Blanding

Local news, council decisions, projects and city spending, with links to the agendas, minutes and reporting behind each story.

AuditBlanding: electric utility service outside city limitsPublic-records reporting on city finances and decisions SpendingContracts and spendingContracts, bid awards, change orders and land deals recorded in council meetings

Next meetingNone postedCheck the city's notices

Latest recorded voteNone recorded yetResults appear once minutes are posted

Open projectsNone tracked yetAdded as minutes name them

Meetings and decisions, item by item →

Follow the money and what happened next

Trace the decisions and financial records linked to Blanding's projects. A budget, bond ceiling, contract authorization and actual payment describe different things.

Open questions in our reporting

Blanding's electric utility seeks state approval to serve customers outside city limits
The customer list in Exhibit A is redacted in the public copy, and the filing states no number of customers.
Reporting status as of 2026-10-17

Contracts and spending records →

Blanding: electric utility service outside city limits →

Blanding's electric utility seeks state approval to serve customers outside city limits
Rocky Mountain Power and Blanding filed an amendment on Oct. 6 that would let the city's electric utility serve additional customers in the company's territory outside the city boundary. It takes effect Oct. 26 unless an affected person asks for a hearing or more time by Oct. 23.
Published October 17, 2026

City hall

Politics
Blanding voters decide Nov. 3 whether to renew a 0.1% parks and recreation sales tax
Proposal 1 asks whether to continue a one-tenth of one percent sales tax for parks and recreation. A yes vote extends it 10 years, and a no vote lets it expire.
Published November 1, 2026 · From Blanding City
Politics
Blanding reviews manufactured home community rules as residents object to 22-unit plan
Residents asked the council on Sept. 22 for strict code compliance on a proposed 22-unit community. On Oct. 13 the council discussed fencing, density limits and a possible moratorium.
Published November 1, 2026 · From Blanding City
Politics
Blanding council appoints Trent Herring mayor and Kendall Laws to a vacant council seat
Minutes in the council's meeting packets show members chose Herring over other applicants 4-1 on Sept. 22 and picked Laws 3-1 to fill a council vacancy on Oct. 13.
Published November 1, 2026 · From Blanding City
Politics
San Juan County Commission approves fee schedule and Axon camera deal, tables a contract
At its Oct. 6 meeting the commission voted 3-0 on a consolidated fee schedule update, an accounting contract, an emergency communications agreement with Monticello and three public health contracts, and tabled an economic development contract.
Published November 1, 2026 · From San Juan County

Around town

Outdoors
San Juan River to crest again at Bluff Wednesday as bridge losses cut off towns
The Weather Service forecasts a crest just above minor flood stage Wednesday evening; homes flooded Oct. 25 stay evacuated, and UDOT is seeking an emergency contract to replace the Highway 163 bridge.
Published November 3, 2026 · From National Weather Service
Politics
Blanding voters decide whether to renew the city's parks and recreation sales tax
Proposal 1 would keep Blanding's 0.1% sales tax for parks, pools, trails and other recreation for another 10 years. A no vote lets it expire and lowers the city's sales tax rate.
Published November 3, 2026 · From Blanding City
Outdoors
Bluff evacuation lifted Monday morning, but eastern properties remain flooded
Residents were allowed home at 5 a.m. after the San Juan River surge; the bridge on U.S. 160 stayed closed.
Published October 26, 2026 · From KUTV
Education
Six San Juan School District schools move to at-home learning over flood risk
Students at the schools were sent home early Wednesday as thunderstorms moved into southern Utah.
Published October 22, 2026 · From KUTV 2News (CBS)
Outdoors
Flood watches issued for central and southern Utah ahead of Wednesday storms
Watches begin October 21; southeastern Utah’s watch extends into Friday, October 23.
Published October 20, 2026 · From National Weather Service

All 6 around town stories →

Blanding City Council: who serves and how to follow it

Mayor Trent HerringMayor
Chad MosesCouncil member
Kellen NielsonCouncil member
Charlie TaylorCouncil member
Kendall LawsCouncil member
Chris EwaldCouncil member

City Council agendas for 2026 are posted on the city's Minutes & Agendas page, with council archives linked there.

Agendas and minutes ↗

Roster from Blanding: City Council, read on October 29, 2026. Terms and schedules change; confirm with the city.

Search Blanding

Street, project, official, vendor or ordinanceSearch in

Searches this city's collected meeting items, projects, reporting and officials. Coverage is not a complete official archive.

Resident services & official contacts

Council notices and meeting records ↗Blanding posts combined council/work-session packets, separate council-minutes entries and election or ballot-hearing notices. Check for an updated packet and match the session and hearing subject; open a minutes notice even when the body index shows no separate attachment.

City-specific service links checked Oct. 20, 2026. The linked agency provides current service details.

