In a spirited and at times combative debate, incumbent Jenny Wilson and Republican challenger Erin Rider each argued why Salt Lake County voters should choose them to be the mayor of Utah’s largest county.
Both candidates made their case during an Oct. 3 debate hosted by KUER and PBS Utah and moderated by KUER politics reporter Sean Higgins.
Rider, a corporate attorney and former law clerk for Orrin Hatch, attacked Wilson on her mayoral and county council record, stating that during her tenure housing prices “have gone through the roof,” homelessness has increased and property taxes “have gotten so high that people are now worried about losing their homes.”
If elected, Rider said she would think innovatively and work across city lines to find solutions to the county’s most pressing problems.
“This race is about the future of Salt Lake County, not the past,” she said.
Wilson, who before becoming county mayor in 2019 served on the Salt Lake County Council, defended her record whenever she got the chance, often taking the opportunity to rebut Rider’s remarks. She said residents are “facing tough times” and it’s something she thinks about every day when she goes to work. Wilson rallied behind county services from Meals on Wheels to free recreation passes for minors to arts facilities like Abravanel Hall.
“We are all committed, day in and day out, to deliver for the people in this county,” Wilson said.
While the candidates sometimes agreed, they clashed on a few key issues.
Downtown Salt Lake City revitalization
The city and county have moved swiftly to approve an expansive plan to build a downtown sports, entertainment, cultural and convention district in partnership with the Smith Entertainment Group. State lawmakers have also approved. The Salt Lake City Council then unanimously approved a 0.5% sales tax hike to help pay for up to $900 million of the renovation.
Both agreed downtown needs a makeover, though Rider pressed her concerns about how quickly the county hopped on board the project and the uncertain future of Abravanel Hall – home of Utah’s award-winning symphony.
The deals have “been an absolute betrayal of trust to this community,” she claimed.
“I've been clear that I am not interested in tearing down a building like Abravanel Hall, just so a billionaire can have a straight path instead of a slightly curved path,” she said. “I talk to people every single day who are so unbelievably upset that we are now paying tax dollars to line a billionaire's pocket.”
Rider criticized Wilson for “playing games” with the deal from the start while not presenting a plan to preserve the orchestra hall.
“That should make us all very nervous about what happens when she no longer feels beholden to the voters,” Rider quipped. “I'm not tearing down a building just to give a billionaire a few more developable acres.”
Wilson defended her role in the process but acknowledged that her hands were tied in some instances. She said she wasn’t at the table for some key negotiations, such as the process created by the Legislature for revitalization or the city sales tax increase. Beyond that though, Wilson said she has been able to “leverage all of those assets to really create a refreshed, revitalized downtown.”
Although there are costly issues with the structure of Abravanel, she said the county is “committed to revitalizing and rebuilding the hall, and I'm excited about that. We are right now at the table looking at mechanisms and methods to get it done right.”
Homelessness
Citing a new 5-year plan, Wilson said homelessness has been a top priority because her administration “can move the needle.” The plan includes law enforcement and transitional housing to help those experiencing homelessness get off the streets.
“We've measured the gaps, we've broken down barriers, we've come together,” she said. “This plan affects not just the challenge around homelessness, but the opportunity to build more housing and to reform the criminal justice system and to invest in Drug Enforcement Agency officers that is necessary to make sure that the cartels stop dealing in this community.”
Rider criticized the plan and Wilson’s efforts. For the amount of time Wilson has served in office, Rider said she “has just barely come up with a plan for how to address homelessness” even as the population has continued to grow.
“This plan is not an effective plan, and throwing money after bad solutions is not a way to address this,” Rider said.
The Republican conceded that there is “no silver bullet” solution but said she would take on homelessness from a “holistic standpoint.” She would look at housing, at job skills and access, and at smaller solutions. For example, getting a person government-issued identification so they could apply for jobs and housing.
“That should be a relatively simple barrier that we can fix that would eliminate a huge load off of people's shoulders when they're ready to reintegrate,” Rider said.
Wilson refused Rider’s critique. When she was first elected as mayor, she said the county helped fund new shelters and has continued to fund various homelessness resources.
She also claimed Rider was putting Salt Lake County at the “epicenter of every challenge as it relates to homelessness,” which she argued isn’t the case. Rather, the county is “at the epicenter of solutions.”
To which Rider responded, the “problem has not gotten better, and that should tell you everything you need to know.”
Fiscal responsibility
There is roughly $2 billion in the county budget to spend on various needs and programs. The candidates did not see eye to eye on how it should be spent. At one point, Wilson, the Democratic candidate, told Rider she sounded like a “tax and spend liberal.”
During her six years in office, Wilson maintained she has repeatedly passed a balanced budget. A Republican majority county council ultimately approves the budget so she “consistently has to cross party lines.” Wilson added she has invested in things the county residents want, like new trails.
Rider wasn’t buying it. Pointing again to Abravanel Hall, or the county’s purchase of a new government center, she argued the county has deferred building maintenance to the point where it is “cheaper to tear those buildings down or to just buy a new building entirely.”
“One of the things that I want to do is to make sure that every single dollar we're using is going to a core purpose that the county is responsible for,” Rider said. “How do you go through $2 billion a year and not have money to do something as basic as maintenance on your core assets?”
Rider pledged to fix up the buildings, like Abravanel, and work on staff retention so things get done. She would focus on improving county parks and shift attention to the south and west parts of the county, like Riverton and Herriman, whom she said “feel abandoned” by the county. Some of that attention, Rider said, would be working to expand public transportation to those areas.
Wilson dismissed Rider’s assertions, arguing she doesn’t know how the county budget operates. Some of the funds, Wilson said, are restricted toward certain projects or programs, like county jails.
“This idea that we have multi, multi, multi-millions in reserves to take care of every diverged maintenance need is very naive,” Wilson said. “I think if we were to follow her plan … we would be looking at an enormous tax increase.”
In closing, Wilson told residents they’ve “been through a lot together,” including a pandemic, earthquake and a massive windstorm, and she is proud of how the county handled it. If re-elected, she would continue to build regional parks, work across partisan lines and come up with solutions to big problems.
“It's been an honor to serve you,” Wilson said. “It really is the privilege of a lifetime.”
Rider continued to criticize Wilson’s time as mayor in her final pitch, stating problems like homelessness “haven’t gotten better.” She added residents will get “nothing” if Wilson remains in office.
“That should tell you everything you need to know about the effectiveness of my opponent's leadership and policies.”
