05/10/12

Deseret News/Salt Lake County to give out youth service awards

Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon will present the 2012 Commission on Youth awards on Tuesday. More

KSL/Snowbird mountain coaster proposal moves forward/Marjorie Cortez

Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort is back before the Salt Lake County Planning Commission with a new proposal for a "mountain coaster" near its Peruvian Lift. The Salt Lake County Planning Commission will conduct a field trip to the proposed site at 5:30 p.m. Thursday. While the trip is advertised as a public meeting, it is not a public hearing. Rolen Yoshinaga, Salt Lake County's director of planning and development, said the planning commission occasionally conducts site visits. "We don't do it real often," Yoshinga said. "On a large project, there's a tendency to want to know how it all fits in." More

City Weekly/Planning Roller Coaster Field Trip, Fundraiser & Plant Sale/Eric Peterson

Go on a field trip with the Salt Lake County Planning Commission to inspect the proposed site of a mountain coaster alongside Snowbird Mountain Resort. The tour will go over the site, discuss standards to protect the canyon and also consider the coaster’s proximity to nearby streams. More

05/08/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Council moving closer to decision on parks bond/Mike Gorrell

If Salt Lake County goes ahead with a proposed bond for park development — and voters then approve it in November — fans of the Jordan River Parkway might end up quite satisfied. "I put the Jordan River high on my list," Councilman Arlyn Bradshaw said Tuesday to the general concurrence of colleagues as the council weighed options in helping county Community Services Director Erin Litvack set up criteria to determine what projects would receive funding if a bond proposal eventually passes at the polls. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County’s push to rewrite canyon ordinance draws interest/Mike Gorrell

Interest is high in being part of the process to revise Salt Lake County’s ordinance governing development in the canyons and foothills. Forty-nine applications were submitted for the 15 seats on a "blue-ribbon commission" that County Mayor Peter Corroon plans to assemble to oversee a rewrite of the Foothills and Canyons Overlay Zone (FCOZ). The list of applications includes people with various perspectives, County Public Works Director Patrick Leary told the County Council during a study meeting Tuesday. "We have applications from private property owners, individual [ski] resorts, environmentalists as well as general citizens who just want do be of service," Leary said, adding that Corroon is vetting the candidates’ résumés in hopes of submitting a list to the council for confirmation "in the next couple of weeks." More

KCPW/Survey Finds Caregivers Don’t Use SL County Services/Whittney Evans

A survey shows more than 70 percent of caregivers for the elderly in Salt Lake County are missing out on potentially valuable assistance from the county’s Division of Aging Services. Kathy Nelson, a training specialist with the program, says the county contracts with agencies to provide in-home services for mobility, dressing and bathing, for example, and refer caregivers to the resources. “So we could work with other agencies who might be able to provide housekeeping or in home services that would support the caregiver so that they could get away for respite,” she explains. “Maybe we could help provide a cane or a walker or help locate a chair that would help lift the person.” More

05/07/12

KSL/Local happenings from a community garden to a Race for the Cure/Brielle Valyntin Alexander

The Holladay, Salt Lake County officials, Salt Lake City youth, and students from Howard R. Driggs Elementary School, Olympus Junior High School, got together last Friday, May 4, to unveil their collaborative project, the opening of the Mount Olympus Garden. The New Roots of Utah group, and the International Rescue Committee partnered to bring the garden to life. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Utah’s ‘Silver Surfer’ seniors eager to master iPads, Kindles/Vince Horiuchi

There were about a dozen people, each one grasping an iPad, at a recent class at the new Millcreek Community Center in Salt Lake County. Looking up at the instructor, they were learning how to use the simplest functions, from downloading an app to turning on Facetime. Millcreek Community Center, 2266 E. Evergreen Ave., is one of several community and senior centers in Salt Lake County offering classes for seniors on how to use their iPads, Kindles and other mobile devices for this expanding demographic of users. More

05/04/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Now happy and hopeful, Salt Lake City Public Library turns the page/Christopher Smart

At long last, there’s good news coming from the Salt Lake City Public Library. Six months after its former director resigned amid a storm of criticism, the atmosphere at the library is mostly sunny, and the forecast looks pretty bright, too. The turnaround, according to those close to the library, is due to acting Director Linda Hamilton and her deputy, Karen Okabe. The Library Board, Friends of the Library, the City Council and even the Library Employees Organization praise Hamilton, a veteran government administrator, who also is the chief administrative officer for Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon. More

Park Record/Wasatch Front groups looking at light rail to Park City/Gina Barker

When organizations along the Wasatch Front talks about canyon transportation issues, inevitably Park City came up. Growing interest in Big and Little Cottonwood Canyon transportation followed a study from 2010, the Wasatch Canyons Tomorrow study, which outlined specific projects that should be looked at for future planning goals in Salt Lake County. One of the goals: connectivity between counties. Salt Lake County is spearheading the Mountain Transportation Study efforts which delve into canyon transportation issues, and the county has enlisted the help of any interested parties, including the Wasatch Front Regional Council, the Utah Transit Authority and nearby resorts. More

KSL/Local happenings from strutting dogs to archaeology activities

More than 1,000 of the finest and most talented dogs in the country come together Thursday through Sunday as the Salt Lake County Equestrian Center played host to the American Kennel Club Dog Show. More

05/03/12

FOX 13/Regulation allows dogs on restaurant patios/Brittney Green-Miner

A new regulation allows dog owners to keep their pets with them at some Salt Lake County restaurant patios. The Board of Health passed a regulation that allows dogs on restaurant patios, but restaurant participation is voluntary. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County gives restaurants option to allow dogs on patios/Julia Lyon

After tail-wagging enthusiasm from dog owners in Salt Lake County, the Salt Lake Valley Board of Health will now allow dogs on restaurant patios. Salt Lake County Council member Arlyn Bradshaw brought the proposal to the board of health, which voted Thursday morning 12-1, with one abstention, in favor of the idea. What I’m happy about is we’ve given restaurant owners an option," he said. Participation by businesses will be voluntary, although the regulation change is expected to permit a practice that is already in effect at some restaurants. More

KCPW/More Heavy Enforcement Coming to Parley’s Historic Nature Park/Jessica Gail

Law enforcement officers are getting more serious about enforcing the rules at Parley’s Historic Nature Park. Beginning Monday, Salt Lake County Councilman Steve DeBry, who is also a Unified Police Department Deputy Chief, says the UPD will begin writing tickets to visitors who don’t follow regulations, rather than just issuing a warning. “That’s been going on for over a year and it’s gotten to the point where people know that you’re just giving us a warning or you’re going to give us a verbal warning or a courtesy notice,” he tells KCPW. More

KSL/County seeks public input following transportation study in Mill Creek Canyon/Jed Boal

It’s a favorite recreation destination for many Salt Lake-area residents, offering cross-country skiing in the winter and mountain biking or hiking in the spring and summer. A Salt Lake County transportation study shows nearly 5,000 cars head up the road on a busy summer Saturday and 2,500 a day midweek. "It is a year-round canyon,” Salt Lake County transportation engineer Andrea Pullos said. “Locals use it. They overuse it in a lot of respects, because they're parking on the road where it's not the best idea ecologically. There's just a lot of use in this canyon." More

05/01/12

Daily Herald (AP)/Draper connects open spaces with tunnel /Paul Foy

Salt Lake County officials opened a tunnel under Traverse Ridge Road that connects thousands of open space around Draper's Corner Canyon. County Mayor Peter Corroon and others cut the ribbon on the tunnel Monday. More

Deseret News/Salt Lake County Councilman Randy Horiuchi at ’50 percent’ in stroke recovery/Steve Fidel

Salt Lake County Councilman Randy Horiuchi said Monday he is still working toward his normal routines after suffering a stroke Jan. 27. He said he has been in intensive rehabilitation therapy both as a patient at University Hospital and more recently while recovering at home. More

Deseret News/New tunnel connects Draper’s Corner Canyon, Traverse Ridge trails/Steve Fidel

A new tunnel opened Monday that gives hikers, mountain bikers and horseback riders a connection between Corner Canyon trails and the Traverse Ridge Open Space area without having to cross the busy Traverse Ridge Highway. Corroon said preserving open space in the county improves residents’ quality of life. “Salt Lake County is committed to regional planning.” More

Salt Lake Tribune/Happy trails in Draper with opening of tunnel/Mike Gorrell

Ann Parr might not have been there in person, but her spirit permeated Monday’s dedication of a tunnel unifying two prize pieces of open space in the Salt Lake Valley’s southeastern foothills. Speaker after speaker lauded the vision and perseverance of the trails enthusiast, equestrian and longtime Draper planning commissioner who, until sidelined recently by failing health, was instrumental in leading the drive for a trail system linking 633 acres in Little Valley with 1,000 in Corner Canyon. County Mayor Peter Corroon said it was money well spent, preserving prime parcels of countryside linked by trails that afford hikers, bikers and horseback riders stunning views of the valley. County Councilman Randy Horiuchi and former Councilwoman Jenny Wilson were beaming at the ceremony. When the project received its final go-ahead, Horiuchi said, "I did an end-zone dance and spiked the [project’s] file folder to the floor." More

04/30/12

City Weekly/Margaret Tarampi at Art Access/Brian Staker

The whole is larger than the sum of its parts. That’s one of the main tenets of Gestalt psychology—and it also summarizes the artwork of Margaret Tarampi. The idea for this collection is a continuation of themes featured in Tarampi’s entry in City Weekly’s Out Of the Box project, which in 2011 commissioned local artists to design artwork for the metal boxes in which the newspaper is distributed around town. Hers—currently located outside the Salt Palace Convention Center—has the same title as this show. The most “famous” person in the show, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon, was chosen because he “believes that government should be accessible to all citizens,” as his bio in the show states. More

04/28/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake nonprofits that help the needy crossing their fingers for funds/Mike Gorrell

The needs are many, but the dollars few. So nonprofit groups that help many of society’s most needy individuals are hoping to get as much money as possible Monday when Salt Lake County disburses almost $4.2 million from the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program and three smaller federal sources: Emergency Shelter Grants, Social Services Block Grants and Affordable Housing Development and Assistance. Many groups will end up disappointed, as funding requests in 116 applications totaled more than $8 million. "Listening is heartbreaking, hearing the needs in the community," Corroon said, pledging that the advisory board would "look at the recommendations again and see where we are." More

04/27/12

Deseret News/Road projects coming to Millcreek area/Jasen Lee

Drivers in Millcreek should prepare for a full-strength construction season starting next month. The Utah Department of Transportation is putting together plans to make repairs on two stretches of heavily travelled roadways are beginning in early Mayor. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Palace AC goes out; temporary fix OK’d/Mike Gorrell

If Salt Lake County wants to impress folks coming to town this summer for three big meetings, it can’t afford to have them sweltering in a Calvin L. Rampkin Salt Palace Convention Center with inadequate air conditioning. But that became a definite possibility when Salt Palace workers attempted to fire up the convention center’s 1,280-ton "chiller" during the recent hot spell. "It blew up," said Salt Lake County Community Services Director Erin Litvack. Fortunately, she said, the chiller was still under warranty. So the cost of repairing the massive system, which regulates when and how much cool air is distributed through the building, will be borne by the chiller’s manufacturer, Trane, a subsidiary of Ingersoll Rand. More

04/25/12

Salt Lake Tribune/New legal rights book available for Utah seniors

A new book geared toward Utahns ages 55 and older will help seniors and their caretakers avoid financial exploitation while addressing a range of other issues, from Social Security and Medicare to estate planning and consumer rights. The book, Navigating Your Rights: The Utah Legal Guide for Those 55 and Over, was released Wednesday at the Liberty Senior Center in Salt Lake City. "Older adults are one of our community’s most treasured assets. As such, we must do everything possible to help them navigate the transitions of aging. This legal guide is a valuable resource that no senior should be without," said Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon in statement. The free book was published by the state and is available online. The legal guide is the first of its kind produced by Utah. "Older adults are some of the most vulnerable to scams," said Ken Venables, with Salt Lake County Aging Services, which collaborated with the state on the book launch. "If it’s too good to be true then it really is." More

Deseret News/Applications being accepted for Salt Lake County Blue Ribbon Commission

Applications are being accepted for a Blue Ribbon Commission that will guide Salt Lake County’s Foothills, Canyons Overlay Zone ordinance revision process. More

Deseret News/Open house scheduled for Mill Creek Canyon Transportation Study

The public is invited to participate in Salt Lake County’s Mill Creek Transportation Study group’s open house. The open house is designed to display potential solutions to canyon traffic and generate public input. “Our community loves Mill Creek Canyon, so much that its narrow road can barely support the volume,” said Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon. “ As we look at transportation solutions, it is important we generate feedback from the public so we can best accommodate canyon visitors while respecting its natural environment.” More

04/24/12

Examiner/Alleged 'Clown Bandit' headed for Mental Health Court/Ike Larson

A Utah man who allegedly covered his cheeks with red lipstick and robbed a convenience store in South Salt Lake City will see his case go to Mental Health Court. Mental Health Court is a joint effort between the criminal justice and mental health agencies in Salt Lake County. Through case management, treatment and supervision, the court aims to balance the need for public safety with getting people the help they need. More

ABC 4/ABC 4 looks into graffiti problem at Salt Lake Co. park/Brian Carlson

If you've been out and about recently you may have noticed the wrong kind of crowd is leaving their mark on some of Utah’s streets and parks. If you've ever been to Tanner Park in Millcreek, you can understand why people are upset about the graffiti. Once we discovered the spray paint was a real problem, we called Unified Police to see what could be done about it. "There's graffiti teams up here probably weekly cleaning this graffiti that's up here," said Lt. Justin Hoyal, Unified Police Dept. Spokesperson. If you notice any graffiti and would like Salt Lake County’s graffiti removal team to care of it, you can call them at 801-743-5906. Video Available