Choose a task for a short checklist and the official service page. Confirm service boundaries, current fees and registration requirements with the provider.

Official links checked October 27, 2026. Schedules and charges can change.

Choose billing or construction service setup

Use New Billing Application for a move into an existing property or a rental or business account.
Use Construction Utility Form for a new home or new gas or power service, and discuss the project with city staff first.
Confirm the current fees, deposit and service date with the city before assuming activation.

Choose billing or construction service setup: official page ↗

After the utility account is active, use the city's Xpress Bill Pay instructions.
Have the email, phone, address and nine-digit utility account number requested by the city ready.
Use the linked service for payments, automatic payments or statement history; complete a service application first if no utility account exists.

Reserve a Blanding park pavilion

Pick a pavilion: Centennial Park, Central Park and Pioneer Park accept reservations, and Walter C. Lyman Park pavilion needs one.
Call the Wellness Center at (435) 678-3457 to reserve.
The Wellness Center is at 1013 South 300 West.

Reserve a Blanding park pavilion: official page ↗

Join the Blanding Wellness Center

Fill out the Wellness Center membership application on the city's wellness page.
Check the posted rates document for costs.
Questions go to the Wellness Center at (435) 678-3457, 1013 South 300 West.

Join the Blanding Wellness Center: official page ↗

Local events and meetings Voting and county clerks Weather and roads

Business and bank profiles

Energy Fuels (White Mesa Mill)Energy & mining

Blanding: the numbers and what's current

The Census Bureau estimates Blanding's population at 3,199 on July 1, 2025, down 5.5% from the 3,386 in its April 2020 estimates base. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 city and town population estimates ↗

Mayor: Trent Herring. Council: Charlie Taylor, Chris Ewald, Kellen Nielson, Chad Moses, Kendall Laws. Utah Public Notice Website: Blanding City Council agenda, Oct. 27, 2026 ↗

The City Council posts agendas for meetings on the second and fourth Tuesday of the month, including Oct. 13 and Oct. 27, 2026, which puts the next meetings on Nov. 10 and Nov. 24. Blanding City: Council Agendas ↗

From the city

Council agendas are posted for the Oct. 13 and Oct. 27, 2026 meetings ↗October 27, 2026 · Blanding City: Council Agendas

Budget and finances

Council agendas and minutes archive ↗Archived council meeting minutes.

Checked against the city's own pages on October 28, 2026. Dates and schedules change; confirm with the city before you plan around them.

Blanding at a glance

San Juan County · Utah

Blanding sits on White Mesa near Blue Mountain, in the heart of the Four Corners region. Ancestral Puebloan people lived in the area as early as 600 AD, and Utes and Navajos later camped near its springs. Settlers scouted the site from Bluff in 1897, and the town was first called Grayson before it took the name Blanding in 1914. Its economy moved from livestock and farming to lumber, then to a 1950s uranium and oil boom, and tourism is now the main base. A canal fed by Johnson Creek, finished in 1905, still waters hay and grain fields.

The city runs its own power, water, sewer and natural gas utilities, and its website covers the full set: utility accounts and bill payment, building permits and inspections through an online system, business licenses, subdivision and zoning forms, and the city code. Council agendas are posted as PDFs, with minutes kept in a separate archive. To follow a decision, read the posted agenda before the meeting, then check the archive for the approved minutes.

Events and meetings Regional news

Sales tax in Blanding

The combined sales and use tax rate is 6.75% (6.35% in unincorporated San Juan County). Grocery food is taxed at 3.00%, restaurant meals at 7.75% and hotel stays (transient room) at 13.32%. Rates in effect as of Oct. 1, 2026. Source: Utah State Tax Commission: Sales and Use Tax Rates ↗

Places and local character

Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum ↗In town · A Utah State Parks museum built beside an Ancestral Pueblo village occupied from AD 825 to 1225, with a large pottery collection and a kiva visitors can climb into.
Blanding Wellness Center ↗In town · The city's fitness and recreation facility, with a fitness center, two basketball courts, volleyball courts and fitness classes.

Resident essentials

Council agendas ↗Posted agendas for City Council meetings, with a link to the minutes archive.
Permits and building ↗Building permit rules, online applications, zoning map, and subdivision forms.
Public works and utilities ↗Power, water, sewer and gas services, and the new utility connection process.
Public notices ↗Official notices posted by the city, including election information.

Confirm Edge of the Cedars hours and any closures with Utah State Parks, and read the city's posted agenda for the date of a specific meeting.

Government and sources

Municipal directory · Utah municipal boundary data · Roster checked Oct. 19, 2026. Check the linked agency for current services and contacts.

Local guide sources

Local guide reviewed Oct 27, 2026. Operators provide current hours, fees, reservations and access information.