In the June 24th meeting of the Panora City Council, an ordinance regarding utility task vehicles (UTVs) was adopted.

Mayor Curt Thornberry says that the topic of using UTVs and all terrain vehicles (ATVs) on city streets was brought up in a previous meeting, and after some consideration, the ordinance to change City Code was proposed. He adds that with the change in the law from the state several years ago, followed by a similar change in the county a few years ago and Lake Panorama having their own ordinance really helped the City and Council make the decision.

Thornberry tells Raccoon Valley Radio that the ordinance doesn’t cover both types of small vehicles.

“It needs to be clear, this is only for UTVs. There is no change in the ordinance for ATVs. Those are still not allowed for uses that are now allowed in the Code, and the Code does allow for things like snow removal and other construction activities, but UTVs are all that we’re talking about in this ordinance. Something that came up in the meeting the other day was that there may be some confusion in the community about golf carts. Those are not allowed under this as well. I think it’s important for us to reflect on when we passed this ordinance originally, we were very focused on the safety, and the safety capabilities that are on UTVs that are not on golf carts and ATV’s. So safety is really kind of paramount to that. I just want to make that distinction.”

Thornberry mentions that the Councilmembers really brought some different viewpoints that helped them make this decision together. He explains that he also believes that the residents of Panora will continue to follow the rules of the road as they did beforehand, and that this ordinance, while emphasizing safety, will still allow for people to have some fun without horsing around.