Bob Nelson

For the first time since the 1980’s, the Salt Lake City Planning Division is renewing its effort to create a master plan for the city’s future development. The public comment period for Plan Salt Lake began last fall and today the official kick-off of the campaign took place at Salt Lake City and County Building. Planning Division Director Wilf Sommerkorn says businesses and residents are an important part of this over-arching program.

Fallen police Officer Jared Francom’s name is to be added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial on Wednesday in Washington, DC. Francom was killed as the Weber Morgan Narcotics Strike Force attempted to serve a warrant. Five other officers were injured in a gun battle that ensued. Francom’s family as well as Weber County Attorney Dee Smith is in Washington for the ceremonies. Smith says people should not forget the sacrifices these officers make every day for their community.

The University of Utah Academic Senate is reviewing proposed increases in penalties for skateboarders and bicyclists who are not following safety regulations on campus. The University’s Police Chief Scott Folsom says after a professor was injured by speeding skateboarders, concerns arose for the safety of the University community. He says the draft being considered allows first offenders to be warned.

With performers like Flaming Lips, Belle and Sebastian and Grizzly Bear coming to the Twilight Concert series, the Salt Lake City Arts Council expects another banner year for the series. Casey Jarman  is the series director. He says schedule challenges make it rare for him to be able to land the good bands on the first try.

The exhibit called Dead Sea Scrolls: Life and Faith in Ancient Times is coming to The Leonardo in Salt Lake City this November. In making the announcement Wednesday, the museum’s director Alexandra Hesse  says it’s the largest collection of ancient artifacts ever displayed outside of Israel. She says Brigham Young University as well as the city’s Interfaith Roundtable will be adding expertise and dialogue to the exhibit.

As the National Day of Silence approaches this Friday the 19th, the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Resource Center is honoring allies who reach out to people who are marginalized to give mutual respect and inclusion. Kai Martinez is the director of the center located on the campus of the University of Utah. He says Ally Awareness Week puts the focus on the support system.

The Ogden-Hinckley Airport Control Tower will stay in operation at least until June 15th following a last minute decision by the Federal Aviation Administration on Friday. Federal budget cuts due to sequestration are threatening 149 similar operations across the country because contractors run the towers. Royal Eccles is the airport manager in Ogden. He says his issue isn’t so much with Congress as it is with the FAA.

The Utah Foundation’s annual meeting Thursday deals with two traditionally conflicting issues facing Utahns, education and transportation. The foundation organizes the Utah Priorities Project along with the Hinckley Institute of Politics at the University of Utah. Stephen Kroes , the president of the Utah Foundation says conflicts between education and transportation going forward need to end.

The weekend fatality of a West Jordan man will become an unplanned topic at the State School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration or SITLA Board meeting later this week. 22-year-old Kyle Stocking died following a rope swing accident from Corona Arch which is located on SITLA Land. Kim Christy is the Deputy Director of the Administration which owns 3 point 4 million acres in Utah. He offered condolences to the family and friends of Stocking.

The latest Zions Bank Consumer Attitude Index numbers revealed today highlight the difference between Utah’s economy and the rest of the country. The Cicero Group does the survey for Zions Bank. Cicero’s Randy Shumway says the small increase of 1.1 points in Utahns’ confidence shows the contrasts between the two stories.

Lawmakers from separate parties and different chambers are finding synergy in moving anti-bullying and anti-suicide legislation during the session. Democratic Senator Luz Robles and Republican Representative Gage Froerer say when they found out they were working individually on the same thing they decided to team up. Froerer says HB-134 is a statewide effort to make a dent in the epidemic of teen suicides as well as bullying in our schools.

Utah Senator Orrin Hatch visited state representatives in the House Wednesday to deliver what he called unhappy news. He says the Sequester, the automatic across-the-board spending cuts, will happen and it will be a difficult thing, especially for civilian employees at Hill Air Force Base.

”and it’s certainly going to hit a lot of small contractors and it’s also going to hit our workforce up there, is about two thirds civilian. So if you can imagine we’ve got to be prepared for whatever comes,”says Hatch. 

Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams is renewing the call for citizen volunteers to fill the ongoing demand in the county for volunteer board member positions. He says there is strength in diversity.

“We have turnover on the boards, people are appointed to serve a certain number of years and we’re trying to keep it fresh with bringing in people with new perspectives and new ideas,” says McAdams.

A Salt Lake City-based anti-bullying coalition called Flip the Script kicked off a long-term campaign to help reduce bullying. City Council Member Charlie Luke says it started last year when he got a call from a neighbor with a son who was being bullied and didn’t know what to do. He says the police, the parents and the school got involved to successfully stop Highland High School student JT Hiskey from being bullied.

Lawmakers, the state forester, local law enforcement and the Utah Farm Bureau Federation are trying to build support for two bills that deal with an intense wildfire season expected again this Summer. Both are sponsored by Republican Senator Margaret Dayton.  Senate Bill 62 would expand the governor’s ability to authorize all water sources needed to fight fires while SB 120 would put time and place restrictions on target shooting. State Forester Dick Buehler says just a small fraction of the 1528 wildfires last year were started by target shooters.

There was a somber moment of silence as Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Aaron Beesley and his family were honored in both chambers of the Utah Legislature Wednesday. Beesley died while on a search and rescue mission in Salt Lake County in June last year. Senator Pete Knudsen from District 17 spoke as a large group of the Beesley family stood in the center of the Senate floor.

The Great Salt Lake occasionally smells strange during the summer and then there’s the “lake effect” in the winter. But within the waters of North America's most salty lake lies a unique variety of brine shrimp species that has spawned a rare public/private partnership between the Utah Department of Natural Resources and more than a dozen businesses.

Rocky Mountain Power is opening another lottery for their customers who want to receive incentives to help offset the costs of installing solar energy equipment on their homes or businesses. The program opens Tuesday the 15th and runs through the 28th of January. Rocky Mountain Power spokesperson Jeff Hymas says the $50 million dollars up for grabs through 2017 will benefit all power users.

The federal Bureau of Reclamation’s recent release of the Record of Decision (ROD) for the Narrows Dam on Gooseberry Creek in Sanpete County is likely to be contested in court. The relatively small water project would allow the Sanpete Water Conservancy District to develop an existing Gooseberry Project right to 5400 acre-feet of water for farmers’ late summer crop.