Articles - Print and other media

KSL Editorial: Wasatch Choice for 2040
KSL.com - Sunday Edition
Bruce Lindsay
June 13, 2011
Segment 1

By 2040 population along the Wasatch front will increase by 65 percent. That's another 1.4 million people in the next thirty years.

Thousands of citizens and community leaders from four counties came together seven years ago to create an innovative plan for that growth.

In May, the Wasatch Front Regional Council adopted the final plan. The Wasatch Choice for 2040 project is now moving forward with extraordinary effort.

Council members Alan Matheson, executive director of Envision Utah, and Jan Zogmaister, chair of the Wasatch Front Regional Council and Weber County Commissioner discuss the plan.

Read & Watch Entire Piece Here (Internet)

KSL Editorial: Wasatch Choice for 2040
KSL.com
Con Psarras
June 3, 2011

SALT LAKE CITY — At the current rate of growth, the population along the Wasatch Front will increase by 65 percent — or one and a half million people — in the next thirty years.

This week, plans were announced to move forward with an extraordinary effort at master-planning designed to make sure that growth is managed in a way to guarantee our community remains a desirable place to live.

It's called Wasatch Choice for 2040, a project that began seven years ago with the goal of bringing together government and community leaders, average citizens and multiple commercial interests to forge a common vision of an ideal future community. Great effort was expended to make sure citizen input was solicited, and listened to. More than 60 cities and towns participated, as did more than a thousand citizens who attended 14 community workshops.

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Wasatch Choices provides 'vision' for regional growth
Davis County Clipper
Melinda Williams
June 3, 2011

SALT LAKE CITY —The word is that the population of the Wasatch Front is growing and is expected to increase by 75 percent within the next 30 years.

On Wednesday, Lt. Gov. Greg Bell, a Fruit Heights resident, U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan, and community leaders kicked off Wasatch Choice for 2040, a "vision" of community and transportation development to see the area through 2040, a time expected to bring dramatic growth.

According to those involved in the process,Wasatch Choice for 2040 will help community leaders focus growth in a variety of activity centers across the region, many of which are coordinated with transportation systems.

Read Entire Article Here (Internet)

Housing secretary praises Utah growth vision
The Salt Lake Tribune
Lee Davidson
June 1, 2011

He didn't focus on the grime or smell as he stood in front of an abandoned warehouse at 200 South and 600 West in Salt Lake City. Shaun Donovan, U.S. secretary of housing and urban development, was too busy envisioning the future there with local leaders.

They talked about how the area could soon have shops, offices and apartments attracted by the easy transit connections next door at the intermodal transportation hub. They pointed at the shiny Gateway development a few blocks away, and figured the run-down area might look pristine like that soon.

Salt Lake City has not only been a leader, it's also been a model for the entire nation" in turning around such areas with smart planning, Donovan said a few minutes later at a celebration at the Rio Grande train station.

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HUD secretary: Salt Lake is driving a change across America
Deseret News
Wendy Leonards
June 2, 2011

SALT LAKE CITY — He's no stranger to housing, but U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan wasn't in town to check out our digs.

After signing over a $5 million grant in October — one of the largest sums doled out for regional development in the country — he wanted to see what the city plans to do with the money.

Wednesday's explanation included a walking tour of the 200 S. 500 West block, between Utah Transit Authority's Intermodal Hub and the historic Rio Grande building. It's a spot that Salt Lake Mayor Ralph Becker said used to be "a really derelict, downtrodden piece of our city" and will soon be "transformed into a new and much more healthier, walkable, livable community."

"I imagine the secretary usually comes to places where there are sparkling, new things to celebrate, but in the true tradition of how we go about building our communities, what we've really shown him is an area that is primed for remarkable redevelopment in our city", he said.

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HUD secretary attends Wasatch Choice 2040 kick-off
KSL.com
Celeste Tholen Rosenlof
June 1, 2011

SALT LAKE CITY -- At the Rio Grande train station, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development secretary and city officials gathered for a kick-off ceremony of the transportation construction that will connect west Salt Lake area to downtown.