Deseret News/Group protests proposed ski connector/Jasen Lee

A Utah environmental group is taking a hard-line stance against a proposal to build a gondola connecting a ski resort in Summit County to a resort in Salt Lake County. More

04/23/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County seeking applicants for foothills panel/Mike Gorrell

Applications for seats on a board guiding Salt Lake County’s revision of the ordinance governing use of its canyons and foothills will be accepted through April 30. Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon is creating a 15- member blue-ribbon commission to lead a yearlong rewrite of the Foothills and Canyons Overlay Zone (FCOZ). "The commission’s role in determining how we develop and maintain the areas in and around our Wasatch Mountains," Corroon said in a news release, "is crucial to understanding and utilizing community views on the future of our canyons." More

FOX 13/Federal compliance deadline nearing for public pools/Aaron Vaughn

The weather is getting warmer and in just over a month public pools will open for the summer. But the clock is ticking to comply with new federal regulations requiring accessibility for people with disabilities. The American Disabilities Act was modified in 2010, requiring public pools have a chair lift or ramp to allow people in wheelchairs to access the water. The original deadline was March 15, 2012, but that was pushed back. Now pools are hoping they can make the new May 15 deadline. But at least half a dozen pools in Salt Lake County are not yet equipped to the new standard. Pool directors say they are working on ADA compliance, but the looming deadline has pools across the country looking for the same parts at the same time. “This is a very difficult time to be trying to do something like this. My colleagues and I are all struggling because we’re all trying to order equipment that there has been a run on,” said Kearns Oquirrh Park Executive Director Brent Sheets. Video Available

Deseret News/Utah groups join legal challenge to Nevada groundwater pumping plan/Amy Joi O’Donoghue

Multiple Utah groups and counties are joining some of their Nevada neighbors in a legal challenge to a decision granting water rights for a controversial groundwater pumping plan. The Monday appeal, led by White Pine County, Nev., and the Great Basin Water Network, includes signatories such as Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon, the Utah Rivers Council and Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment. More

04/19/12

KCPW/Salt Lake County Animal Services Celebrates Two Years as “Best of State”/Jessica Gail

Salt Lake County Animal Services is being honored for its work. For the last two years, the shelter was awarded “Best in State” and Thursday it held an event to celebrate. Dana Layton, CEO of Best of State, says the judging was based on several categories. “Fifty percent of the points that judges are allowed to allocate are based on the overall excellence of their services or product,” Layton says. “Thirty percent is based on creativity and innovation because we wanted reward businesses who are thinking outside the box, who are not just doing the standard and twenty percent is based on how the organization gives back to the community.” Audio Available

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County goes cute to find homes for pets/Mike Gorrell

Salt Lake County Animal Services has launched a campaign to capitalize on its success in rescuing and finding homes for pets. Its main display: A cute kitty wearing a foam paw that signifies "We’re No. 1" on an Interstate 15 billboard, referencing Animal Services’ receipt of the distinction of being the state’s best pet adoption center for the second straight year by the Best of State group, an organization that recognizes outstanding individuals, organizations and businesses in Utah. More

04/18/12

Salt Lake Tribune/New garden sprouts in Holladay thanks to donations, volunteers/Judy Fahys

The bustling in an old farmland patch here just goes to show that to build a garden, it takes a village. Add to that a county, a school district, a neighboring city, generous donors and hoards of enthusiastic volunteers, and you’ve got what’s being called the Mount Olympus Community Garden. "It’s just been a feel-good project," said Jani Iwamoto, a Salt Lake County councilwoman and prime mover behind the new garden. "It never would have been this scope without all the people." More

04/16/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Pets of the Week

Sasha is a 3-year-old spayed Blue Heeler that animal services staff say is essentially a puppy in a dog’s body. Visit Salt Lake County Animal Services at 511 W. 3900 South or online at www.slcoanimalservices.org. More

04/14/12

KSL/More recreation ballot bonds sought after community center opens/Steve Fidel

MILLCREEK — A new community center that brings a library, recreation facility and senior center under one roof opened Wednesday while plans to let voters decide whether to spend more money on recreation are moving closer to the ballot. The county's new facility is on the site of the old Millcreek branch library and a recreation center at 2266 E. Evergreen Ave. (3435 South). Open spaces, a cafe, wall art that includes a two-story swirl of color- coordinated athletic shoes greeted a crowd that filled common areas for Wednesday's grand opening. Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon said combining activities in the center strengthens its role as a community collecting point. He said his in-laws could be in the senior center while his kids are in the rec center and he is in the library. More

About.com/Registrations Open for SLC Summer Day Camps/Marsha Maxwell

Kids, parents and teachers are starting to count down toward the end the school year, but freedom and exhilaration can soon turn to boredom if kids aren't active and engaged during the summer. Many of the best Salt Lake area summer day camps are already taking registrations, so now's a good time to ask the kids what they want to do this summer. While you're at it, you could think about signing up for a class or two yourself, through University of Utah Continuing Education or Salt Lake County Parks and Recreation. More

City Weekly/Wasatch Mountain Club To Clean Up Pete’s Rock

Sometime in February, Pete’s Rock located at the trailhead for Mt. Olympus was tagged with particularly crude graffiti. The Wasatch Mountain Club, a local outdoor recreation organization formed in 1920, has recently partnered with Salt Lake County to formally adopt the Mt. Olympus trailhead. More

04/12/12

St. George Utah.com/Countywide tax for arts and recreation being proposed/Mori Kessler

The Washington County Arts Council is holding meetings throughout the county over a proposed tax for arts and recreation. If enough interest and support is raised, the proposal could appear on ballots in November 2013. “We’re trying to gauge people’s interest,” said Kim Konikow, chair of WCAC. She noted other counties had similar taxes, such as the Zoo, Arts and Parks tax in Salt Lake County that covered many artistic and cultural endeavors. More

Deseret News/Ex-S.L. County administrator of FLDS ‘lost boys’ program pleads not guilty to fraud/Dennis Romboy

A former Salt Lake County administrator charged with fraud in connection with a program for "lost boys" of the polygamous FLDS Church pleaded not guilty in federal court Thursday. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Former Americorps manager pleads not guilty in $95K fraud case/Melinda Rogers

The former administrator for Salt Lake County’s AmeriCorps program pleaded not guilty in U.S. District Court on Thursday to charges of mishandling funds during an eight-year tenure in which he allegedly paid employees for hours not worked and awarded questionable bonuses. More

04/11/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Mayors Corroon and Becker honored by Utah solar power advocates

Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker and Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon each were presented Wednesday evening with the Utah Solar Energy Association’s 2012 Solar Energy Champion award. "Mayor Becker and Mayor Corroon are deserving," said Elias Bishop, the association’s director. "They have promoted solar projects within their communities that have really helped advanced the industry." More

Deseret News/More recreation bonds ballot-bound as Millcreek Center opens/Steve Fidel

A new community center that brings a library, recreation facility and senior center under one roof opened Wednesday while plans to let voters decide whether to spend more money on recreation are moving closer to the ballot. Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon said combining activities in the center strengthens its role as a community collecting point. He said his in-laws could be in the senior center while his kids are in the rec center and he is in the library. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County turns down the volume/Julia Lyon

Proposed changes to Salt Lake County’s noise regulations will make it easier for inspectors to enforce the rules. "Salt Lake County is a relatively pretty quiet place to live as far as a metropolis goes," said Eric Peterson, the enforcement coordinator at the Salt Lake Valley Health Department. "We want to preserve that as much as possible." More

Salt Lake Tribune/Skate parks across Utah attracting boarders, praise/Tom Wharton

Carl Spangrude thinks he knows what a good skate park looks like, and that makes him glad he lives in Utah. He points to Fairmont Park, his home turf, as an example. The county hired professional skateboarder Tony Hawk to help review its skating areas at Oquirrh Park in Kearns and Copperview Recreation Center in Midvale, said Wayne Johnson, associate division director for Salt Lake County Parks and Recreation. Designers considered best surfaces, bowls depths and what a professional skateboarder might like. More

City Weekly/(Editorial) If A Tree Falls

For 15 years, I lived in a house in Massachusetts that was heated by a woodstove instead of a furnace. The priority task each spring was to lay in a year’s supply of firewood. The upshot is that I may be one of only a handful of people who does not take a thermostat for granted. There are 364,000 trees in Salt Lake City, plus or minus, almost two for every resident. Moreover, if Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon gets his way, 617,108 more will be planted before 2017, the end of a 10-year initiative intended to add 1 million trees to the valley. So far, the count is 382,892. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Venerable Salt Lake County club helps others enjoy wild places/Tom Wharton

As a kid growing up near what is now St. Mark’s hospital, I often rode my bike to the Scott Avenue fish hatchery. Gigantic trout lived in the pond there and, if we were lucky, a hatchery worker would allow us to feed the fish. The hatchery included a building and a metal archway sign that read "Salt Lake Fish and Game Association." We kids never paid much attention to either, and it would be years before I learned that this group, founded in 1921, is the oldest conservation organization in Utah and has played an integral role in wildlife management. More

KUER/New Millcreek Community Center Offers Something for All Ages/Andrea Smardon

A new community center in Millcreek opens Wednesday. The center combines a library, recreation resources, and aging services all under one roof. It houses the first senior center in Millcreek – which has a rapidly growing population of older people. Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon says the project is a rare partnership that he hopes might be a new model. “As a government, we think we can do things more efficiently,” said Corroon, “One of the things we can do is build facilities together. It’s cheaper and in some sense, we provide better services by doing that.” More

04/10/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Pets of the Week: Cooper and Shaimus

Cooper is a 6-year-old neutered male Manchester terrier. He is a cuddler and gets along well with other dogs. He’s also loves being a lap dog. Visit the Salt Lake County Animal Services at 511 W. 3900 South or consult the Web at www.slcoanimalservices.org. For more information, call 801-559-1100. More

Deseret News/Photo gallery: Local leaders look to step it up with solar energy

Local government leaders are looking to harness the power of the sun. Mayors of Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Midvale City and West Valley – representing the Wasatch Solar Challenge Team – formally launched efforts to lower the cost and simplify the process for residential and commercial solar energy projects on Tuesday. More

KCPW/Wasatch Solar Challenge Brings Six Communities Together/Jeff Robinson

Salt Lake City is partnering with five other Wasatch Front cities and counties to launch the “Wasatch Solar Challenge” after receiving a $400,000 Department of Energy grant aimed at reducing the cost of developing solar energy. Mayor Ralph Becker says it’s a chance for communities to share information on providing the right incentives to use solar energy. The Wasatch Solar Challenge is one of 22 such projects nationwide funded by the Department of Energy. It includes Salt Lake County, Summit County, Midvale, West Valley City and Park City. More

04/07/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Holladay has new help in feral cat fight/Katie Drake

The last time Jim Todd’s yard teemed with feral cats, he set up some traps, got them "fixed" and allowed them to come back and keep mice out of his garden. Luckily for Todd, Holladay is in the midst of a trap, neuter and return pilot program through Salt Lake County Animal Services, complete with a "TNR specialist" to aid in trapping nuisance cats. The program has already seen success in other parts of the County, said John Coulter, special programs manager at the County shelter. And while Holladay doesn’t have a large feral cat problem, animal services staff want to curb feral reproduction before it gets out of hand. "Each situation is unique and has its problems," Coulter said. "It’s key to get all of the cats at one time, so that we can assure that all of them are healthy and sterilized." More

04/06/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Millcreek Community Center will cater to old and young/Mike Gorrell

Millcreek is about to get a community center designed to meet the divergent needs of its varied population. A senior center, a library and a recreation center will be united under one roof when the new Millcreek Community Center opens at 10 a.m. Wednesday at 2266 E. Evergreen Ave. (3435 South). "This is the first time we’ve shared facilities so intimately," Jim Cooper, Salt Lake County’s director of library services, said Thursday when the news media received a preview of the $18.5 million facility. More

FOX 13/New Millcreek Community Center offers many features for seniors

Millcreek has a new library, recreation and aging center all under one roof. The 64,000 square foot facility will open April 11 and is located at 2266 East Evergreen Avenue (3435 South).           Video Available

KCPW/Community Center Geared Toward All Ages Set to Open in Millcreek/Jessica Gail

Residents living in Millcreek have a lot to look forward to. Next week, Salt Lake County is opening a new library, senior center and rec center there, all under one roof. KCPW’s Jessica Gail takes a look inside and reports on what’s unique about this model.    Audio Available

Salt Lake Tribune/Dogs on restaurant patios? Salt Lake County wants input/Julia Lyon

Jarrett Hallas loves to bring 320 pounds of fur and love with him to work. His two Saint Bernards doze in a dog run while he mans his drive-through coffee shop near Millcreek. The board of health is currently seeking feedback from residents on what they think of the proposed regulation change. The board of health is currently seeking feedback from residents on what they think of the proposed regulation change. Salt Lake County Council member Arlyn Bradshaw, who brought the proposal to the board of health, said he has received "overwhelmingly supportive" feedback on the idea. "The general thought in terms of what restaurant owners have told the board is they appreciate the option," he said. "There probably won’t be a wave of restaurants doing this." More

