create procedures for classifying proposed uses and for adding uses that are not similar to anything in the city's use table. The amendment formalizes the engineering department's informal practice. It also lets requests to add a use to the table go straight to the council without Planning Commission review, an exception the memo says is meant to speed decisions. The Planning Commission gave a positive recommendation.
Other Items
- A Heritage Center fee reconsideration requested by Red Acre Center.
- Ending Southern Utah University’s lease on the SUU hangar at Cedar City Regional Airport (2360 Aviation Way, about 10,030 sq. ft.) so SUU can sell the improvements to 5BY5 Connections, LLC, an Idaho company, which would take a new lease on the same parcel.
- A $64,887.63 vehicle water tank purchase, a personnel policy update and a budget policy resolution.
- Water-acquisition credit allocation among Cedar 106 parcels.
The same Nov. 4 work meeting carried the Iron Horse rezone and development agreement and a UDOT betterments agreement for the South Cedar interchange. See our Iron Horse report and South Cedar interchange report. For county news, see our Iron County election results and the SUU-NASA aerospace hub launched in Cedar City Nov. 2.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Coal Creek Gravel lease change in Cedar City?
The proposed amendment lets Coal Creek Gravel mine another 500,000 cubic yards from about 16.14 acres of city land and raises the rate paid to the city to $1.00 per cubic yard. The original lease dates to Sept. 29, 2014.
Is Cedar City raising fees?
Not yet. The city is hiring a consultant, recommended as Willdan Financial Services for up to $40,760, to study what services cost and whether fees are reasonable. Any fee changes would need council action later.
What is the Cedar City airport CCTV contract?
A $51,548.73 bid from DSI National for the Airport Terminal CCTV Expansion, on the Nov. 4 consent agenda.
Did the Cedar City council approve these items?
Minutes from Nov. 4 have not been posted, so the votes are not yet confirmed.
Sources: Cedar City Council, Nov. 4, 2026 action meeting agenda and packet (Coal Creek Gravel lease amendment); Cedar City Council, Nov. 4, 2026 work meeting agenda and packet (user fee study memo; Ordinance 26-III-21 amendment memo).