The new transportation construction is in part, a result of the $5 million grant HUD awarded Salt Lake City, and the beginning of "Wasatch Choice for 2040," a planning committee to aid the development along the Wasatch Front.

Read Entire Article Here (Internet)

Summit to focus on coordinated regional growth
The Tennessean - Op-Ed
DeWitt Ezell
May 23, 2011

When you look at the success of the Nashville Predators this season, it's easy to forget that just a few years ago, Nashville came perilously close to losing its NHL franchise. However, a grass-roots effort of local civic leaders, area businesses, the media and fans prevailed. By working together for a common goal, our team not only stayed, but this year came closer than ever to bringing the Stanley Cup to Middle Tennessee.

On Wednesday, Cumberland Region Tomorrow will host its third annual Power of 10 regional summit bringing together public and private sector leaders from Cheatham, Davidson, Dickson, Maury, Montgomery, Robertson, Rutherford, Sumner, Williamson and Wilson counties. This diverse group is committed to quality growth for our region. But much like the grass-roots effort that kept the Predators in Nashville, these leaders need input from the citizens living and working in their communities to determine the kind of growth that Middle Tennesseans want in the coming years.

Read Entire Op-Ed Here (Internet)

Utah sets bar for land use, transportation planning
The Tennessean - Op-Ed
Alan Matheson, Jr
May 21, 2011

In today's knowledge-driven economy, companies increasingly follow the best and brightest workers, and those workers go where they want to live.

They locate in communities where they can afford a home in a safe neighborhood, get to work and other destinations conveniently, and pursue a healthy lifestyle. Vibrant communities are a key advantage in the fierce competition to recruit and retain jobs. In a real sense, quality of life is economic development.

The greater Nashville area of Middle Tennessee recognizes this and has created a regional vision to achieve greater prosperity. The vision acknowledges the connection between congestion and the bottom line: Distracted employees stressed from a slow commute and restricted movement of goods and services decrease productivity. Connecting jobs and workers with transit is a critical strategy to accomplish the region's economic and quality-of-life goals.

Read Entire Op-Ed Here (Internet)

A seven lane monster
The Salt Lake Tribune - Op-Ed
Chad Mullins
May 13, 2011

Lurking in the details of recent transportation studies is the genesis of a monster that threatens the communities in which we live.

First, consider the monster's breeding grounds: the long-range implications of the Wasatch Front Regional Transportation Plan: 2011–2040. The monster dwells in the Utah Department of Transportation's design for widening 5400 South, the Main Street of Kearns.

The 2040 plan was prepared by the Wasatch Front Regional Council, the agency responsible for regional transportation planning. It anticipates the Front's population will grow from 1.6 million to 2.5 million, a 56 percent increase. Even with the transportation improvements envisioned in the plan, vehicle miles of travel are projected to increase by nearly 70 percent. As the growing population moves farther away, many must drive farther and longer to reach their destinations.

Read Op-Ed Piece Here (PDF 67 KB)

Utah transit among best to connect people and jobs
The Salt Lake Tribune
Lee Davidson
May 12, 2011

His past two jobs allow Andrew Gruber to see easily why a new study says most transit agencies nationally do not connect people and jobs well — and why Utah is heralded as a bright-spot exception.

Gruber, executive director of the transportation-planning Wasatch Front Regional Council, said, "I came here from Chicago where I worked in the transit system. It's 100 years old and is a traditional hub-and-spoke system. It was designed to bring people from the suburbs into the central city where the jobs were.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 79 KB)

Trade mission to China to pay big dividends long term, analyst says
Deseret News
Jason Lee
April 21, 2011

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah is the only state in the nation with positive export growth since 2009. And a recent trip to the world's most populous country could serve to enhance that already lofty position.

Last week, Lew Cramer — president and chief executive officer of World Trade Center Utah — returned from China where he accompanied Gov. Gary Herbert, along with other local business and community leaders, on a trade mission. The trip was arranged as an effort to build and expand international business partnerships — particularly in the rapidly growing Chinese market.