04/05/12

Deseret News/Environmental scholarship open to students in Salt Lake County

High school seniors and college undergraduates in Salt Lake County are eligible for a $500 scholarship offered by the Salt Lake Valley Health Department. More

04/04/12

Deseret News/Salt Lake County pilots feral cat program in Holladay/Raili Jacquet

Not every cat lurking in the bushes of Holladay is a stray or an outside pet. What looks like a normal household cat could be a feral cal, descendant of a domesticated feline that has returned to the wild. Salt Lake County Animal Services has partnered with No More Homeless Pets in Utah to control the population of these animals and a “Trap Neuter Return” pilot program began in Holladay at the end of February. We have the noticed that in other communities, residents get behind this because it is a life saving program,” said John Coulter, Salt Lake County Animal Services Adoption and Outreach Supervisor. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Help for mentally ill

A recovery response center to help mentally ill Salt Lake County residents weather a mental-health crisis without being hospitalized is a fine idea. That its cost will be reasonable is an added bonus. The center, part of the county’s revised crisis response system, will open in June. Its expected $4.5 million price tag will be paid from savings in services provided by Valley Mental Health, Medicaid reimbursements and the county’s budgeted amount for uninsured care. More

04/02/12

Deseret News/Tavaci developer, former UTA trustee Terry Diehl owes $41.7 million to creditors, files bankruptcy/Jared Page

Embattled developer and former Utah Transit Authority trustee Terry Diehl has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, seeking relief for more than $41.7 million owed to banks, credit unions, developers, auto dealers and even Las Vegas. Diehl also has been at the center of a controversial development in the mouth of Big Cottonwood Canyon. Last week, Cottonwood Heights leaders decided to drop a legal battle to keep Kiehl from annexing 87 acres from the city to build the high-density Tavaci development. The land is now part of unincorporated Salt Lake County. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Recovery focus coming to Salt Lake County’s mentally ill/Heather May

A woman is acting strangely at an art gallery so the business owner calls the mental health crisis line. A crisis team is dispatched and determines she may be psychotic. But instead of taking her to jail or a hospital, the team leads her voluntarily to a "recovery center" — a home-like space with couches, recliners and warm colors, where she will be asked about her needs and strengths, not her illness. Such a center is set to open in Salt Lake County in June. Mayor Peter Corroon recently approved awarding up to $6 million to the University of Utah Neuropsychiatric Unit (UNI) to develop the center, along with other features of the county’s redesigned crisis response system. The negotiated amount may be closer to $4.5 million. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake Library aims to help homeless patrons/Ben Fulton

Public libraries nationwide are accustomed to their dual role as book depositories and resource centers for the unemployed and homeless. In a new program introduced this month, the library will begin working with Salt Lake County Human Services, the Utah Department of Workforce Services and Salt Lake City police to direct patrons to social services including homeless shelters, mental health counseling or substance-abuse prevention programs. But only with patrons’ consent, Hancock stressed. The program was initiated by Linda Hamilton, the library’s transitional director, Hancock said. As chief administrative officer at Salt Lake County before coming to the Salt Lake City Library in the wake of Beth Elder’s resignation last year, Hamilton’s expertise with county operations is expected to make the new program as efficient and effective as possible. More

04/01/12

KSL/Utah Performing Arts Center, movie ratings and train safety/Bruce Lindsey

Salt Lake City is moving forward with plans for the Utah performing Arts Center -- with or without county support. City officials say they're optimistic Salt Lake County will partner in the 110 million dollar performing arts center. But until a deal is done, city leaders can't count on that support. They also can't wait. On Tuesday they had to commit 15 million dollars to the developer. We'll discuss plans for the development with representatives from the County and City. More

Deseret News/Audit: Government could do more in e-waste arena; Utah steps up/Amy Joi O’Donoghue

It takes more water – 1.5 tons – than the weight of a rhinoceros or car to manufacture one computer and its monitor, but only heave to toss the electronic equipment in the trash. In Salt Lake County, 787,000 pounds of discarded electronic equipment was collected in 2011 through the Salt Lake Valley Health Department’s hazardous waste program – the state’s largest and most aggressive e-waste recycling program. More

03/31/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County agrees to study film center idea/Mike Gorrell

The first study came back saying a film and media center, hooked up with Utah Theatre, is feasible in downtown Salt Lake City. That wasn’t enough to convince some skeptical Salt Lake County Council members that building a facility for independent film production and exhibition would be the best use of limited county tax dollars. It was enough last week to sway the council to agree to provide $50,000 for an architectural study of a proposed center at 148 S. Main St., but only after a coalition of three nonprofit groups pushing the project comes up with its matching $50,000 share of study expenses. More

03/30/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Utah developer Terry Diehl files for Chapter 11/Katie Drake

Developer Terry Diehl, a former member of the Utah Transit Authority board, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Friday, and public records show he owes more than $43 million. The filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Utah comes after a seemingly successful week for Diehl, with Cottonwood Heights City agreeing to allow his Tavaci property to disconnect from the city to seek more favorable zoning restrictions in Salt Lake County. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County Mayor’s Office to get accountants from auditor/Mike Gorrell

The Salt Lake County Auditor’s Office shrank some more this week. Its ranks were reduced by 18.75 employees by the County Council, which voted unanimously to transfer the auditor’s Division of Fiscal Compliance and Accountability to the Mayor’s Office, effective April 16. More

03/29/12

FOX 13/Tavaci development disconnected from Cottonwood Heights/Brittany Green-Miller

The Tavaci Development has been given permission to separate from Cottonwood Heights. The city has dropped pending litigation over Terry Diehl’s right to make his property part of Salt Lake County and city leaders signed a decree of disconnection for the property. More

Deseret News/City Leaders put their hearts into competition/Wendy Leonard

Twelve city leaders began a 100-day fitness challenge Thursday, promising to have healthier hearts come July. Other participants include Riverton Mayor Bill Applegarth, Salt Lake City Councilman Carlton Christensen, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon. More

03/28/12

Salt Lake Tribune/County may seek $110M bond for park upgrades/Mike Gorrell

Salt Lake County’s parks and recreation division has come up with a plan to fix problems at dozens of existing facilities and to develop new sites to meet the recreational needs of a growing population. While County Council members agreed the proposal has merits, they aren’t certain a bond issuance of perhaps $110 million for parks projects is the best solution to a larger problem of deferred maintenance throughout county operations. "We want to ask taxpayers if they’re willing to support that," said Erin Litvack, who oversees parks and recreation as the county’s community services director. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Matheson tries again to expand Wasatch wilderness/Thomas Burr

Washington • About 26,000 additional acres of Wasatch Front canyons would get federal protection under legislation introduced Tuesday by Rep. Jim Matheson, who says local officials, outdoor enthusiasts and business and environmental groups back his effort. The bill — supported by the mayors of Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County and by Save Our Canyons and Snowbird — could still run into concerns from the town of Alta, which fears the measure would hamstring efforts to prevent avalanches in Little Cottonwood Canyon. The six-term Democratic congressman’s legislation comes as Salt Lake County launches a "blue-ribbon commission" to revise longstanding guidelines governing uses in the foothills and canyons. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Sales taxes bouncing back in Salt Lake County/Mike Gorrell

There’s good news for anyone whose projects depend on Salt Lake County funding. The county’s share of sales-tax revenues shot up during the all-important Christmas shopping season, roughly 8.2 percent from the previous year, another sign of an improving economy. "With more robust sales-tax revenues, we might be able to address some of those things," County Council Chairman David Wilde said Tuesday after hearing the latest figures from budget boss Lance Brown. "Compared to 2010, the news is very encouraging, especially given what we’ve been through the last few years," Brown said. "These sales-tax numbers relieve some of the stress in our budget with rising fuel, utility and [employee] health care costs," said Corroon, adding that he aims to restore compensation cuts enacted during the recession. Still, the two-term mayor was cautious about getting too excited with the improving economy. "Even with the sales-tax increase, it’s not going to make us whole for the increasing costs we’ve seen," Corroon said. "We think we’ve turned the corner, but we’re not out of the woods yet." More

03/26/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Watershed is top priority in plotting Utah canyons’ future/Mike Gorrell

West Valley City • For a panel discussion on the complex topic of revising a Salt Lake County ordinance governing private land uses in the canyons, moderator Ken Verdoia brought out some balls and started juggling. His point: To keep the act going, it’s important to keep an eye on all of the balls. Look at one too much, and it’s more likely another ball will be dropped. "If you focus on one aspect of the challenges facing the canyons, the chain runs the risk of falling apart," Verdoia said Monday at Wasatch Canyons Today, a daylong symposium at the Utah Cultural Celebration Center designed to kick off Salt Lake County’s push to revise its Foothills and Canyons Overlay Zone (FCOZ) ordinance. The canyons are too fragile and vital to let that happen, said two-term County Mayor Peter Corroon, who convened the gathering with support from Salt Lake City and the U.S. Forest Service, which join the county as the primary managers of canyon resources. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Urbanites: Nine of 10 Utahns live on 1 percent of state’s land/Lee Davidson

Nine of every 10 Utahns now live in urban areas — and crowd together onto just 1.1 percent of the state’s land mass, according to 2010 Census data released Monday. That makes Utah the eighth most-urbanized state in the nation. It is more urban than such states as New York, Illinois and Connecticut. "The mountains and the Great Salt Lake have naturally created our concentration on the Wasatch Front," said David White, sustainable community development director for Salt Lake County. More

Deseret News/Wasatch Canyons symposium airs challenges for balancing competing needs/Amy Joi O’Donoghue

A panel discussion Monday tackling the thorny issue of how best to manage the resources in Salt Lake County’s Wasatch canyons emphasized the value of compromise and reality of inevitable disappointment. But despite the competing interests of ski resort owners, environmentalists, water bosses and government planners represented at Wasatch Canyons Today Symposium in West Valley City, it was clear everyone believes the current zoning document is inadequate, outdated and unclear. More

03/24/12

ABC 4/New community garden opens in Millcreek/Barbara Smith

Millcreek residents turned out this afternoon to turn over soil, and stake out land, in their first community garden. The Creekside Garden is in Ben Franklin park at 3475 S. 800 E. It is part of a partnership between residents, Wasatch Community Gardens, and Salt Lake County. This the third garden located in a County park. Mayor Peter Corroon says he hopes it grows more than vegetables. "It is really for anybody who wants to get their hands dirty. We want them out here digging, and planting, and growing, and planting with others and really growing a community as well as a garden.” More

03/23/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Controversial revamp of U.S. children’s health study hits Utah/Heather May

As Ed Clark makes his hospital rounds, checking in on children who need ventilators for their asthma or on the premature babies in intensive care, or as he sees obese children in neighborhoods waiting to ride a school bus, the state’s top pediatrician has no doubt of the need of the National Children’s Study, a massive effort to track the health of 100,000 children from womb to age 21. Salt Lake County was one of seven "vanguard" sites across the country to pilot the largest study to evaluate the effects of the environment, genetics and social factors on children’s health. The goal is to understand — and eventually prevent — the factors that lead to the diseases now facing children. More

City Weekly/Green Thumbs Wanted Saturday/Eric Peterson

Millcreek will have a garden party Saturday, looking for green thumbs in the neighborhood to help out at Benjamin Franklin Park. With spring coming, there are plenty of other community gardens in the county also looking for some tending. More

03/22/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Right to pump northern, central Nevada water to Vegas gets nod/Brandon Loomis

The water supplier for Las Vegas on Thursday won rights to pump up to 84,000 acre-feet of water from four valleys in northern and central Nevada, leading some in Utah to fear dust storms, and conservationists to threaten a lawsuit. Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon said the rulings trouble him, though the greater threat is from Snake Valley pumping. "If groundwater pumping is allowed," he said, "it will be years before the effects will be known. If they are harmful, it will be too late to turn back the clock." More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County caregivers need help, education/Patty Henetz

The average caregiver in Salt Lake County is a white female between the ages of 50 and 69, has been providing care for at least three years and is more likely to be working full time than retired. She cares for a parent. She provides love and friendship, shopping, cooking, feeding, transportation, house cleaning and laundry. And according to a county Aging Services survey of caregivers analyzed and announced this month, she probably provides at least 10 hours of care per week, but maybe as much as 24 hours per day, seven days a week. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Herriman Library gets volunteer help from a retired nurse

Margo Adamson has volunteered for the Herriman Library for more than three years. She spends four to six hours, twice a week, shelving materials and putting away magazines and toddler books. "She is willing to do whatever task we ask of her and always completes them with a great attitude and a smile on her face," wrote Tina Miller, assistant circulation supervisor at Herriman Library. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County’s star shop gets volunteer boost

Charlotte Wakefield has volunteered in the education and development departments at Salt Lake County’s Clark Planetarium since August. With a background in catering, event planning, property management, teaching and customer service, Wakefield has been a "welcome set of hands," planetarium officials say, in planning fundraising events and coordinating educational programs. Wakefield lives in Cottonwood Heights and commutes via mass transit to the planetarium, where she volunteers 20 hours a week, Monday through Friday. More

FOX 13/Fire chief’s bid for city council challenges the Hatch Act/Meredith Forrest Kulwicki

Another complaint has been filed under the “Hatch Act” and tax payers could pay the price. Unified Fire Authority Chief Michael Jensen could cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal costs as he defends his candidacy for Salt Lake County District Two. More

03/21/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Opinion - Wharton: Let’s hope the Sagebrush Rebellion fails/Tom Wharton

