Salt Lake MSA Development Thread

[delts145]

New military hotel is slated at The Canyons


The Salt Lake Tribune

Air Force officials announced this week that The Canyons will be the site of a future military hotel. But there has been no word about where the military plans to develop at the resort.

"With the Air Force's selection of The Canyons resort area for a privately funded Air Force recreation facility, we look forward to discussion on location specific details and trust we'll be able to reach an agreement for this facility soon," said Maj. Gen. Andrew E. Busch, the Ogden Air Logistics Commander, in a prepared statement. "We will be working to bring world-class recreation opportunities for our service members one step closer to reality."

The location has changed through the years.

"It's been a moving target," Park City Councilwoman Candy Erickson said. "I think for a long time we thought it was going to be outside Summit County."

About 13 years ago, the military intended to build the resort near the Aerie, which many local officials opposed. Critics said the hotel was more appropriate near the base of a ski area.

Air Force officials began eyeing the Park City area when the Hill Haus Lodge, a military recreation spot at Snowbasin, closed more than a decade ago. The military has named the Wadman Corporation to oversee development of the hotel at The Canyons.

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[delts145]

CEOs rank Utah highly for growth

Deseret News

Utah was one of the top gainers and finished ninth among states in a ranking of CEO ratings of states for job growth and business.

Utah gained six spots from a year earlier, making it the third-biggest gainer in Chief Executive magazine's annual "Best & Worst States" survey. States were evaluated in January on several factors, including proximity to markets and resources, regulation, tax policies, work-force quality, education resources, quality of living and infrastructure.

Texas was top-ranked for the fifth consecutive year. It was followed by North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and Nevada.

California was voted the worst state.

Details are available at chiefexecutive.net/states2010

[SLC Projects]

I know coming from someone who in the pass has tried to stick up for Sandy City this is going to sound weird for me to complain. For those who have left Rio Tinto stadium after a game or whatever you will know what I'm talking about. WHAT A MESS!!!! Having 20,000 people leaving the stadium with little space for them to go. Sandy City really needs to build a freaking parking garage next to the stadium or next to the expo center. I don't get way the city hasn't done anything yet. Having fans park at different parking lots thought out the city of Sandy isn't going to cut it. In some cases people have to walk a mile or so just to get to their cars due to lack of parking by the stadium. Then there's the sidewalks. The sidewalks on both sides of state street starting from 9000 S. all the way to at least the expo should be wider then what they are now. Coming out of those games there's nowhere to walk other then the side of the street or the dirt. Then there's all those people trying to cross state street. Cops are there stopping traffic to allow people to cross/jaywalk across the 6 lane road. It's a mess. Even I can see that. Sandy needs to get their act together and do something.

[urbanboy]

I must be a Prophet

[cololi]

Originally Posted by SLC Projects

I know coming from someone who in the pass has tried to stick up for Sandy City this is going to sound weird for me to complain. For those who have left Rio Tinto stadium after a game or whatever you will know what I'm talking about. WHAT A MESS!!!! Having 20,000 people leaving the stadium with little space for them to go. Sandy City really needs to build a freaking parking garage next to the stadium or next to the expo center. I don't get way the city hasn't done anything yet. Having fans park at different parking lots thought out the city of Sandy isn't going to cut it. In some cases people have to walk a mile or so just to get to their cars due to lack of parking by the stadium. Then there's the sidewalks. The sidewalks on both sides of state street starting from 9000 S. all the way to at least the expo should be wider then what they are now. Coming out of those games there's nowhere to walk other then the side of the street or the dirt. Then there's all those people trying to cross state street. Cops are there stopping traffic to allow people to cross/jaywalk across the 6 lane road. It's a mess. Even I can see that. Sandy needs to get their act together and do something.

This is pretty much what many of us have been saying about Sandy for sometime. I think I typed just about the same thing after my first, and probably only, Real SL game. Maybe now people are starting to realize what we have been saying. If Sandy wants to be more than what they are, they need to plan and build their infrastructure to accommodate it. That said, I'll be at the Prep and High School National Championship games this weekend at Rio Tinto.

[UTPlanner]

I am an RSL season ticket holder. I ride TRAX to and from the game and have never suffered the wrath of "Sandy Traffic". Perhaps if more people followed suit there wouldn't be so much traffic. To be fair to Sandy any time you have 20,000 people trying to arrive or leave one place at one time there is going to be traffic. Look at SLC after a Jazz game or UofU football game and both locations have excellent transit options and multiple roadway options.

[i-215]

Originally Posted by urbanboy

I must be a Prophet

I do agree that you either need to put stadiums next to rail stops (right NEXT to rail stops) or put in kick-butt-awesome freeway access to parking.

WORKS! Freeway-oriented mobility:

Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego

WORKS! Transit-oriented mobility:

Rose Garden Arena, Portland

DOES NOT WORK! No mobility:

Rio Tinto Stadium, Sandy

Freeways and/or Transit. Sandy did neither. Poor Sandy.

[cololi]

You forgot the "kisk ass light rail access" to Qualcom. Sand Diego PD also make Friars road a one way street to get out ofthe parking lot. They manage to get 65,000+ out as fast as RSL gets 20,000.

[eastidaho]

JMHO, not arguing with what has been said, particularly if you build a complex in the suburbs. However, I would count Qualcomm as my least favorite pro experience. It feels like going to a mall. The surface parking acts like a desert, the stadium as an oasis. Only problem is the life is sucked out of you by the time you get to the stadium.

