Story perspectives

Commissioner Cites War-Era Law to Control Historic Road.

5/6/2026

Summary

Story summary

County commissioner Leland Pollock says a War-era statute gives the county authority over Hole-in-the-Rock Road, a 62-mile dirt track carved by Mormon settlers 140 years ago and owned by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
The road runs through Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, a monument created in 1996 for fossils and Native artifacts, drawing tourists.
Local ranchers, businesses and state officials back grazing, logging and uses, intensifying the land-use dispute.

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Story summary

County commissioner Leland Pollock says a War-era statute gives the county authority over Hole-in-the-Rock Road, a 62-mile dirt track carved by Mormon settlers 140 years ago and owned by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
The road runs through Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, a monument created in 1996 for fossils and Native artifacts, drawing tourists.
Local ranchers, businesses and state officials back grazing, logging and uses, intensifying the land-use dispute.