The Utah Legislature, Gov. Gary Herbert and the majority of Utah’s congressional delegation seem hell-bent on taking the U.S. government to court in a revolutionary effort to upend the way Western federal lands are managed. All one has to do is to look at a measure Utah’s four Republican members of Congress are pushing to force the U.S. Forest Service to sell 30 acres of prime watershed property in Big Cottonwood Canyon to allow The Canyons ski area, owned by a Canadian company, to build a lift connecting it with Solitude. This is being done against the wishes of Salt Lake County and Salt Lake City as well as the U.S. Forest Service master plan. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Refugee gardeners need your help

You’ve heard of a Flash Mob, but how about a Farm Mob? On Saturday, March 24, Slow Food Utah is hoping to get as many volunteers as possible to help the New Roots Refugee Garden prepare for spring. The community garden offers plots and entrepreneurial training to refugees who are trying to make new lives for themselves in Utah. It’s a partnership between Salt Lake County, the Utah Refugee Coalition and the International Rescue Committee. More

03/20/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Forest Service awaiting Snowbird’s request for land swap/Donald Meyers

Provo • Snowbird wants to swap some of its property, but nobody’s sure exactly what land the resort wants from the U.S. Forest Service. "We haven’t got a formal proposal from [Snowbird]," Sylvia Clark, district ranger for the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, told the Utah County Commission on Tuesday. "We have formally accepted a proposal from them to give us a proposal." In October of this year, Utah County modified its ordinances to permit Snowbird to install ski lifts, zip lines and other equipment in that canyon. And the Salt Lake County Council recently approved changes that would allow Snowbird to build a mountain coaster within the resort itself. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Dems challenging Jensen’s Salt Lake County Council candidacy/Mike Gorrell

Just like four years ago, Utah Democrats are challenging Unified Fire Authority Chief Michael Jensen’s right to seek re-election to the Salt Lake County Council, contending his candidacy violates the Hatch Act. This time they have more confidence in succeeding, contending Jensen’s position is similar to that of Ogden Police Chief Jon Greiner, who was forced out of his job in December after the federal Merit System Protection Board ruled he violated the act, which prohibits government employees who oversee federal funds (or are paid with them) from seeking or holding partisan elected offices. Jensen dismissed the latest Democratic challenge as "trying to make political hay out of nothing. They’ve tried to do it before and haven’t succeeded." It’s especially ridiculous, he added, "because everyone knows I’m a firefighter. I’m proud of it. My campaign slogan is ‘Fighting for the West Side.’ I think people like that." More

Deseret News/SLC moves forward with theater plan with or without county support/Jared Page

Plans for the Utah Performing Arts are moving forward as a one-man show. City officials say they’re optimistic Salt Lake County will partner in the $110 million performing arts center. But until the deal is done, city leaders can’t count on that support. They also can’t wait. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Corroon spells out 10-step plan for revamping canyons ordinance/Mike Gorrell

Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon is proposing a 10-step process to revise an ordinance governing uses of the canyons and foothills. That process will kick off Monday with a daylong symposium dubbed "Wasatch Canyons Today." More

Salt Lake Tribune/Food and garden briefs: Utahn wins ‘Pastry Chef of the Year’ regional honors/Kathy Stephenson

Garden volunteers needed. Volunteers are needed to help the New Roots Refugee Garden get ready for spring. The community garden offers plots and entrepreneurial training to refugees who are trying to make new lives for themselves in Utah. It’s a partnership between Salt Lake County, the Utah Refugee Coalition and the International Rescue Committee. More

Deseret News/USA Hockey High School National Championships start Wednesday in Salt Lake City/Aaron Morton

The USA Hockey High School National Championship starts this week. Trevor Lewis of the National Hockey League’s Los Angeles Kings and Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon during the announcement of the venues of the High School National Championships last year. More

03/16/12

Examiner/Utahns participate big-time in 2012 party caucuses/Alison Peek

Bucking a trend of non-participation, Utah voters turned out in droves at this year’s neighborhood caucuses. Starting with Democrats on Tuesday and Republicans on Thursday. It was standing room only at democratic caucuses held in the State Capitol in Salt Lake City. Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon told the raucous crowd, “You would think Democrats run this state. We don’t yet, but we will soon!” More

City Weekly/Lucky In Love Pet Adoption Event

Join us for the luckiest adoption event of the year! It's the Lucky in Love adoption event March 16-18 at Salt Lake County Animal Services. More

03/15/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Deadline for changes to federal disability law hits Utah, nation/Parry Henetz

Building professionals and business owners, along with all levels of government, are on notice: As of Thursday, your buildings must not have architectural barriers that would hinder people with disabilities from using and enjoying what you have to offer. Actually, that’s been the law for more than 20 years. But in 2010, the U.S. Department of Justice adopted sweeping new design standards to supplant those enacted in 1991, with compliance expected by March 15, 2012. Salt Lake County officials say they are in compliance. "We should be accessible to anybody who shows up" at any of the county’s swimming pools, said Wayne Johnson, a Parks and Recreation assistant division director. More

03/14/12

Deseret News/FBI, Salt Lake County probe alleges fraud, sexual trysts in FLDS 'lost boys' program/Dennis Romboy

A yearlong investigation by the FBI and the Salt Lake County Auditor's Office resulted in federal prosecutors going to a grand jury Wednesday seeking criminal charges against Richard Parks, the county's longtime AmeriCorps program director. More

03/13/12

Fox 13 News/ SL County Gov says outreach program to help mental health patients, not police/Aaron Vaughn

Thousands of Utahns are affected by mental disorders but only a fraction gets the services they need. Salt Lake County unveiled a outreach program Tuesday to help meet that need for mental health treatment. “So what we have been doing is not good enough,” says Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon. “Unfortunately our jails have become our largest mental health institutions.” Corroon says the new mental health outreach program will involve three mobile crisis teams to respond to people who struggle with mental health issues. The new program will be an alternative to calling police and will be tailored specifically to those with mental health issues. VIDEO AVAILABLE

Deseret News/New help available for those suffering a mental health crisis/Steve Fidel

Three mental health crisis response teams are part of a new Salt Lake County initiative to expedite help to people in distress and keep them from being sent to jail or involuntarily committed in hospitals. "Unfortunately our jails have become our largest mental health institutions," Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon said when announcing the new plan for mental health outreach to a model that includes "On-the-fly attention, meaning they get the help right when and where they need it." More

KCPW/ County Launching Mobile Teams for Mental Health Crises/Jeff Robinson

Hoping to keep residents with mental health problems out of emergency rooms or jail whenever possible, Salt Lake County has launched three new Mobile Crisis Outreach Teams. As Mayor Peter Corroon explains, the teams will be deployed starting this Thursday to deal with problems whenever and wherever they arise. He noted as a property manager, he once had an elderly tenant who got off her medication and attacked police with a pair of clippers. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County launches mobile units to help with mental health emergencies/Heather May

For the first time, Salt Lake County residents will have somewhere to turn besides an emergency room or 911 when they or their loved ones are psychotic, having a panic attack or considering suicide. Starting on Thursday, the county will deploy mobile crisis outreach teams to help people having a mental health crisis.  More

03/12/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Council to tighten rules on lawsuits against county/Mike Gorrell

The Salt Lake County Council is expected Tuesday to finish cinching up legal loopholes that enabled Salt Lake County Auditor Greg Hawkins to hire his former law partner to file a lawsuit against the council for moving budgeting responsibility from his office to the mayor’s. A key provision of the new ordinance, Deputy District Attorney Gavin Anderson said, requires that if a lawsuit against the county fails, "the costs of litigation and attorneys’ fees shall be the personal responsibility of the [county] official."  More

03/09/12

Salt Lake Tribune/ ‘Great openings’ fuel interest in Salt Lake tourism/Tom Wharton

The opening of the Natural History Museum of Utah and the Leonardo museum, as well as the March 22 debut of the City Creek Center downtown mall, are helping to fuel optimism among tourism officials in Salt Lake County. More

KCPW/Salt Lake County Passes E-Verify Measure/Whitney Evans

While the Utah legislature made no gains this year in passing legislation mandating businesses use E-Verify, the Salt Lake County Council approved a resolution this week to make sure businesses in its unincorporated areas are using the system. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Lawmakers tackle SLC idling rule, ethics oversight/Derek Jensen

Shedding their local-control mantra for much of the 2012 session, state lawmakers waded deeper into city and county territory, targeting Salt Lake City policies that police vehicle idling, electronic billboards and historic districts. In addition, legislators passed SCR10, a resolution expressing support for creating an interconnect that would link the seven Salt Lake County and Summit County ski resorts. They did so despite objections from environmentalists. The move came at the same time Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker and Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon were voicing concerns about a bid in Congress that would pave the way for a Canyons-Solitude gondola dubbed SkiLink. More

03/08/12

City Weekly/Burbank hits out at immigration bill/Stephen Dark

For someone much-rumored to be a future mayoral candidate, Salt Lake City Police Chief Chris Burbank yet again made his controversial views on policing and immigration very clear yesterday at a Washington, D.C., hearing. The bill, he went on, would not only lead to racial profiling, but would also put additional stress on the jails. The Salt Lake County Jail, he noted, releases 700 to 900 criminals monthly because of overcrowding. More

Rafu Shimpo/141 CGM REPLICAS AWARDED AT UTAH REGIONAL CELEBRATION/Steve Fukushima

SALT LAKE CITY — A total of 141 Congressional Gold Medal replicas were awarded to 36 surviving veterans and 105 families of deceased members of the 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team and Military Intelligence Service at the Utah regional celebration of the Congressional Gold Medal on Feb. 18 at the Grand Ballroom of Salt Lake City’s Grand America Hotel. Other speakers included Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon and Judge Raymond Uno (retired), chair of the Utah CGM Committee. Master and mistress of ceremonies were National JACL Executive Director S. Floyd Mori and Salt Lake County Councilmember Jani Iwamoto. More

American Libraries/Salt Lake County (Utah) Library Services, Magna Library

With more than 100 interactive elements, the Alphabet Landscape is the cornerstone of the children’s area at Magna Library. Every element is designed to be educational, with activities that are often alliterative with the letter they are associated with: The letter T includes a wheel to twist and turn the alphabet, while the S bench includes a sewing activity, and the letter A features animal sounds and a story about acrobats. The building as a whole is double the size of the community’s previous facility and is designed to be LEED Gold certified. More

03/07/12

ESPN/Utah lawmakers pass interconnect bill

On Monday, the Utah State Senate passed a resolution that could connect four ski areas in Park City with three ski resorts in Big and Little Cottonwood canyons. Opponents of the plan, which includes Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker and Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon, say it is too premature and further studies need to be conducted. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake area Red Cross honors 10 Utah heroes with awards/Brandon Loomis

Was it the years of public service, interacting with people in need or distress? Was it what he called a "disadvantaged" upbringing? Tom Roberson isn’t certain what triggered his desire to help out, but the Salt Lake City firefighter of 32 years has spent about the past 20 collecting coats, blankets and other cold-weather gear donated at fire stations around the valley, then delivering them to homeless shelters and other services for the needy. He calls it Operation Cover-Up, and for his efforts the American Red Cross Greater Salt Lake Area Chapter is giving him one of its 2012 Heroes Awards this week. A selection committee — including Gov. Gary Herbert; former first lady Norma Matheson; Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon; Lynn Samsel, of LDS Humanitarian Services; and Denise Winslow, of Wells Fargo Bank — chose the award recipients. Wells Fargo and Smith’s will sponsor the awards banquet, which is also a Red Cross fundraiser. More

03/06/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Funding cuts to youth centers would give minor offenders nowhere to go/Sheena McFarland

Young people who commit minor crimes or are acting out at home may not have a place to go, if the proposed legislative budget doesn’t change before midnight Thursday. Lawmakers are looking at cutting millions of dollars from Juvenile Justice Services, meaning that several rural youth receiving centers will shutter and others statewide will have limited operating hours. "Youth Services is a last line of defense for kids who are in an exposed or volatile situation," said Sgt. John Neron of the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office. Neron oversees the officers who work full-time at the Salt Lake County Youth Services Center. Salt Lake’s center wouldn’t be closed, but it wouldn’t be able to function 24 hours a day as it does now, said Tammy Champo, spokeswoman for the Salt Lake County Youth Services. That’s a worry to her and the staff because currently there are 90 sites around the county where kids can contact center staff and get picked up any time. "It’s a safety net," Champo said. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County toughens E-Verify requirement/Mike Gorrell

YIn the future, applicants for business licenses in unincorporated Salt Lake County will have to provide written assurance that they have used E-Verify to guarantee the legal working status of their employees. A resolution requiring the business license division to include a status-verification check-off box on application forms for new licenses and renewals received County Council approval Tuesday on a party-line 5-4 vote. More

03/04/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Dog attacks puppy and is shot at Utah off-leash park/Sheena McFarland

An off-duty animal control officer shot and wounded a dog that was attacking his puppy at an off-leash dog park in Taylorsville on Saturday afternoon. The officer works for West Valley City animal control, Wyant said, which normally handles animal-control issues for Taylorsville. Due to the conflict, Salt Lake County animal control will investigate whether the bull terrier is a threat to other dogs or people. Taylorsville police are handling the investigation, he said. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake Valley shelters split on use of gas chambers/Pamela Manson

Debbie Pedersen says cats, dogs and other animals that are euthanized should be free of fear during those last minutes of life. To that end, the South Salt Lake Animal Services supervisor supports using both gassing and lethal injection. But animals are never gassed at Salt Lake County Animal Services. The shelter has never had a gas chamber and injection is the only method used, according to associate director April Harris. More

03/03/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County mayoral hopefuls at odds over ski links/Mike Gorrell