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Speakers: We developed a vision for future, and
so can you
Northern Colorado Business Report
NCBR Staff
January 21, 2011

LOVELAND — The founders of Envision Utah and Louisiana Speaks said planning successes in their states initially faced hurdles but eventually turned the tide, and the same thing could happen in Northern Colorado as it faces the possibility reaching up to 1 million residents by 2050.

Robert Grow, Envision Utah founder, and Elizabeth "Boo" Thomas, founder of Louisiana Speaks, addressed a gathering of about 300 at The Ranch during "Discovering Our Voice — Northern Colorado Choices." The Jan. 20 event was hosted by Embrace Northern Colorado, a nonprofit organization formed to help steer the future of the region.

Read Entire Story Here (Internet)

Embracing Northern Colorado's Growth
KUNC (NPR)
Grace Hood
January 20, 2011

Embrace Northern Colorado, a non-profit group focusing on growth issues in the northern part of the state, models their process after Envision Utah's.

Listen to Story Here (Web)

On tap for Wasatch: Protecting our water
The Salt Lake Tribune
Brandon Loomis
November 17, 2010

More than a century ago, Salt Lake City leaders called on the federal government to protect the Wasatch Mountains' forests and pastures as a source of the city's drinking water.

That drive led to a 1906 presidential proclamation creating the Wasatch National Forest and to a partnership that is no less important to the Utah capital's future today, acting Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest Supervisor Cheryl Probert said this month at the release of an Envision Utah report aimed at maintaining the Wasatch canyons.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 89 KB)

Train to Alta? Bus to Park City? A new vision for Wasatch canyons
The Salt Lake Tribune
Brandon Loomis
November 8, 2010

Utahns want their Wasatch canyons clean and pristine decades from now, planners say, but they also want some cosmopolitan upgrades for the Salt Lake Valley's backyard playgrounds.

A mountain train up Little Cottonwood Canyon to Alta and Snowbird ski resorts would be nice, most Wasatch Front residents apparently believe, as would a TRAX extension reaching year-round canyon buses at a transit center near the mouth of Big Cottonwood. Public land purchases or easements could protect most of the remaining private lands while still allowing hundreds of condos or cabins clustered around existing roads and sewers. Trails and rock-climbing areas might get better access to public restrooms.

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Committee looking for ways to preserve popular canyons
KSL.com
Richard Piat
November 8, 2010

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah's canyons are popular for their beauty, to the point of being at risk. A committee called "Wasatch Canyons Tomorrow" is working on ways to balance access with preservation.

The canyon views are pristine, but for how long?

Cheryl Probert, with the U.S. Forest Service, said, "That balance of our motto -- Caring for the land, servicing the people -- here it's even more complicated because of the proximity."

Read Entire Article & Watch Video Here (Web)

Utahns support more transit options in Wasatch canyons, report shows
Deseret News
November 8, 2010

SALT LAKE CITY — Utahns want more transit options in Big and Little Cottonwood canyons, and more than 60 percent support charging private vehicles to use the canyon roads.

Those were among the findings included in the Wasatch Canyons Tomorrow report released to the public Monday. The report represents nearly three years of studies and surveys to determine what people value most about the seven major canyons on the eastern side of Salt Lake County.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 67 KB)

Utah's secret: Changing with the times is part of it
Planning Magazine (The American Planning Association)
Allen Best
October, 2010

While much of the nation sputters along, Utah continues to reinvent itself in dramatic ways. Perhaps surprisingly, it is among our most urbanized states. Eighty-eight percent of its population lives in towns and cities, many of which were originally established by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, better known as the Mormons. Meanwhile, mass transit and higher density are remaking these places into lively urban cores.

The largest single reinvention is taking place across from the original Mormon temple in Salt Lake City. There, as part of the 20-acre City Creek development, the business arm of the church is restoring the historic creek. It will !ow through City Creek Center, the retail portion of the development. The entire project is billed as a "sustainably designed," mixed use community, with 700 residential units already in place or under construction.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 352 KB)

Goshen, Platte residents dream big
Wyoming Business Report
Wyoma Groenenberg
October 22, 2010

TORRINGTON - Residents in Goshen and Platte counties had the opportunity to dream big last week while looking 30 years into the future at recent public workshops, hosted by the High Plains Initiative (HPI) Steering Committee.

