Mayors reflect on guiding Utah's capital
Main Library » SLC's six leaders recall their worst moments in office.
By Derek P. Jensen
The Salt Lake Tribune
From right, Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker, and former mayors Rocky Anderson, Deedee Corradini, Palmer DePaulis, Jake Garn and Ted Wilson gather Thursday for a panel discussion at the Main Library.
(Paul Fraughton | The Salt Lake Tribune)
The six personalities that have shepherded Salt Lake City since 1972 shared more than the same stage -- they shared how the gravity of the office can mold a mayor.
Capital captains Ralph Becker, Rocky Anderson, Deedee Corradini, Palmer DePaulis, Ted Wilson and Jake Garn shelved the ego Thursday to spin a warm blend of memories that were by turns earnest, humorous and, perhaps, revisionist.
And the rare grouping -- the mayors sat in chronological order from Garn to Becker -- pleased the packed Main Library auditorium that often echoed with applause.
But the most vivid moments came when KUED's dexterous Ken Verdoia asked the panel about their worst moments running City Hall.
Besides presiding over the 1983 flood, Wilson's list included the time a woman launched her family from a hotel roof after her husband had committed suicide; when a young family of immigrants were burned by an apartment fire; and the day two black kids were gunned down at a Liberty Park crosswalk. "That set off a week of fear in this city," said Wilson who trembled a second before saying "it's hell" to tell people they may not be safe in their own community.
Similarly, Corradini recalled the "absolutely terrifying" hostage situation at the old library as well as the freakish 1999 tornado that killed one person downtown. Curbing gangs, she added, was a priority throughout both terms.
Anderson pointed to the Elizabeth Smart kidnapping, Destiny Norton's murder and Trolley Square shooting spree that happened two years ago this week. The tragedies, he said, bring a mayor close to the victims' families.
And DePaulis remembered vetoing the entire city budget, including police raises, then getting picketed by his cops the same week as Salt Lake City hosted the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
"It was a bad day," he smiled.
But there also was levity, as the politicians dropped the spin to bring the public behind their curtain.
Photo Gallery
Six mayors hold forum at the Main Public LIbrary
Garn laughed about the scratch marks on his desk after the head of the firefighters union jumped on it to hit him. Worse, "my wife never forgave me" for narrowing certain streets in order to widen the sidewalks. "She said, 'Brigham Young decided the width of those streets -- and you can't turn an ox cart around anymore,'" he deadpanned.
Wilson acted out a scene from the Salt Palace during a Soviet-Siberian exhibition when some Russians presented him an enormous bottle of vodka. "I stepped outside and here comes about five general authorities down the hall for the event," he said raising his fist with an imaginary booze bottle. "I tried to shove this thing in my pocket."
For his part, Anderson referenced brushes with the conservative Legislature, Davis County and the courts that dealt him a blow over the Main Street Plaza. "I did run full speed into the brick wall of reality a number of times," he smirked to applause. "Rocky" as he always will be known, also recalled bar-hopping with journalists to shatter stereotypes before the Olympics.
Corradini had the hip-slapper when she described -- maybe too honestly -- the disappointment of losing the 1998 Olympic bid, later revealed to be loaded with bribes. "Here we were playing by the rules," she remembered. "We didn't for 2002, but we did then."
Anderson and Corradini, arguably the most polarizing of the six, avoided any reference to protests of former President Bush or the so-called "gift-gate" scandal when Corradini raised contributions to pay off her debt. And true to his legacy, Garn invoked space travel, suggesting the city could mend its religious and racial divide if residents took a turn in orbit. "We're all children of God traveling on spaceship Earth together," he said.
All on the panel agreed the capital's downtown must remain a vibrant epicenter for all Utahns. Just 13 months in office, that task turns to Becker, who said a lively live, work and play atmosphere remains probable, despite the recession. "You go to cities where the sidewalks roll up at night and the streets roll up, and they're a drag," he said, adding that morphing from Blueprint Man to mayor is pretty comfortable, so far. "I'm still on my honeymoon and I'm going to keep living it as long as I can."
Mayor Quotes
* I was accused of being part of the communist conspiracy of being for metropolitan government.
Jake Garn on his fight against city incorporations across the valley.
* I feel like Slumdog Millionaire.
Ted Wilson suggesting the other five mayors are an upgrade from him.
* He called me Palmer DeProcess.
Palmer DePaulis recalling a nickname given by Ralph Becker for his penchant to call committees.
* I was just fighting for whatever green space we could get.
Deedee Corradini, describing her decision to sell a block of Main Street to the LDS Church
* I really think that turned a corner. That was until the next polygamist disaster.
Rocky Anderson on the impact of drinking with foreign journalists to dispel myths about SLC.
* Thanks to the incredible leadership of my predecessors, I had no challenges. I just walked through the door.
Ralph Becker joking, when asked about his biggest challenge as mayor.
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The whole spaceship Earth thing is creepy too!
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