One hot-button issue Salt Lake County’s next mayor seems certain to inherit involves the growth of the ski industry. The county itself is reworking its Foothills and Canyons Overlay Zone (FCOZ) ordinance governing the types of activities, summer and winter, that resorts may develop. In general, the four GOP candidates for mayor are more supportive of these efforts advancing ski industry commercial interests than the two Democrats looking to succeed Mayor Peter Corroon. But all added caveats to their positions. The Democrats acknowledged the value of being good partners to a ski industry vital to the county’s economy while the Republicans said new developments must be environmentally sensitive. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Utah senators advance resolution to connect ski resorts/Lee Davidson

After some rewriting to please conservation groups, the Utah Senate gave preliminary approval Friday to a resolution promoting connecting Salt Lake County’s four ski resorts with the three around Park City. It voted 22-7 to endorse SCR10 by Sen. Wayne Niederhauser, R-Sandy, and sent it to a final vote in the chamber. More

03/02/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Open house Tuesday on plans for 2300 East/Mike Gorrell

Proposed improvements to 2300 East between Interstate 80 and 3900 South will be the topic of an open house from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday at Rosecrest Elementary, 2420 E. Fisher Lane (2935 South). Salt Lake County Public Works officials will present an updated preliminary design for the planned improvements, which include a roundabout at the I-80 interchange, continuous sidewalks on both sides of 2300 East, bike lanes, two pedestrian crossings, additional lighting and benches, and the elimination of on-street parking. More

ABC 4/ Safety experts to study underground pipelines/Meredith Kulwicki

Safety experts are spending the next few weeks in Utah to study the network of underground pipelines. This inspection comes after two incidents in 2010 when Chevron pipelines burst and leaked oil into Red Butte Creek in Salt Lake City. Safety experts will compile a report that the county will use to hold these oil companies accountable for the pipelines they have in Salt Lake County. More

Salt Lake Tribune/ Salt Lake Valley shelters split on use of gas chambers/Pamela Manson

Debbie Pedersen says cats, dogs and other animals that are euthanized should be free of fear during those last minutes of life. To that end, the South Salt Lake Animal Services supervisor supports using both gassing and lethal injection. But animals are never gassed at Salt Lake County Animal Services. The shelter has never had a gas chamber and injection is the only method used, according to associate director April Harris. Vicious animals can be tranquilized first, sometimes with a syringe attached to a 6-foot-long pole, to protect workers, she said. More

03/01/12

Q Salt Lake/Party Caucuses Help Utahns Get Involved/Seth Bracken

With national races making headlines, the local political arena is often brushed under the rug. But races for city council seats, mayors and state representatives are some of the most important ways to be involved, said Salt Lake County Democrat chairwoman Mary Bishop. One of the biggest races to watch is the Salt Lake County mayoral race, Bishop said. Current Mayor Peter Corroon, a Democrat, is not seeking reelection and two Democrats, Sens. Ben McAdams and Ross Romero, are seeking their party’s nomination to face-off against the Republican candidate. Currently West Valley City Mayor Mike Winder, County Councilman Richard Snelgrove, former County Councilman Mark Crockett and County Recorder Gary Ott have all announced their candidacy for Salt Lake County mayor. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Doggy diners in the works in Salt Lake County?/Julia Lyon

Dog owners might soon be able to dine al fresco with their canine companion if a proposed new health rule for restaurants moves forward. Salt Lake County Councilor Arlyn Bradshaw, a proponent of walkable communities, has asked the Salt Lake Valley Board of Health to investigate the possibility of allowing dogs on outdoor patios at eateries. Restaurant owners would decide whether or not they want to offer the option. More

02/29/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Survey seeks views on Salt Lake parks, recreation offerings/Mike Gorrell

What do Salt Lake County residents want when it comes to parks and recreation? County parks and recreation division officials hope to pin down answers to these questions through surveys mailed recently to 20,000 residents. “One of our main goals of this survey is to learn,” said division spokesman Martin Jensen. “Are we providing the right amenity in the right place? Are we providing enough programs and where you want them?” “The time you invest in completing the survey will aid Salt Lake County in making decisions that will enrich the future of our community and positively affect the lives of its residents,” said County Mayor Peter Corroon in his cover letter. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Solitude-Canyons SkiLink advances in Congress/Thomas Burr

House committee advanced a measure that would force the Forest Service to allow the new connection. The House Natural Resources Committee voted 20-18 along party lines to send the Wasatch Range Recreation Access Enhancement Act to the House floor as Republicans fought off an attempt by Democrats to overhaul the bill. Becker and Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon said they were disappointed and hoped that the bill could be halted on the floor. “The federal process is premature,” Corroon said. “It needs to start with the local community, not with the feds mandating what happens with land in Utah. Government closest to the people governs best. Locals need to be involved.” More

ABC 4/ Groups reject Red Butte Creek oil spill mitigation money/Noah Bond

Two Salt Lake area groups are rejecting mitigation money Chevron paid to help restore waterways damaged by the June 2010 oil spill. The Great Salt Lakekeeper is rejecting $20,000 and Salt Lake County Fish & Game Association is rejecting $90,000. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Curtis Allgier murder case behind schedule/Aaron Falk

Funding issues have put defense attorneys months behind schedule in the case of Curtis Allgier, whose capital murder trial is currently set for June. And while that issue was expected to be resolved Wednesday, attorneys asked 3rd District Judge Paul Maughan to delay the trial date. Maughan declined to continue the trial, but said he could reconsider the issue at a hearing next month. "We’re ready to go ahead and we want to go ahead," Deputy Salt Lake County District Attorney Robert Stott said. "But we don’t want to later on have a higher court find the defense was not effective" because of time issues. More

Salt Lake Tribune/ Patricia Bopp: Four decades of service, and still going strong

Patricia Bopp has been a volunteer for 40 years, contributing her time to causes such as Salt Lake County Meals on Wheels, the Holy Cross gift shop, the Travelers Aid Society, the Good Samaritan program, the Golden Years Senior Activity Center, the River’s Bend Senior Center and Catholic Community Services. “I have always done something in my lifetime for free,” Bopp said. “That is what life is about.” More

02/28/12

Deseret News/Salt Lake County government wins customer service competition

Salt Lake County won the Gold Medal for customer service at the Stevie Awards of Sales and Customer Service. The 6th Annual Awards presentation took place Monday in Las Vegas, Nev. Mayor Peter Corroon has made becoming a nationwide leader in customer service one of his major goals for 2012. Salt Lake County also took second place in the People Choice portion of the Stevie Awards. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County jail $850K in the red/Mike Gorrell

The Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office faces an $850,000 budget shortfall that could force it to close two units containing a total of 128 beds at its Adult Detention Center as early as May. Undersheriff Scott Carver informed a County Council subcommittee on Tuesday that the deficit resulted from a misinterpretation of the amount of state probation funds that would come to the county. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Snowbird coaster is coming as county tweaks rules/Mike Gorrell

Snowbird is poised to get the mountain coaster it wants to bolster summer business. The Little Cottonwood Canyon resort will be able to restart the process of seeking a permit for a coaster — planned now for private land next to the Peruvian Express chairlift rather than the lower face of Mount Superior — with the Salt Lake County Council’s 5-2 approval Tuesday of changes to its ordinance governing uses of the canyons and foothills. The Foothills, Canyons and Overlay Zone review process will be launched at the Wasatch Canyons Today Symposium on March 26 and is expected to take about nine months to complete. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County Council’s lone woman won’t run again/Mike Gorrell

First-term Salt Lake County Councilman Jani Iwamoto will not seek re-election this fall. Iwamoto, who has represented east-side District 4 for four years, said Tuesday that personal obligations will preclude her from running again. “I have some immediate priorities that need to be addressed,” she said. “Although I have had much support, I do not feel I can give the effort necessary to run a campaign and to attend to my present duties on the council.” More

Deseret News/Bill to give financial boost to Leonardo museum passes committee/Amy Joi O’Donoghue

A legislative measure that would funnel $1 million to help The Leonardo museum advanced out of committee Monday, but it will now compete with other funding priorities on Utah’s Capitol Hill. The museum, which opened in October, was financed with a $10.2 million bond, about $750,000 in redevelopment money, and hundreds of thousands of dollars from both Salt Lake County and the state. More

02/27/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Utah Senate panel OKs ski interconnect resolution/Mike Gorrell

A resolution promoting some sort of interconnect system to link Salt Lake County’s four ski resorts and a trio around Park City cleared its first legislative hurdle Monday. The resolution encourages Salt Lake and Summit counties, along with the U.S. Forest Service and the Town of Alta, to “fairly consider the benefits of connecting the various resorts and expeditiously approve a low-impact inter-resort transportation system … based on sound research and public input.” More

Salt Lake Tribune/Tracy Aviary spreading its wings anew/Tom Wharton

Tracy Aviary executive director Tim Brown looked out from the conference room of the venerable Liberty Park institution’s new visitors center, observation tower, education center and office and viewed a small brown bird nesting in a nearby bush. Brown is proud of the new building, which opened in mid-January as the latest in a string of new facilities. Aviary's 10,000-square-foot visitors center was built as part of the $19.6 million bond Salt Lake County voters approved 2008. More

02/26/12

KSL/Donated encyclopedias may not see use in schools, librarians say/Ladd Brubaker

When a new set of encyclopedias arrived unannounced at many schools throughout Utah this past week, some librarians were taken aback. These days students get their information on the Internet, not through a bound encyclopedia, said Warren Child, librarian at Cyprus High School in Magna. In contrast, the Salt Lake County public library system still orders a new set of encyclopedias for its branches each year, said Taylorsville branch manager, Maggie Mills. "The physical items do still get used. Some people are just more comfortable with them." More

02/25/12

Salt Lake Tribune/McEntee: Revised open-carry law would cause fear among unarmed/Peg McEntee

Right from the start, let me say that I honor the U.S. Constitution’s Second Amendment, although the editor in me wants to clarify its language to make it easier to understand. Here in Utah, a lot of people think gun rights are sacrosanct. But when the right to bear arms comes into conflict with a law enforcement officer’s ability to protect the public, we have a problem. This year, Rep. Paul Ray’s HB49 would eliminate that option. As he said a few days ago, if there’s nothing threatening or disorderly, a person can’t be cited with disorderly conduct. However, an officer still could ask questions. Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder would like to see HB49 heavily revised or held until the Legislature is out of session so law enforcement, lawmakers and we the public can discuss and assess it more thoroughly. More

02/24/12

ABC 4/ Man robs Riverton credit union

Salt Lake County Unified Police say a man robbed the Cyprus Credit Union in Riverton on Friday. UPD spokesman Justin Hoyal told ABC 4 News that the robbery happened at the Cyprus Credit Union on 13717 South Redwood Road just before 4:00 p.m. More

02/23/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Volunteer duo average 50 hours a month at a Salt Lake County library

Ida and Laurie Bickley have been volunteering at the Columbus Library in South Salt Lake since November 2006. More

Examiner/CSA Utah open house opens the food basket for the community/Shad Engkilterra

On Feb. 23, 2012, CSA Utah held its winter open house at Wheeler Farm for farmers and prospective participants in the farmers’ community supported agriculture (CSA) programs. Jim Bradley, member at large for the Salt Lake County Council says that the county putting idle land in Salt Lake County into production and there are now about 30 acres of public land being used by private farmers. More

USA Today/Cities merge police agencies in light of budget realities/Kevin Johnson

MIDVALE, Utah – For more than a century, one of this town's proudest assets was its police department. It was, Mayor JoAnn Seghini said, one of the ways Midvale — population 30,000 — asserted its civic identity from the looming shadow of Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County. Faced with mounting costs and declining revenue, the city grudgingly approved the dissolution of its 102-year-old police force and fire department in favor of an unusual merger with four other local police agencies and the Salt Lake County Sheriff's Department. Under the new structure, known as the Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake, the member cities are now "precincts," headed by the former chiefs. Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder serves as the chief executive of the consortium, overseen by a council of elected officials drawn from participating cities and Salt Lake County. More

ABC 4/Proposed Utah law would ban DUI checkpoints

Police checkpoints targeting drunk drivers may be prohibited in Utah. Republican Rep. David Butterfield of Logan says the checkpoints violate the constitutional protections against unreasonable searches. Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder says the checkpoints have reduced fatalities from drunk driving, especially in Utah's canyons and rural areas. More

KSL/District attorney: Child Abuse on the rise in Salt Lake County/Sandra Yi

On a weekday night in February, Kim Hale and her 14-year-old daughter wash dishes together in their home. It's a typical mother-daughter moment. But for Hale, it's just another reminder of what should have been. Shelby was only 10 years old when she died. Not all abuse stories are uncovered, and they're happening behind closed doors in alarming numbers — especially in Salt Lake County, where prosecutors noticed a disturbing trend surfacing last year. Cases of physical abuse surpassed sex crimes against children, which isn't typical. "The fact that they could noticeably discern there was a difference, that was troubling because obviously that tells you a trend is there," said Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill. There's no definite answer that explains why it's happening. Some blame the downturn in the economy. More people may also be reporting abuse, and physicians are better trained at recognizing the signs More

Salt Lake Tribune/Pipes to the past: A look at Utah’s ‘Mighty Wurlitzers’/Ben Fulton

