The disgraced founder of electric truck maker Nikola was sentenced to four years in prison in December and remains out while appealing his case.
Attending virtually, Milton spoke up during Wasatch County’s planning commission meeting Feb. 8.
On the agenda was a discussion about the place of helipads in the county. Milton attracted attention last spring over his request to use a helipad at his ranch after neighbors reported his unauthorized flying. That application was denied.
In April 2023, the planning commission recommended the county council allow landing pads with a permit. But now, the commission is leaning towards banning helipads altogether.
“It doesn’t mitigate transportation, it doesn’t help public safety – it’s really about recreational use for those who can afford the luxury of having a personal helicopter,” planning commissioner Mark Hendricks said. “Even though I’m pro-property rights, I don’t know that that’s more important than the interference with tranquility in our county.”
Laurie Maggard, a Wasatch County resident who lives in a rural cabin, spoke up during public comment to ask the county to enforce its regulations about helicopter flight. She called out Milton’s unauthorized flights specifically.
“What do we do when people are blatantly defying what you guys have laid down?” she asked. “I would love to find out how to make this code enforceable and how to keep these people from flying… very low over cabins on a regular basis.”
Milton, attending online, spoke up next.
“We don’t have a helipad on our property. We have a launch pad that we’ve landed on,” he said.
His commentary lasted close to 10 minutes, during which he defended his flight history and accused his neighbors of “insane misinformation and lies” about his helicopter use.
“You know how many people are charged by the government nowadays for stuff they didn’t even do? The government’s gone crazy,” he said, continuing, “I do all kinds of things for the HOA and then I hear these comments. It just makes me sad.”
The planning commission suggested deleting mention of helipads from county code so they won’t be allowed. Currently, code says private helipads can be considered for remote areas of the county through a conditional use permit process.
Helicopter uses such as medevac or search and rescue flights are not up for debate.
No official decisions were made during Thursday’s discussion. The commission will revisit the issue in March.