The workshops were conducted in LaGrange, Glendo, Wheatland, Fort Laramie, Torrington, and Guernsey, with Gabe Epperson of Envision Utah facilitating at some sites.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 95 KB)

Canyons report shows desire to protect land,
preserve access
Deseret News
October 19, 2010

SALT LAKE CITY — A nearly three-year effort to learn residents' priorities regarding the seven major canyons on the eastern side of Salt Lake County reveals an intense desire to protect recreation, land and watershed resources now — and far into the future.

The Wasatch Canyons Tomorrow report, put out by Envision Utah, represents an effort to build on multiple existing plans that address uses in such places as Big and Little Cottonwood canyons, Parleys Canyon, Millcreek and Emigration among others.

The report was debuted in a Tuesday meeting of the KSL Editorial Board and will have an official kickoff next week during a public event.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 69 KB)

Wasatch Front gets planning grant from feds
Examiner.com, Salt Lake City (web)
Alison Peek
Salt Lake City Political Buzz Examiner
October 17, 2010

Housing and Urban Development Deputy Secretary Ron Sims was in town on Friday, and he handed over $5 million to a coalition representing the Utah Department of Transportation, Envision Utah, the Utah Transit Authority, the University of Utah's Bureau of Business and Economic Research, the University's Metropolitan Research Center, Mountainland Association of Governments, the Wasatch Front Regional Council, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, and the Utah Chapter of the American Planning Association.

The Wasatch Front is one of only two regions, the other being St. Paul, Minnesota, to receive the full $5 million sustainable planning grant. In the application, regions had to demonstrate how an estimated additional 500,000 residents would affect the area between the years 2030 and 2050, and how to plan for sustainable growth.

Read Entire Story Here (Web)

County, consortium get $5M grant
Deseret News
October 15, 2010

SALT LAKE CITY — Based on its innovation and successful history of regional urban planning, Salt Lake County and a consortium of Wasatch Front agencies have been awarded a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

HUD's Deputy Secretary Rom Sims made the announcement this week at Abravanel Hall Plaza, noting that Salt Lake County was one of three communities to earn a perfect score in the grant selection process.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 85 KB)

Wasatch Front to benefit from $5 million planning grant
The Salt Lake Tribune
Julia Lyon
October 15, 2010

A coalition of public and nonprofit agencies has received a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to plan for sustainable growth in the Wasatch Front. Federal officials announced the grant Friday, emphasizing that Salt Lake County and St. Paul, Minn., were the only two regions to receive the maximum $5 million.

"We wanted a community who could work with speed and agility and you are it," said HUD Deputy Secretary Ron Sims during a news conference on the plaza at Abravanel Hall in Salt Lake City.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 89 KB)

2010 Quality Growth Awards Keynote Address by Nan Ellin, Chair of the Department of City & Metropolitan Planning, Univeristy of Utah
Nan Ellin
October 5, 2010

Good morning Governor, Robert Grow, and all of you.

While you may be accustomed to having Envision Utah in your backyard, I have watched it from afar over the last decade, with admiration and I must say envy that is wasn't in my backyard. So it is indeed my pleasure to join you for the Envision Utah Governor's Quality Growth Awards.

As a newcomer to the state of UT (I've been here just 3 months), I look forward to learning from all of you about its deep traditions and manifold gifts, as well as the challenges that define our work-to-be-done.

Read Entire Keynote Address (PDF 293 KB)

Taking the next step
The Torrington Telegram
Adam Louis
September 22, 2010

"The initial values study is complete, but the work has just begun." In July of this year, economic project High Plains Initiative (HPI) selected 110 Goshen and Platte County residents for a 10-minute telephone values study. Representatives of the polling firm Heart + Mind Strategies called the residents and gathered data on what they wished to preserve about their communities as well as what changes they will support. This data will be incorporated into the High Plains Initiative Growth Summit on Sept. 28 at Wheatland High School from 6 to 8 p.m.