This movie season — thanks to "The Artist" and "Hugo" — the Organ Loft, Utah’s only theater house hosting silent film screenings to live music accompaniment, has seen its attendance rise. Utah’s Wurlitzers » It’s estimated that the Wurlitzer Company, first of Cincinnati and then Chicago, manufactured more than 2,200 of these theater organs between 1914 and 1942. The closest Salt Lake City can boast is the Wurlitzer at downtown’s Capitol Theatre. Installed in 1927, it was used for only a handful of years as the "talkies" ascended in the early 1930s. "It needs maintenance," said Melinda Cavallaro, events director for Salt Lake County, which manages the Capitol Theatre and its amenities. "But it’s a wonderful piece of theater history." More

Deseret News/Utah House votes to ban DUI checkpoints/Dennis Romboy

Police peering into cares lined up at a sobriety checkpoint could be a thing of the past. The Utah House narrowly passed a bill Thursday that would prohibit police checkpoints except for fugitive searches, Amber Alerts or checks for wildlife and invasive species such as zebra mussels on boat propellers. Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder, Mothers Against Drunk Driving and the Utah Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice have come out against the bill. More

02/22/12

Deseret News/Two new greenhouses open at Salt Lake County Jail

Vegetables, herbs and flowers are in bloom at Salt Lake County Jail. The jail officially opened two new greenhouses Wednesday. The new structures are the most recent expansion to the Prisoner Horticulture Program. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Shares of farmers’ produce for sale Thursday

Urban farming advocates in CSA Utah (Community Supported Agriculture) will hold their annual open house from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Wheeler Farm, 6351 S. 900 East, in Murray. The open house gives the public a chance to buy "shares" in the harvests of Utah farmers in CSA. People pay a fee at the beginning of the growing season to help a farmer meet operating expenses, then receive portions of the farm’s harvest each week of the growing season, said Salt Lake County spokeswoman Michelle Schmitt. County Councilman Jim Bradley, an urban farming advocate, will speak at 6:30 p.m. about the program’s benefits. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Volunteer donates thousands of dollars for senior’s groceries

Charles (Chuck) Westfahl is honored by Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon as one of the county's "vital" volunteers. Charles “Chuck” Westfahl provides transportation for seniors through Salt Lake County Aging Services, logging 216 volunteer hours last year alone. Several years ago, Westfahl decided to encourage more seniors to join his grocery route by raffling gift cards as an incentive. With the help of a local grocery store — which agreed to match Westfahl’s donation — the Draper volunteer put his program into action. When the store’s financial assistance stopped, Westfahl’s didn’t. In three years, he gave away 108 gift cards totaling $2,700. More

02/21/12

Deseret News/Progress made, but it could be weeks before decision is made on S.L. Marathon/Amy Donaldson

U.S. Road Sports met the city’s deadline for staging the Salt Lake marathon – mostly. “Essentially, U.S. Road Sports provided most of the information we requested by the deadline,” said Art Raymond, spokesman for the mayor’s office. “They were missing a significant document from the county, but we decided to give them a little leeway on that.” The document U.S. Road Sports was missing was an application for a mass gathering issued by Salt Lake County. More

KSL/Business leader hit by UTA bus dies from injuries

A prominent businessman honored for his contributions to revitalizing downtown Salt Lake City was hit and killed by a Utah Transit Authority bus Tuesday. Richard Wirick, 82, who was known as "Mr. Downtown," died after being hit and pinned under a bus for nearly 45 minutes. (Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon featured in video available on website.) More

Deseret News/Living Planet Aquarium moving to Draper/Steve Fidel

The Living Planet Aquarium is planning a move to Draper after working out a public-private financing package it has been chasing since first putting fish in tanks at The Gateway in 2004. Living Planet started with 10,000 square feet in The Gateway then moved into its 43,000-square-foot location in Sandy while trying to work a financing deal both with Salt Lake City and, later, Salt Lake County. The organization then walked away from its plans for a permanent downtown structure and started courting Sandy officials. More

ABC4/The spice high/Marcos Ortiz

Users claim spice can help them beat a drug test. And they also say it is plentiful in Salt Lake City. Those are some of the reasons users are attracted to the illegal substance. The Utah Legislature banned the substance but even police admit it keeps showing up in some smoke shops and small convenience stores. So what is the attraction to the drug? ABC 4 News went to Salt Lake County's Criminal Services. It's where drug users get counseling and are monitored for drug use. More

The Main Street Business Journal/Utah Tourism Board Gets New Leadership/Tracie Cayford

Utah Governor Gary R. Herbert has appointed a new chairman and vice-chairman to the Board of Tourism Development following the recent addition of two new members and the reappointment of five others to the board. The existing members of the tourism board are: Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon, Utah Association of Counties; Colin Fryer, Carbon, Emery, Grand, Duchesne, Daggett, and Uintah Counties; Georgianna Knudson, Davis. More

Salt Lake Tribune/ACLU of Utah’s new legal boss called ‘capable, committed’/Melinda Rogers

The American Civil Liberties Union of Utah has hired a new legal director. Utah native John M. Mejia will take over the leadership position formerly held by Darcy Goddard, the organization’s executive director, Karen McCreary, confirmed on Tuesday. Goddard, who has declined to speak about her departure from the ACLU, has since taken a position in the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office, where she works in civil litigation. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Senate resolution pushes ski interconnect/Mike Gorrell

A legislative resolution calling for a system interconnecting the seven ski resorts of Salt Lake and Summit counties ran into opposition soon after its introduction Tuesday. Drafted by Sen. Wayne Niederhauser, R-Sandy, SCR10 contends that linking the resorts would bolster Utah’s tourism and ski industries while providing environmental and safety benefits. “Connecting the ski resorts in Summit County and Salt Lake County will create a skiing experience unavailable anywhere else in North America," the resolution said. said Save Our Canyons Executive Director Carl Fisher. "It’s a blatant disregard for the mountain transportation study going on right now in Salt Lake County … and it will alienate users bringing money into Salt Lake for the other three seasons of recreating." More

02/20/12

ABC4/Investigates: Spice in the city/Brian Carlson

Drug addicts call it spice, but police call it a big problem. It's the latest drug trend hitting the streets in Salt Lake City. And although cops and lawmakers are cracking down on spice, it won’t go away. "It acts on the human brain much the same as THC," said Salt Lake County Unified Police Narcotics Diversion Unit Sgt. Scott Van Wagoner. More

Standard Examiner/Hiker with gun threatens woman in SLC canyon (AP)

Police officers are searching a Salt Lake City-area canyon for a hiker they say brandished a firearm at woman who was walking with her dog. Salt Lake County Unified Police Sgt. Justin Hoyal says the incident occurred Monday morning in Neff's Canyon near the mouth of Millcreek Canyon. Hoyal says the woman told investigators the male hiker pulled a gun and threatened her after her dog sniffed him. More

02/17/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Reone Wood, longtime Salt Lake County Fair worker dies/Mike Gorrell

For more than half a century, Roene Wood was a fixture at the Salt Lake County Fair. And when she wasn’t working on its annual run in Murray Park, she devoted her free time to being home-arts supervisor at the State Fair, a 4-H leader, a PTA president, an LDS Relief Society leader, an officer in the Daughters of Utah Pioneers and a seamstress, winning many ribbons of her own at fairs. “She spent a lot of hours working back then in the days when I think they paid 25 cents an hour or less. If you made enough money to pay gas in your car, you considered yourself lucky,” said Sparky Dibble, creative-arts supervisor at the State Fair and competitive exhibits coordinator at the County Fair. “It was all volunteer service strictly for the community.” Wood died at her home Monday of causes incident to age. She was 95. More

Salt Lake Tribune/UtahsRight: Food inspections in health care facilities/Jessica Miller

In their most recent food inspections, Salt Lake County care facilities received an average of five violations each. Of the 122 facilities, which include nursing homes, care centers and hospitals, inspectors with the Salt Lake Valley Health Department observed 598 food-related violations. More

02/16/12

FOX 13/New feral cat population control program launched in Holladay/Max Roth

Holladay may be the next city to try maintaining a feral cat population as part of an experimental program. Salt Lake County Animal Services released dozens of cats into their old neighborhood every month as part of a program to reduce the feral cat population without euthanizing them. April Harris from the Salt Lake County Animal Services says that for decades before, feral cats have been euthanized. She says that philosophy has since shifted. “We're not in the business of killing animals, we're in the business of saving the cats. And so we've tried these programs in Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County and Midvale and they work,” said Harris. More

Deseret News/Deadline set for S.L Marathon officials/Amy Donaldson

Salt Lake officials have set a hard deadline for deciding whether or not the Salt Lake Marathon will happen. In doing that, the city asks new race officials to do several things: Submit a complete special events application with proposed revised route; Submit copies of the completed application to the other municipalities impacted by the proposed route. Among those: Salt Lake County, Salt Lake Valley Health Department. More

Utah Pulse/Arts Funding May Go On November's Ballot/Bob Bernick

Utah voters may well get a chance to tell state lawmakers whether they want to raise their own sales tax to support the arts You can see here what the Utah Taxpayers Association says the current, county-option, ZAP (Zoo, Arts and Parks) sales tax of 0.1 percent brought in in 2010. Among all the entities who levy that tax, across the board ZAP brought in $25.8 million. That money is then doled out by the governing bodies to various qualifying groups, like a local zoo or music group. ZAP is only levied in counties where the county government adopted it. Salt Lake County is one such county. It is not a statewide tax. More

02/15/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Small Salt Lake County farms may be big tax break/Lee Davidson

Salt Lake County’s small "urban farmers" soon could receive big property tax breaks. More

Salt Lake Tribune/S.L. County D.A.’s new digs will cost an additional $12M/Mike Gorrell

A new building to house the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office is going to cost almost $12 million more than projected when the facility was pitched to the County Council in 2010. Gill said savings would amount to $15 million over the 30-year life of a bond to cover the additional expense. “I want you to have the building you need — the [pricing] mistakes were made by people before you — but do we need everything on that list?” asked County Council Chairman David Wilde. Consolidating all of the district attorney’s operations into one facility also will provide “intangible efficiencies” in the use of office supplies and equipment, technological support and staff interactions, added Deputy Mayor Nichole Dunn. She accepted responsibility for the errors in the cost estimate for the building. But County Councilman Michael Jensen said she was just being valiant and that more of the blame should be affixed to Gill’s predecessor, former District Attorney Lohra Miller. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Compromise could clear the way for a Snowbird coaster/Mike Gorrell

A compromise is moving forward that could allow Snowbird Ski & Summer Resort to build a mountain coaster this summer without opening the door to widespread development in Salt Lake County’s canyons. Because two county boards had conflicting interpretations of the ordinance, the District Attorney’s Office advised county planners to update the document, particularly to reflect the fact ski resorts now have year-round activities. Consequently, County Planning Director Rolen Yoshinaga sat down with city water officials and resort representatives and came up with a compromise designed to do two things: recognize formally that ski resorts have summer activities, clearing the way for Snowbird and other resorts to proceed with some of their plans, while maintaining environmental protections that will forestall major development proposals until the county finishes a more thorough examination of the ordinance. That review is scheduled to begin this spring. More

02/14/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Civics Central: Feral cats in Holladay, school bus ads in Jordan

Here’s your weekly roundup of what local city councils, school boards and other government entities are tackling during regularly scheduled meetings. Holladay City Council will discuss at a work meeting a pilot program by Salt Lake County Animal Services to trap, neuter and release feral cats. -- Salt Lake County Council will hear a proposal from Mayor Peter Corroon to bond an additional $11.8 million to complete construction of a new consolidated building for the District Attorney’s Office at 600 South and State Street. The additional funding would raise the overall project tab to $42.9 million. The Mayor’s Office says consolidating operations will save the D.A.’s Office $14.8 million over the next 30 years. More

02/13/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Lawmakers side with farmers in fight with Central Utah Project/Lee Davidson

Legislators sided Monday with some Utah County farmers seeking to protect their land from a big, new pipeline proposed by the Central Utah Project. Michael Jensen, a Salt Lake County Council member who leads the board that oversees the CUP, said the CUP found that it had no ability under current law to appeal that decision. He said the CUP can build around the farmers, but it will cost taxpayers extra money. More

Cache Valley Daily/ Butterfield: checkpoints violate right to privacy/Jennie Christensen

Police checkpoints aimed at nabbing drunk drivers could become a thing of the past in Utah. Representative David Butterfield, R-District 4, is sponsor of House Bill 140 which would prohibit police checkpoints except for fugitive searches, Amber Alerts, wildlife checks and the prevention of invasive species. The bill passed the House Law Enforcement Committee eight to five Friday despite opposition from law enforcement groups and prosecutors. Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder says the checkpoints have reduced fatalities from drunk driving especially in Utah's canyons and rural areas. More

Deseret News/Couple pushes for safety improvements along Old Bingham Highway after losing grandchild in crash/Sara Lenz & Hunter Schwarz

After losing their 2-year-old granddaughter in an automobile accident last week, a Salt Lake City couple is working to ensure safety improvements are made at a dangerous U-111 and Old Bingham Highway intersection. An accident report from the UDOT Salt Lake City project manager suggested adding a traffic signal and an advanced warning device placed before the signal for northbound traffic approaching the intersection. More

02/12/12

Deseret News/Salt Lake County opposes property inventory bill/Steve Fidel

A bill that would require counties to audit the properties they own each year and dispose of properties not being used each year got a thumbs down from the Salt Lake County Council. SB163, sponsored by Sen. Mark B. Madsen, R-Eagle Mountain, would add the requirement that Salt Lake County would include approximately 1,550 properties, many of which are “small tax-deed strips that the county has no use for,” said Lee Colvin, director of the county’s Real Estate Division. More

