Independence, Utah
| Independence | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
 Location in Wasatch County and the State of Utah |
|
| Coordinates: 40°23′37″N 111°17′32″W / 40.39361°N 111.29222°WCoordinates: 40°23′37″N 111°17′32″W / 40.39361°N 111.29222°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Utah |
| County | Wasatch |
| Incorporated | June 5, 2008 |
| Founded by | Melvin McQuarrie |
| Area | |
| • Total | 30.6 sq mi (79 km2) |
| • Land | 30.6 sq mi (79 km2) |
| • Water | 0 sq mi (0 km2) |
| Elevation | 7,073 ft (2,156 m) |
| Population (2012) | |
| • Total | 169 |
| • Density | 5.5/sq mi (2.1/km2) |
| Time zone | Mountain (MST) (UTC-7) |
| • Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) |
| ZIP code | 84032 |
| Area code(s) | 435 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2547778 |
| Website | www |
Independence is a town in Wasatch County, Utah, United States. Lying just east of U.S. Route 40 southeast of Heber City, Independence was incorporated in 2008 under a controversial, short-lived state law. The population was 164 at the 2010 census.
Independence is a sparsely populated rural community in Daniel's Canyon in the Wasatch Mountains. It consists of farmland and wooded mountain slopes. Just to the southeast of the young town of Daniel, Independence lies on a popular recreational corridor between Heber City and Strawberry Reservoir.
In 2007, the Utah State Legislature unanimously passed H.B. 466, a bill that amended the state law on petitions to incorporate a town. The new provisions allowed a petition for a new town with 100–999 residents to be filed with just the signatures of the owners of a majority of the land area, even a single majority landowner. If the petition met the conditions of state law and its signers owned the majority of the land by value, the new law required the county government to grant the petition and appoint a mayor and town council from a list of individuals approved by the petitioners. In July 2007 Ruby's Inn, in Garfield County, became the first to take advantange of the law, incorporating as Bryce Canyon City.
A group of Wasatch County landowners led by developer Mel McQuarrie filed the first petition to incorporate Independence on October 12, 2007, but county officials denied it for an incomplete land survey. Some residents who would have been included in the original boundaries of the proposed town petitioned to be annexed into nearby Daniel, rather than be included in Independence. The incorporation petitioners re-filed on December 17, 2007.
...
Wikipedia