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Wasatch Front applies for grant for sustainable communities
Deseret News
Laura Hancock
August 7, 2010

SALT LAKE CITY — High population growth and poor air quality along the Wasatch Front could work to the region's advantage in getting a grant to help with housing and transit planning.

About a dozen state and local agencies have banded together to apply for a $5 million sustainable planning grant from the U.S. departments of Housing and Urban Development, Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 216 KB)

Historic day for Jordan River: a new steward
The Salt Lake Tribune
Jeremiah Stettler
August 4, 2010

It has been squeezed by suburbia, tainted by trash and tarnished by occasional crime.

Now the long-neglected Jordan River is poised to get more attention — and more money — than ever.

A coalition of government leaders created a Jordan River Commission on Wednesday to guide development and raise funds for the urban waterway snaking through Utah's most populous region.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 286 KB)

Blueprint in the works for the Bear Lake Valley
Deseret News
Laura Hancock
August 4, 2010

GARDEN CITY, Rich County — A widow would like to feel safe among the unfamiliar tourists renting houses and hotel rooms near her home. The mayor wishes a call center would open and provide jobs for the area. And a local taxidermist and part-time farmer resents development, preferring that land revert to agriculture and wildlife.

But their competing visions for the Bear Lake region are on hold because of the economic downturn.

Folks here in Rich County, Utah, and Bear Lake County, Idaho, are using the lull to consider the past and what they want to become in the future.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 94 KB)

Local Officials Sign Agreement to Create Jordan
River Commission
KCPW
Whittney Evans
August 4, 2010

(KCPW News) Representatives from Salt Lake, Davis and Utah Counties signed an agreement this afternoon to coordinate efforts to restore and revive the Jordan River. And they're calling the plan "historic." KCPW's Whittney Evans reports.

Listen to Entire Story Here (Weblink)

Wilderness debate: Is Utah at a turning point?
The Salt Lake Tribune
Christopher Smart
August 26, 2010

SALT LAKE CITY—They used to meet, it seems, only in court. Now they meet, too, at the bargaining table. They used to issue dueling news releases. Now they pen companion newspaper columns. They used to push competing bills. Now they sign cooperative deals.

In Washington County. In Nine Mile Canyon. Even along the Wasatch Front.

What's up with Utah's land wars? Why—after decades of bickering, blustering and battling—are environmentalists and conservationists suddenly reaching agreements instead of impasses with energy developers and local leaders? And, if there has been a tectonic shift in strategy for dealing with wilderness, off‐road trails and drilling leases, will this softened landscape yield more hardand‐ fast results?

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Thumb Up: Saving the Jordan River
The Salt Lake Tribune
The Thumb - Opinion
August 7, 2010

THUMB UP: Saving the Jordan • The long-neglected Jordan River has been the butt of jokes for years because of its murky waters and history as a sewer and garbage dump. But efforts to turn the river into a sparkling corridor for recreation took a big step when Salt Lake, Utah and Davis counties formally launched the Jordan River Commission last week. Three cities—West Valley, North Salt Lake and Sandy—also have joined. Others should soon. The goal is to create regional planning for the river and give it a full-time steward. That way, local governments should be better able to cooperate in acquiring private land along the river and transforming it into a watery playground and scenic green space connecting the most populous areas of the state. It's a worthwhile voyage that has been too long in coming.

Read Opinion Piece Here (Weblink)

Livable Communities Act Clears Senate Committee
DCStreetsBlog.org (web)
Ben Fried
August 4,2010

The Senate Banking Committee voted 12-10 yesterday in favor of the Livable Communities Act, legislation that would bolster the Obama administration's initiatives to link together transportation, housing, economic development, and environmental policy.

The administration has been taking steps since last March to coordinate between the Department of Transportation, HUD, and the EPA. This bill, carried in the Senate by Connecticut's Chris Dodd, would formalize those partnerships and authorize substantially more funding to work with.