KCPW/DUI Checkpoints Could be Scrapped/Whittney Evans

DUI checkpoints could become a thing of the past in Utah. HB 140, sponsored by Republican Representative David Butterfield, repeals authorization for law enforcement to do police checkpoints for anything other than Amber Alerts, looking for fugitives and wildlife invasive species. But Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder says checkpoints are structured in a way that don’t compromise constitutional rights. “If you overcome the hurdle of constitutionality and then you want to argue about effectiveness, than deterrent versus arrest has to come into the total equation, right? I’m a big deterrent guy, I’d rather not fill up the jails. I don’t want to arrest you. I’d rather have you be scared and stay home,” Winder says. More

02/08/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Cottonwood Heights moves forward with CDA for Canyon Center/Katie Drake

Skiers should see more parking at the base of Big Cottonwood Canyon as early as next year now that Cottonwood Heights has approved a plan to share tax revenue with a developer. The City Council, acting as the Community Development and Renewal Agency, on Tuesday approved several interlocal agreements with other taxing entities to create a Community Development Area for the proposed Canyon Center. Entities such as the Canyons School District and Salt Lake County have pledged an average of 75 percent of future tax revenue they would gain over the next 25 years to the project. More

New Energy World Network/Bella Energy completes 1.65MW rooftop PV system

US solar company Bella Energy has completed installation of a 1.65MW photovoltaic (PV) array on the roof of the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. The system is one of the largest of its kind in the US and the biggest rooftop PV facility in the state of Utah. Peter Corroon, Mayor of Salt Lake County, said, ‘Salt Lake County is committed to reducing its energy usage through conservation and the use of renewable technology at its facilities…’ More

Salt Lake Tribune/Plans developing to help develop downtown’s core/Mike Gorrell

Salt Lake County and Salt Lake City are getting closer to being able to jointly distribute funding dedicated to building downtown’s "cultural core." During the past year, while a consultant surveyed more than 70 arts and cultural organizations about ways to make downtown more active, the two government entities created a six-member committee to handle sales tax revenues set aside for use in enlivening that district. The committee’s next task is to recommend a process to city and county officials for "investing" these funds. More

Salt Lake Tribune/West Valley Council wants animal shelter to become no-kill facility/Pamela Manson

West Valley City Council members plan to issue a proclamation next week announcing their goal to have a no-kill animal shelter. West Valley City plans to follow the lead of the Salt Lake County Animal Services, which last year achieved its goal of euthanizing fewer than five animals for every 1,000 population it serves. More

Deseret News/Salt Lake County opposes property inventory bill/Steve Fidel

A bill that would require counties to audit the properties they own each year and dispose of properties not being used each year for a thumbs down from the Salt Lake County Council on Wednesday. SB163 would add the requirement that Salt Lake County would include approximately 1,550 properties, many of which are “small tax-deed strips that the county has no use for,” said Lee Colvin, director of the county’s Real Estate Division. More

Deseret News/’Cultural Core’ group poised to start spending money to promote downtown arts/Steve Fidel

AThe first money from an agreement between Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County to promote arts in downtown “Cultural Core” will be spent this year. The new 20-year agreement will draw as much as $500,000 per year from sales taxes collected in the area. Unlike the Zoo, Arts and Parks tax, the new money committed to the downtown arts zone will not fund major venues or existing organizations but rather “shine a spotlight” on untapped arts activities, said Phil Jordan, division director of the county’s Center for the Arts. More

02/06/12

Best Friends Network - Newsletter/Changing for all the right reasons/Denise LeBeau

The only constant is change,” says Clint Thacker, Davis County Animal Services director, regarding the progressive lifesaving directions his agency is embracing. Clint has been with Davis County since February 2011. Prior to that, he was with Salt Lake County Animal Services, and before that he was an animal control office for Sandy city. “I’ve seen too many animals euthanized and that was the old way animal care was run,” says Clint. “Going to Salt Lake County opened my eyes to what can be done.” Clint looks forward to saving even more animals in 2012. More

City Weekly/Storytelling with Donald Davis and Bill Lepp

Salt Lake County Library is pleased to once again present professional storytelling superstars Donald Davis and Bill Lepp. More

02/01/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County veteran picked to run purchasing division/Mike Gorrell

In just one day last week, Salt Lake County’s purchasing team signed contracts for survival body armor for law enforcement, catering services for the soon-to-open Millcreek community center and furniture for a West Jordan library. "You find out pretty quickly who has construction projects and big [information technology] projects going and all sorts of things that agencies are purchasing," said Jason Yocom, a Salt Lake County veteran who became the division’s director in mid-January. "He was familiar with county government, familiar with the nuances of what goes on here," said April Townsend, the county’s Administrative Services director. More

Deseret News/Randy Horiuchi’s condition upgraded to good/Amy Joi O’Donoghue

Hospital officials said Salt County Councilman Randy Horiuchi, who suffered a stroke on Friday, has improved and is now listed in good condition. More

Deseret News/Solar array will generate power, business for Salt Palace Convention Center/Steve Fidel

A new solar array atop the Salt Palace Convention Center is growing by 200 panels a day and will produce about 17 percent of the convention center’s energy once completed this spring. Kimberly Barnett, senior adviser to Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon, said convention planners shopping for space often as how “green” the facility is. Developing solar projects has been a high priority for Corroon. “Salt Lake County is committed to reducing its energy usage through conservation and the use of renewable technologies at its facilities,” he said.                PHOTOS AVAILABLE More

KSL/Largest solar energy array growing daily/Keith McCord

A new solar energy array atop the Salt Palace Convention Center is growing by 200 panels a day and will produce about 17 percent of the convention center's energy once completed this spring.             VIDEO AVAILABLE More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County to be lenient with late business licenses/Mike Gorrell

About 40 Salt Lake County companies that were tardy last year in renewing business licenses could receive relief from late-payment penalties. The County Council decided this week to give those companies a chance to document their compliance history and to show that they missed last year’s deadline because the county changed the timing of its renewal process. “This will allow the hearing officer some latitude when he hears their appeals,” Councilman Jim Bradley said. “If the business has a history of compliance, [the hearing officer] can waive the late fee or reduce it.” More

Deseret News/Bill to criminalize possession of graffiti tool advances to final reading/Marjorie Cortez

Despite concerns that legislation criminalizing the possession of graffiti tools would infringe on personal liberties, the Senate gave preliminary approval to SB107 Wednesday. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Karen Mayne, D-West Valley City, would make the possession of spray paint, markers and other tools of taggers a class B misdemeanor. Mayne said that members of the Unified Police Department asked her help with the issue. Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder said the initial thinking was the issue could be dealt with through local ordinance. But since graffiti is a statewide problem, it “morphed into a bill.” More

01/30/12

ABC 4/S.L. County councilman Horiuchi's condition improves/Dan Metcalf Jr.

Salt Lake County Councilman Randy Horiuchi has been upgraded from serious to fair condition, according to a spokesperson with the University of Utah Hospital. Horiuchi continued to recuperate after having a stroke last Friday, according to U of U Health Care Spokesperson Kathy Wilets. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County animal shelter achieves no-kill status/Pamela Manson

Five years ago, staff members at Salt Lake County Animal Services felt demoralized by the practice of euthanizing healthy animals because space was tight. And in 2011, the shelter marked its first official year as a no-kill facility. “People don’t want to get behind anything that involves killing animals, but they will get behind lifesaving programs,” April Harris, Salt Lake County Animal Services associate director, said of the community support that helped the agency reach its goal. More

01/27/12

KCPW/Bill Could Give County Lift Against Lawsuit/Eric Ray

A bill that could stop a lawsuit Salt Lake County Auditor Greg Hawkins has filed against Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon and the county council dead in its tracks cleared a Senate committee yesterday. Hawkins is suing the mayor and council over Corroon’s plan to shift certain accounting and budgeting functions from his office to Corroon’s. Salt Lake County Councilman Michael Jensen told the committee the bill will help the county with the current litigation. “Part of the litigation asks the court to look at the statute and give clarification, and define better, what the statute is. The council and the mayor have taken a position that we would rather have the legislature do that than have the courts,” said Jensen. More

01/26/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Dogs, handlers train to save avalanche victims along Wasatch Front (video)/Brett Prettyman

Tucker, the 4-month-old black Labrador Retriever, locked his legs and did his best to get off of his leash as Lauren Edwards pulled him toward the waiting helicopter. But like all good avalanche rescue dogs, the young puppy quickly gave up his battle. He entered the AirMed chopper for a quick ride around the top of Big Cottonwood Canyon. Ari Theodore works at Snowbird. He said WBR (Wasatch Backcountry Rescue) exists due to unique conditions along the Wasatch Front and a strong commitment from the resorts and other partners such as Unified Police and Salt Lake County Search and Rescue to respond to backcountry incidents. More

01/25/12

Deseret News/Salt Lake Valley Health Department enlists help from public in identifying potential health issues

Residents wanting to report health regulation violations and/or file complaints with the Salt Lake Valley Health Department can do so with a new public reporting telephone line. The new service, available by calling 385-468- 8888, was announced Wednesday as a way people living in or visiting the county can more "easily and efficiently alert the department to public health concerns," according to spokesman Nicholas Rupp. "In addition to scheduled surprise inspections of the businesses we regulate, we also rely on the public to let us know about violations or problems they observe in their neighborhoods and in the businesses they frequent," said SLVHD Director Gary Edwards. "We can't do anything about a problem we don't know about." More

Salt Lake Tribune/New Salt Lake Health Department hot line launched

Suspect your recent illness was caused by food poisoning? Concerned about secondhand smoke wafting through your apartment building? Salt Lake County residents can now call in complaints and health violations to the Salt Lake Valley Health Department via a new hot line at 385-468-8888. Officials say they rely on the public as well as their inspectors to provide information about potential problems. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Bill draws concern over tax shift to homeowners/Cathy McKitrick

A bill to boost property tax exemptions for businesses from $3,800 to $25,000 is raising red flags among county assessors and low-income advocates. By raising the personal property exemption by nearly 650 percent, the measure sponsored by Rep. Patrick Painter, R-Nephi, would shift a $12 million tax burden onto Utah homeowners. Salt Lake County Assessor Lee Gardner said he doubted HB41 would reduce the number of audits his staff conducts. Personal property taxes are self-reported, Gardner said, and a system of random audits helps keep businesses honest. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Utah’s Valley Mental Health loses money under OptumHealth/Heather May

Valley Mental Health has returned $1.3 million to Salt Lake County because it didn’t provide enough care to low-income mentally ill patients last year. And it may have to hand over another $725,000 for providing fewer services than expected in the first quarter of its new contract, said Tim Whalen, director of the county’s behavioral health system. “They just don’t have the encounters to support the prepayment,” Whalen said. More

01/24/12

Deseret News/Rally to protest changes to canyons, foothills ordinance/Amy Joi O’Donoghue

Opponents of proposed changes in ski area and canyon zoning ordinances rallied Tuesday, saying the changes expand ski resorts into public land, harming the environment and affecting drinking water. The rally, organized by Save Our Canyons, was held in the Salt Lake County South Building at 2100 South and State Street, before a regular County Council meeting where the zoning ordinances were to be discussed. County officials say the overlay zone needs to be overhauled because it's outdated and hard to understand. Salt Lake County Planning Director Rolen Yoshinaga said the change enables what has been allowed for years to occur through implication to be expressly addressed by the ordinance. "What we are trying to do is clarify what has been somewhat assumed over the years," he said, adding that nothing in the current ordinance contemplates annual activities like Oktoberfest at Snowbird. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Proposed canyon rule ‘scares’ Salt Lake City water officials/Mike Gorrell

The harshest language against proposed changes to Salt Lake County’s ordinance governing activities in Wasatch Front canyons came not from conservationists who nearly filled the County Council chambers Tuesday, but from the Salt Lake City water department. As outlined to the council by planning and development services director Rolen Yoshinaga, the changes would clarify that ski resorts have summer uses as well as winter, identify acceptable year-round recreational uses that could qualify for waivers on steep slopes where development is proposed, and specify that county planners could choose any of 10 criteria for granting a waiver. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Nuclear testing fallout victims recognized this week/Judy Fahys

Commemorative events are set for Friday in Salt Lake City to mark more than six decades of nuclear weapons tests and the impacts they had on people around the West. Gov. Gary Herbert, local leaders in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Kane County and Springdale have designated Jan. 27 as a Day of Remembrance for Downwinders. More

The Spectrum/Downwinders hope Day of Rememberance spurs change/David DeMille

Downwinders and supporters throughout the western United States are staging events this week to observe a national Day of Remembrance for the people and families who were exposed to radiation from atomic testing and nuclear fallout and had to deal with the health effects. In Salt Lake City, downwinders are meeting in the Hall of Governors at the Utah State Capitol, with Dickson joining Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon and many others to honor the victims. More

01/23/12

Utah Pulse (Blog)/Winder Says ‘Burwash’ Situation May Not Hurt His SLCo Mayor Run/Bryan Schott

West Valley City Mayor Mike Winder is expected to officially enter the race for Salt Lake County Mayor this week. The move is surprising because of the whole "Richard Burwash" incident from last year where Winder admitted to writing news articles about West Valley City under an assumed name. Despite the resulting furor, Winder says the Burwash incident gives him a significant hill to climb with voters, but he thinks it's not insurmountable. More

01/22/12

KSL/ With end of chemical weapon stockpile, federal funding goes too/Amy Joi’Donoghue

