Following Tuesday’s election, Millcreek is on a path to becoming a city. Meanwhile five other unincorporated communities will become so-called “Metro Townships”.
Communities who chose to become either a city or Metro Township will elect 5-member-councils in November 2016. Salt Lake County officials are currently drawing the borders for each council district. Many residents of unincorporated areas of the county complained of being slowly gobbled up by neighboring cities, through annexation. Now the boundaries will be frozen.
Rick Riley is with the Emigration Community Council.
“I’m delighted.” Riley says. “Because now we have direction. We have kind of a permanent solution for our governance in Emigration Canyon. Before there may have been a chance we would have been kind of floating out at sea.”
Voters in what will soon be Millcreek City decided not to be a part of the county’s Municipal Services District, but Jeff Sylvestrina, Chair of the Mount Olympus Community Council says Millcreek will likely still contract with the county for some services.
Sylvestrini says he plans to run for Millcreek City Council or mayor.
“We have a lot of talent in Millcreek to be able to manage ourselves as a city and I’m excited about the prospect of having more local control and addressing some of the things that will make Millcreek better such as improving 33rd South which has been neglected for a long period of time,” Sylvestrini
Of more than 40 unincorporated Islands in the county, a handful decided to annex into nearby Sandy City. The others will remain unincorporated islands.