Give me a neighborhood or downtown with a lot of activity on the sidewalk. When I came around the corner and saw the facades of Wrigley, Fenway, AT&T Park in S.F., or even Coors field from Lodo, my heart jumped a little.

Qualcomm, Oakland, and Anaheim through a windshield waiting behind a stream of cars, just to fork over $15.00 to park in their asphalt wastelands really sucks. The orange cones and two dozen parking staff pointing the directions make me feel confined, like I am in 2nd grade, or a test rat in their maze.

JMHO. Rio Tinto is small and intimate and should have went for the neighborhood approach. The suburban office park across 6 lanes doesn't cut it. Make me drop my $15.00 at a restraunt or retail shop on my walk to the game.

[delts145]

Millcreek -- a city in the making?
- Petition seeks feasibility study for what could become one of Utah's 10 biggest cities.

http://www.sltrib.com/utah/ci_15153424

Millcreek » Mary Ann Strong is trying to find her voice.

It has been lost, she says, in this expansive east-side township of more than 65,000 residents, where decisions about urban chickens, monster homes, police fees and more are made by people who don't live there...

[scottharding]

Bah. Salt Lake should just annex Millcreek. It's a nice area, but it has no identity of it's own. It's not a city. It's a neighborhood.

[John Martin]

Eh, that's the problem. They feel neglected and like there's no sense of community as it is. Being part of a bigger city wouldn't help. It'd be great if they could become a city. They need to establish a proper community from within.

[SLC Projects]

Originally Posted by John Martin

Eh, that's the problem. They feel neglected and like there's no sense of community as it is. Being part of a bigger city wouldn't help. It'd be great if they could become a city. They need to establish a proper community from within.

Originally Posted by scottharding

Bah. Salt Lake should just annex Millcreek. It's a nice area, but it has no identity of it's own. It's not a city. It's a neighborhood.

The problem is that we have way too many neighborhoods that want to become their "own city". With a state that has over 2.5 million people living in it it's frustrating that our biggest city still til this day as yet to pass the 200,000 mark. It's really embarrassing that even a smaller city like Boise has more people living in it then Salt Lake City. Just think if Salt Lake City would annex cities or neighborhoods like Millcreek, South Salt Lake, ect. Just think how much bigger Salt Lake City would be.

[arkhitektor]

Why should we be embarrassed that our largest city is smaller than some other state's? Does it even matter? What's the point of being a bigger city just to say "we're bigger than you" by changing boundaries when the actual number of people living in an area is unchanged?

[TonyAnderson]

Originally Posted by arkhitektor

What's the point of being a bigger city just to say "we're bigger than you" by changing boundaries when the actual number of people living in an area is unchanged?

Because SLC has much better urban and social policies than its neighbors. Plus, it's the capital city, the more people the better I think.

Milcreek would be a big undertaking, and its mostly just suburban anyway. South Salt Lake is a much better prospect. It's relatively small, has TRAX, and a number of TODs in the making. It would also take SLC past 200k.

Also, if you want to see SLC grow in population, then it needs to continue to dense up. It's 110 sq/miles. That's in line with cities like Denver and Seattle. In fact, Boise was only 64 as of last census. They're just much, much denser. I also realize not all of that 110 is developable. Though typically all cities have areas like that.

[John Martin]

Meh, I kind of have to agree that the numbers aren't really important. I've always wanted Salt Lake to have a bigger population because the current one is just so... deceiving. But it doesn't really matter. It's still a regional hub and will continue to shock and impress all those who come here with low expectations.

And take this as good or bad, but annexing the surrounding suburbs would make SL less liberal..

[i-215]

Originally Posted by SLC Projects

The problem is that we have way too many neighborhoods that want to become their "own city". With a state that has over 2.5 million people living in it it's frustrating that our biggest city still til this day as yet to pass the 200,000 mark. It's really embarrassing that even a smaller city like Boise has more people living in it then Salt Lake City. Just think if Salt Lake City would annex cities or neighborhoods like Millcreek, South Salt Lake, ect. Just think how much bigger Salt Lake City would be.

Bragging rights aside, having smaller cities is a good thing. It allows planning and zoning decisions to happen on a much smaller level. It also lets people "vote with their feet." Neighborhood pride. I could go on and on.

Besides, nobody cares about SLC's population. It's MSA populations that matter.

[arkhitektor]

I've wondered how enormous, sprawling cities like Phoenix even manage to govern effectively on local planning issues and the like. Phoenix is nearly 10x the size of Salt Lake. Do they have 10x the public works employees and planning department positions and city council districts, or does a central government just control things with less local input that you would get in Salt Lake?

[SLC Projects]

I just always thought it was weird and kind of uncommon for a city that in alot of ways is smaller then Salt Lake City has a bigger population within the city limits. With the size that SLC is you'd think there would be more then just 188,000 people living there. Really that's only about 84,000 more people then cities like West Jordan and West Valley that is no where near the size of SLC. I know that sprawling is to blame. But I still would like to see SLC stay as our biggest city. That's why I am really looking forward to the 2010 census to finally get a good idea of what Salt Lake's population. I'm not sure if the city will reach 200,000, but I would like to at least see it growing. And with all the new housing project that were build and getting built during the last 8 years or so I would think those numbers would be higher.



Phoenix
1 567 924 in city
4 179 427 in metro


Denver
610 345 in city
3 110 436 in metro


Boise
205 314 in city
606 376 in metro

Salt Lake City
181 698 in city
1 743 364 in metro ( we have a million MORE people in our metro then Boise , however Boise has more people living in the city. )

[urbanboy]

I believe Boise boundaries cover a larger populated geographical area than Salt Lake City boundaries.