Read Entire Story Here (Weblink)

Counties sign Jordan River pact
KSL.com
Jed Boal
August 4, 2010

NORTHERN UTAH—Three Wasatch Front counties took a major step Wednesday to make the Jordan River corridor a greater community centerpiece

Utah, Davis and Salt Lake Counties signed a pledge to turn the long-neglected and often-abused waterway into a signature urban amenity. The interlocal agreement created the Jordan River Commission. They want to finish work that's already started and treat the Jordan River like a waterway we're all proud of.

Read Entire Story Here (Weblink)

Paid parking up the canyon? Protecting watershed point of symposium
Deseret News
Amy K. Stewart
August 4, 2010

WEST VALLEY CITY—Requiring paid parking passes for visitors to Big and Little Cottonwood canyons was one proposal Wednesday during a county symposium on water quality, pollution control and nature protection.

Sporting a yellow T-shirt that read "Wasatch Wildflower Festival," Creighton Hart of Salt Lake City said, "We have a great asset in our canyons."

As a concerned canyons supporter, Creighton likes the idea of encouraging people to ride a bus up the canyons, but said he isn't sure about charging for parking.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 217 KB)

Visioning process underway for region
The News-Examiner (Montpelier, ID)
Rosa Moosman
July 30, 2010

People will have several opportunities in August and September to let elected officials and planners know what they want Bear Lake Valley to be in the near future and in 10 or 20 years.

People will be able to voice what they think is needed for housing, jobs and recreation. They can look at issues that arise from growth.

Workshops are scheduled in Garden City for Aug. 13, Fish Haven on Aug.14, Georgetown, on Sept 14, Montpelier and Paris on Sept. 15 and Randolph and Garden City on Sept. 16. All meetings are scheduled for 7 p.m.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 94 KB)

Nibley takes action on Envision Cache Valley
open-space plan
HJ News.com (on-line)
Matt Jensen
May 10, 2010

Nibley Mayor Gerald Knight expressed his support of the Envision Cache Valley 2010 report last week and encouraged cities throughout the county to back the initiative.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 123 KB)

Plan for Jordan River rehabilitation moves forward
Deseret News
Amy Joi O'Donoghue
April 29, 2010

SALT LAKE CITY—The Salt Lake County Council became the first government entity to sign off on an ambitious plan to rehabilitate the Jordan River, preserve and acquire neighboring open space and develop a 'lake-to-lake' trail along its 50-mile corridor.

Under the Blueprint Jordan River Vision, 15 cities and three counties would chip in dollars to fund a governing commission that would then seek ways to pay for the project.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 70 KB)

Plan's ripple effect: a better Jordan River
The Salt Lake Tribune
Jeremiah Stettler
April 27, 2010

The Salt Lake Valley soon could have a new steward of its urban river.

A coalition of government leaders and community activists is closer than ever to creating a Jordan River Commission to help transform the worn waterway into a scenic centerpiece with bicycle trails, boat launches and riverside attractions.

Advocates now are floating intergovernmental agreements across the Wasatch Front, calling on 15 cities and three counties along the river to join the commission.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 95 KB)

Salt Lake County Council Mulls Advisory Commission
for Jordan River
KCPW
Elizabeth Ziegler
April 26, 2010

(KCPW News) The Salt Lake County Council will discuss tomorrow whether to create a multi-jurisdictional advisory commission to oversee development and open space preservation along the Jordan River. Councilwoman Jenny Wilson says after months of meetings with a stakeholders group on how to implement the Blueprint Jordan River master plan, a commission structure emerged as the most viable governance model. It would not have taxing authority.

Read Entire Transcript Here (PDF 27 KB)

City Creek to open its first condos this month
The Salt Lake Tribune
Deric P. Jensen
April 21, 2010

The 10 million annual visitors won't come for two years, but City Creek Center will open the first doors of its 700 new downtown Salt Lake City households by month's end.