The elimination of Utah's chemical weapons stockpile will also mean the elimination of millions of dollars in federal funding to the state that helped pay for sophisticated emergency command centers, equipment and training for thousands of front-line responders. Steve Sautter, manager of Salt Lake County's Joint Information Center, worked at the Umatilla chemical weapons site in Washington for nearly 10 years. He said there was a Navy jet crash in neighboring rural Oregon. "The Navy brass walked into the EOC," he said, and were astounded. More

01/20/12

Salt Lake Tribune/ Sundance: Finding the emotional connection of a robot (video)

Some 45,000 people will descend on Utah over the next eight days of the Sundance Film Festival, Gov. Gary Herbert said on Friday night, but most obvious at the Salt Lake City premiere were the no-shows. The festival attracts not just starlets but also politicians, Herbert said, introducing Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin in a Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center theater filled with local officials, including Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon. More

Salt Lake Tribune/ Utah’s Salt Palace manager leaving for Georgia/Mike Gorrell

In her tenure with Salt Lake County’s two convention facilities, Allyson Jackson oversaw their use for the Winter Olympics and two dozen Outdoor Retailer markets along with consumer shows that attracted more than 2 million visitors. “The decision to move back to Georgia was difficult and is genuinely bittersweet,” said Jackson, 56. “It’s a good time to go back to my hometown. This will be the last stop in my working career.” More

01/19/12

Deseret News/ Salt Lake County housing market improving/Jasen Lee

The Salt Lake County housing market is finally looking up. The 2012 Salt Lake Housing Market report released this week predicted that existing home sales in Salt Lake County will rise roughly 15 percent to more than 12,500 units sold compared to residential sales in 2011. More

Utah Pulse/ Salt Lake Bids a Fond Farewell to Allyson Jackson

Following 13 years overseeing the management and operation of Salt Lake's Calvin L. Rampton Salt Palace Convention Center and South Towne Exposition Center, Allyson Jackson is going home, returning to Georgia's Jekyll Island and trading her Salt Lake SMG responsibilities for those of the Jekyll Island Convention Center “The success of our convention center has been impressive, especially when you consider how much construction the facility experienced during multiple expansions,” said Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon. “Credit for managing such a successful facility belongs to Allyson and her wonderful southern charm. She will indeed be missed." More

Salt Lake Tribune/ Utah Supreme Court won’t review overturned murder conviction/Aaron Falk

The Utah Supreme Court will not review an appeals court decision to overturn a Magna man’s murder conviction. The high court’s denial this week of the state’s petition means Billy Justin Charles’ case will head back to the 3rd District Court, where local prosecutors say they intend to retry the 15-year-old case. "We were comfortable in the original filing," Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill said. "We will certainly review it, but we have no reason at this time to not prosecute this." More

01/18/12

Salt Lake Tribune/ Winder on YouTube: I am running for Salt Lake County mayor/Pamela Manson

West Valley City Mayor Mike Winder, who has been considering a run for Salt Lake County mayor, is scheduled to make a "political announcement" next week. Winder said Wednesday he "most likely" will throw his hat in the ring for county mayor but declined to confirm that he is launching a campaign. More

01/17/12

Deseret News/Mike Winder to enter race for Salt Lake County mayor/Jared Page

Mike Winder is expected to officially announce his candidacy for Salt Lake County mayor during a meeting with supporters next week. More

Salt Lake Tribune/ Bill would allow state workers to insure domestic partners, adult relatives/Rosemary Winters

The ability of Utah’s public employees to share their health insurance with a same-sex partner could be extended beyond liberal outposts in Salt Lake and Summit counties to the farthest reaches of the state. Rep. Brian Doughty, a Salt Lake City Democrat and the state’s only openly gay lawmaker, has filed a bill that would allow unmarried state employees to share employee benefits with an "adult designee" instead of a spouse. It’s similar to programs provided by Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County governments. More

Daily Herald/ Provo council to review residential beekeeping/Genelle Pugmire

While honey bees and Mason bees are quietly resting in their hives for the winter, the Provo Municipal Council is scheduled to review the city's year-long ordinance on beekeeping. By law, beekeepers must register with the Utah Department of Agriculture, but the enforcement of the laws connected to beekeeping in each city are different. Salt Lake City's residential beekeeping laws are enforced by the Salt Lake County Health Department. More

01/15/12

Salt Lake Tribune/ Ordinary Utahns tell their fascinating personal stories in new book/Kristen Moulton

As uprisings spread through the Arab world last spring, personal historian Paulette Stevens was struck by the power of ordinary people to challenge tyranny. And that got Stevens, who helps people put their own stories into words, thinking: Why not put out a call for Utahns to tell their own stories of fighting for dignity or for freedom? The storytelling effort is part of a movement to value and record the stories of ordinary people, said Carol Ormond, program administrator for Salt Lake County Library Services. The stories for One World, Many Stories were written by participants in four-session workshops at the library’s branches last summer. The stories are fascinating, Ormond said. More

01/10/12

Examiner/ HEAL Utah and supporters oppose EnergySolutions subversion of 2005 waste ban/ Shad Engkilterra

On January 10, 2012, HEAL Utah held a rally in support of Utah’s 2005 ban of B and C class nuclear waste. The ban is threatened by EnergySolutions plan to bring blended waste to their facility in Clive, Utah. Among the politicians who have issued statements supporting the 2005 ban and against the blended waste policy are Congressman Jim Matheson, Mayor Peter Corroon and Salt Lake County Council Member Jani Iwamoto. More

KCPW/ Mayor Corroon Delivers Final State of County Address/Whitney Evans

An emotional Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon addressed the council, county employees and residents this morning during his final state of the county address. More

Deseret News/Critics blast regulator’s decision to allow blended N-waste at Energy Solutions’ site/Amy Joi O’Donoghue

Anti-nuclear activists were joined Tuesday by Rep. Jim Matheson , D-Utah, in their criticism of a state regulatory agency's decision to allow EnergySolutions to accept blended nuclear waste in advance of completing new safety assessments at its Tooele County site. Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon also voiced his disapproval, saying the decision to allow the waste is premature in advance of the analysis being completed. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Utah County No. 3 in job growth in nation/Lee Davidson

While economists say Utah’s job growth is still slower than normal, Utah County managed to rise to No. 3 among the nation’s largest counties for adding jobs from June 2010 to June 2011, according to federal data released Tuesday. Meanwhile, Salt Lake County added about 10,000 jobs for growth of 1.9 percent — still more than double the national average. It ranked No. 56 among the nation’s 322 largest counties. More

Deseret News/Corroon’s final State of the County address points to the need for a clean place to live in the future/Steve Fidel

A thick haze filled the air over the valley as Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon gave his final State of the County address Tuesday. "Our future must include clean, healthy air to breathe and water to drink; and clean, safe land to live on," Corroon said from the council chambers in the county government complex. "The smoggy air we see and breathe during inversions should become a thing of the past." More

Salt Lake Tribune/Corroon: Salt Lake County mayor plans busy final year/Mike Gorrell

Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon made it to the last few paragraphs of his final State of the County speech Tuesday before his voice cracked for the first time. At that point, he was expressing appreciation for the fact that, throughout his seven years in office, he has received credit for work done by the "strong shoulders of our thousands of employees." "This year’s speech will not define the last days of a lame-duck administration," the Democrat said. "We’re not going to sit back and relax. We have a great team and we have big issues to address." More

01/09/12

Deseret News/Food storage battles: Store and ignore or a basement store?/Michael De Groote

It wasn't a community catastrophe that made Stephan Gabrielson break into the extra supplies of food he had stored in his home. "I envisioned a disaster on a large scale where everyone had to rely on their food storage to survive — something like an earthquake where we are without power and transportation for weeks," Stephan said recently in his home in West Valley City. The Gabrielsons' latest foray into their food storage began in 2009 when Stephan, an auditor in Salt Lake County's budget division, took a six percent cut in compensation due to the county's efforts to reduce costs. More

01/08/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Legislator burning daylight on same bad idea/Paul Rolly

Rep. Jim Nielson, R-Bountiful, recently unveiled a bill for this year’s Legislature to do away with daylight saving time in Utah. This has been tried before. In 1997, then-Rep. Lowell Nielson, R-Highland, proposed to do away with daylight saving time because, he said, it disrupts family life. This is what I wrote about that family-values proposal at the time: “Then there are the various girls softball programs and the 850 adult slow-pitch teams in Salt Lake County, not to mention the seven county-run swimming pools patronized mostly by families. Pam Boyles, of the county recreation department, says hundreds of people swim each night during the hour that would be lost. More

01/07/12

Daily Herald/Grant to aid with Jordan River Parkway map

A grant from the National Park Service will soon help Utah residents navigate the Jordan River Parkway recreation area. The grant provides no money for the project, but instead lends a consultant from the park service's Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance program to help the commission and Salt Lake County design and complete the project. More

Deseret News/Utah gallery listings

Abravanel Hall (123 W. South Temple) — Dale Chihuly's "Olympic Tower" and art from the Salt Lake County Art Collection. More

Deseret News/ Storm brings welcome snow, high avalanche danger/ Amy Joi O'Donoghue

The snowstorm people have been aching for to break the long dry spell finally graced the Wasatch Front this weekend, especially making an appearance in Davis County where bench locations received a half foot of powder. A Salt Lake County plow clears the road in Salt Lake County Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012. More

Examiner/ Proposed changes for limitless pets in Salt Lake City/Taylor Bell

In April 2011, it was suggested that the laws in Salt Lake City regarding pets should change drastically. Since the changes have been green-lighted in April, Salt Lake County Animal Services have seen an increase in licenses and a decrease in euthanized animals, especially cats. Animal services have suggested, however, that licensing on foster animals remain intact so they can effectively track the foster animals in the county. More

01/06/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Legislator burning daylight on same bad idea/Paul Rolly

Professionally, Mark Crockett helps companies be more efficient. He wants to lead Salt Lake County in the same direction. Crockett, who spent four years on the County Council before losing a 2008 election to Jani Iwamoto, will be the third Republican candidate to join the race for the county mayor’s seat being vacated at year’s end by Democrat Peter Corroon. More

Deseret News/Salt Lake theater plans get Sandy mayor’s support/Steve Fidel

Officials in two city halls suggest "Much Ado About Nothing" would be a more fitting description of the saga portraying Sandy as being in a fierce contest with Salt Lake City over the location of a Broadway-style theater. Salt Lake City will next be courting Salt Lake County, which manages the other major downtown arts venues. "In the next couple of months, the County Council will be thinking about their level of support for UPAC. For them, it will be helpful to know project support extends well beyond Salt Lake City," Langan said. More

01/04/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Trail map for Jordan River will point the way/Donald W. Meyers

Coming in time for summer, a Jordan River Parkway Trail map that anyone can use. The National Park Service has awarded the Jordan River Commission and Salt Lake County a grant to help create a map for users of the 45-mile trail linking Utah, Salt Lake and Davis counties. The project marks the first time in the trail’s 30-year history that there will be a map hikers and other trail users can use. More

01/03/12

Salt Lake Tribune/Missing patients, cautious praise mark Salt Lake County’s mental health overhaul

The first time Linda Denton knocked on his door, the man with bipolar disorder wouldn’t answer, even though he needed his medication. The second day, he recognized the Valley Mental Health nurse’s voice and let her in. He was then hospitalized because he was “out of control.” Since OptumHealth took over Salt Lake County’s Medicaid contract from Valley on July 1, Valley has lost 500 clients, leaving around 7,500. While Valley no longer administers the $50 million in Medicaid behavioral health funds, it does provide mental health services under contracts with Optum. Neither Optum, Valley or Salt Lake County can say for sure what has happened to the missing patients. They are still looking over data to see if the growth in referrals to other providers makes up the difference. “We’re a little nervous about where some of our clients have gone,” Tim Whalen, director of the county’s behavioral health system, said recently. More

12/25/11

Salt Lake Tribune/Stage set for Salt Lake City’s Capitol Theatre upgrade, new ballet academy

Quit hogging the spotlight, Broadway-style playhouse, there is another theater venture — mostly funded and ready to break ground next year — that will also alter Salt Lake City’s downtown arts landscape. A renovation of Capitol Theatre, conjoined by a stunning Ballet West Academy building, has completed all its rehearsals before planners and politicians. The $33.3 million project now is ready for prime time. “We feel we are at the right moment,” Salt Lake County Community Services Director Erin Litvack told the Salt Lake City Council in early December. “We are at a tipping point for this project.” More

12/23/11

Salt Lake Tribune/Salt Lake County auditor loses round but fights on

His appeal rejected by the Utah Supreme Court, Salt Lake County Auditor Greg Hawkins says he will continue his fight — either by filing more motions in 3rd District Court or by taking his case to federal court — to block the county from transferring budget duties from his office to the county mayor’s. The Republican auditor contends the Republican-led County Council violated state law last month, when it voted 8-1 to amend the prevailing optional plan of Salt Lake County government to make the mayor the county’s budget officer. More

Salt Lake Tribune/Magna’s Arbor Park development nearing approval

Developer John Gust’s family has owned the Arbor Park area of Magna since 1928. And now, he says, the 17-acre area at 8400 W. (Utah 111) and 3500 South is ripe for redevelopment with 150,000 square feet of retail and office space that will keep Magna residents in the town instead of having them drive to other areas for purchases. Tax increment financing from the urban renewal designation takes dollars that will be generated by new development and pours it back into public improvements such as parking, curbs and gutters and water pipes, said Dale Carpenter, director of Salt Lake County Division of Business and Economic Development. “The good news is we have an active developer,” said Carpenter. “Some other things we’re hoping will be announced are exciting retail opportunities.” More