Read Entire Article Here (PDF 106 KB)

Parts of City Creek project open up
Fox 13 Now (On-line)
April 20, 2010

To View Video Click Thumbnail (web)

Ski Utah Encourages Mountain Enthusiasts To Participate In Wasatch Canyons Tomorrow Survey
Powder Magazine (On-line Edition)
April 14, 2010

Our mountains and canyons are a vibrant and vital part of Utah,” said Ski Utah President Nathan Rafferty. “Beyond the fabulous skiing they offer, Utah’s canyons serve as year-round watershed, wilderness sanctuary and recreation space. The information received through this survey process will enable the county to create the best plan possible for all interested parties.

Read Entire Article Here

Brookings Mountain West releases latest edition of
"Mountain Monitor"
Brookings Mountain West
Mark Muro & Jonathan Rothwell
March 2010

The Mountain West’s recovery from the Great Recession is spreading. Output is growing in every metropolitan area. Still, hiring remains elusive—a fact frustrating the entire nation, but perhaps more so in a region used to snapping, even roaring, back from recessions faster than the rest of the nation.

[...] this edition of the Mountain Monitor examines data on employment, unemployment, output, home prices, and foreclosure rates for Intermountain West’s 10 large metropolitan areas, the nation’s 100 largest metros, and 17 smaller metros dispersed around the Mountain region through the fourth quarter of 2009.

Read Entire Report Here (PDF 438 KB)

Residents assist future planning for crowd control in Canyons
Fox 13 Now (on-line)
Maile Tua'one
March 28, 2010

SALT LAKE CITY - Envision Utah has held several open houses over the past year gathering input from residents to plan for crowd control in the Canyons before it is too late. Those who use the Canyons are helping define what the mountain canyons should be like in 20 years and which strategies will best help.

Read Transcript Here (PDF 88 KB)

Our View: Managing Growth (Editorial)
Editorial Staff
Standard Examiner (Ogden, UT)
March 14, 2010

In 2005, Utah’s two largest metropolitan planning organizations asked Envision Utah to facilitate a public process to update their long-range transportation plans.  Known as Wasatch Choices 2040, this effort is now being fine-tuned by the former Envision Utah planning director.

Read Editorial Here

Utah's grass-roots effort a model Arizona can follow
The Arizona Republic (Phoenix, AZ)
February 7, 2010

In Arizona, two reform groups are encouraged to learn from Envision Utah’s public involvement efforts.

Read Entire Article Here

UTA head touts Utah's progress at climate conference
The Salt Lake Tribune
December 18, 2009

Utah's decade of light-rail development and "smart growth" planning became a case study for carbon reduction last week in one panel session at the United Nations Climate Change Conference.

Utah Transit Authority General Manager John Inglish traveled to Copenhagen, Denmark, to discuss TRAX rail development, the Envision Utah planning process and the groundwork for walkable communities, UTA spokesman Gerry Carpenter said.

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Listening to Thousands on the Canyons’ Future
Mayor Peter Corroon (Salt Lake County)
The Salt Lake Tribune
September 14, 2009

From anywhere in the Salt Lake Valley, the Wasatch Mountains dominate the landscape. Our quality of life continues to be enriched year-round by the proximity of these towering mountains and their canyons. Their beauty and recreational opportunities are easily accessible, they provide critical water resources, and the local economy benefits from the canyon amenities, tourism and ski industry.

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Planners Taking Close Look at Recreation Possibilities
The Deseret News
September 14, 2009

Picture a light-rail line connecting the Salt Lake airport to premier ski resorts. Or dedicated bicycle lanes up the recreation-friendly canyons along the Wasatch Front in Salt Lake Valley. How about a ban on dogs in those canyons? Those are just a few of the ideas that emerged from a public opinion survey recently released by a Wasatch canyons planning group [...].

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Courage, Collaboration Are Keys to
Jordan River's Future
The Salt Lake Tribune
August 7, 2009

In a recent article "Courage, Collaboration Are Keys to Jordan River's Future", three elected officials describe the on-going efforts to create an appropriate governing mechanism for the Jordan River to ensure improved coordination among municipalities, local control, community involvement and dedicated funding.

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Choose Your Vision
The Herald Journal (Logan, UT)
May 22, 2009

Envision Cache Valley continues with a second round of public meetings and on-line feedback.

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Canyons Users Seek Development Limit
The Salt Lake Tribune
May 13, 2009

Governments are looking to update a plan to protect the canyons in preparation for population growth.

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Help Preserve the Wasatch Canyons
The Deseret News
May 11, 2009

Mayors Ralph Becker and Peter Corroon encourage public involvement with the Wasatch Canyons Tomorrow process.

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Help Chart the Future of the Wasatch Canyons
The Salt Lake Tribune
May 10, 2009

To make wise public decisions about the Wasatch Canyons' future, decision-makers need to hear from the public.

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Group Looks to Balanced Growth
The Deseret News
May 08, 2009

The year-long Wasatch Canyons Tomorrow process kicked-off Thursday.

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Envision Morgan Extends Recommendations to City
Standard Examiner (Ogden, UT)
March 03, 2009

As Envision Utah wraps up its Morgan County project, officials are also presenting recommendations.

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Growth Summit to Feature Voice from Past
The Herald Journal (Logan, UT)
February 18, 2009

Envision Cache Valley kicks off with nearly 250 at growth summit.

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Envision Morgan to Unveil Map, Documentary Summary
Standard Examiner (Ogden, UT)
November 09, 2008

The Envision Morgan team is ready to present its findings after several rounds of public input.

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Open Space, Development Envisioned
The Salt Lake Tribune
October 22, 2008

Many Morgan residents don't want "business as usual" when it comes to growth.

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Envision Morgan Starts 2nd Round
Standard Examiner (Ogden, UT)
September 15, 2008

Four different growth scenarios, or snapshots of what the county might look like in the future, will be unveiled for public evaluation.

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Jordan River 'Vision' Is for Green, Natural Corridor
July 13, 2008

Based on initial results, the majority of residents in the Envision Utah-facilitated Blueprint Jordan River process prefer the river's future to be natural - with less development and more protection.

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Sandy City Ponders a Move On Up
June 28, 2008

Envision Utah has created a "21st-century vision" for downtown Sandy City.

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New Emphasis to be Placed on Jordan River
The Salt Lake Tribune
April 27, 2008

"We're looking at the river becoming the premier regional amenity," said Gabe Epperson, project manager for Envision Utah. "People are actually going to come to Utah to use the river."

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Breaking the Public Lands Impasse in Washington County
The Salt Lake Tribune
April 26, 2008

The Envision Utah facilitated Vision Dixie has shaped the Washington County Growth & Conservation Act of 2008, a compromise that breaks a decades old stalemate and strikes a balance between conservation and growth.

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Growing Smart - Salt Lake Tribune editorial
The Salt Lake Tribune
March 21, 2008

Wasatch Front residents have envisioned the "ideal community," and it's a model that, if embraced by developers and planning officials, can help curb sprawl and address related problems.

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Thinking Ahead Eases Concerns About Growth
The Salt Lake Tribune
February 24, 2008

In 1997, Envision Utah commissioned a poll Utahn's attitudes towards growth. Ten years later, we revisited the issues, finding some surprising changes.

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Envision Utah Facilitates Downtown Missoula, MT Process
Missoulian
February 14, 2008

Facilitated by Envision Utah, Missoula residents come together for the first time in a process that ties transportation planning with land-use planning.

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A Vision for Dixie
January 18, 2008

In a KSL editorial on Vision Dixie, Duane Cardall says, "Community leaders are to be commended for seeing the need to manage growth, rather than let it move forward in a helter-skelter fashion."

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Manage Growth Now
January 13, 2008

The Spectrum's editorial writes: "The public clearly wants the Vision Dixie principles to be enacted. There's no time like the present to make that happen."

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Utah Offers Sustainability Model (Arizona Republic)
May 10, 2007

An Arizona Republic article highlights Envision Utah.

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Envision Utah Described as 'the Most Cited Success'
June 21, 2006

(Washington Post) A group of business, civic and government leaders in Washington, D.C. consider replicating Envision Utah's approach to their region.

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