This is an exciting time in Salt Lake County, and not just because of the arrival of NHL hockey and the upcoming 2034 Olympics. (Although both are very exciting.)
It’s a special time because Salt Lake County is partnering with other governments and community partners to leverage historic opportunities as well as to confront our biggest challenges. We’re setting aside partisanship and partnering on long-term solutions for housing, homelessness, transportation and water. And we’re making major investments in communities that have been historically left behind.
As county mayor, I’ve stayed focused on the issues that matter most to Salt Lake County families — lowering our cost of living, improving our quality of life, preserving our water supply, making our communities safer and protecting our tax dollars.
I am a common-sense public servant. I don’t get distracted by culture wars and partisan extremism, which is partially why I’ve been endorsed for re-election by Democratic, Independent and Republican city mayors.
I’ve made tough choices to protect your tax dollars. Every budget I’ve passed as mayor has been balanced and earned bipartisan support. With the help of many at Salt Lake County, we have also protected the county’s elite AAA bond rating with all three ratings agencies — which saves taxpayers money.
Salt Lake County’s financial management is strong and provides a foundation for investing, improving and expanding access to the core county services that contribute to Salt Lake County’s high quality of life.
Day in and day out, I think about the needs of Salt Lake County residents and am working to ensure a great quality of life for all. With goods costing more and more, the county provides exemplary services that support its residents, and many of these services are free. Just this year, we opened our county recreation centers to all kids for free. More than 62,000 kids signed up. We’re also helping families save money by eliminating kids’ late fees at county libraries.
Over the past few years, the county has built three massive new regional parks in West Valley City, Magna and South Jordan, as well as new libraries in Kearns, South Salt Lake and South Jordan. Six more are being upgraded with additional libraries planned in the coming years.
A huge achievement was last year’s opening of 16 miles of multi-use trails in Butterfield and Yellow Fork Canyons in the southwest section of our county, the first-ever in this part of the valley. These trails are a huge asset and loved by so many users.
I’ve made protecting our canyons one of my highest priorities because we depend on them not only for recreation and jobs, but for the water we need to survive. It’s why I’ve worked to stop the proposed gondola project in Little Cottonwood Canyon as well as the proposed quarry in Parleys Canyon. Preserving our water supply is an existential long-term issue for Salt Lake County.
We’ve also invested $25 million in 17 affordable housing projects around the county, and have another 1,000 new units of deeply affordable housing planned.
My five-year Human Services, Homeless and Criminal Justice Reform Action Plan is transforming the way we address addiction, homelessness and mental health care in Salt Lake County — holistically and at its roots — breaking an expensive, inefficient and ineffective cycle. The plan was created with input from and has been endorsed by members of the public, Republican and Democratic elected officials, as well as independent, nonpartisan experts in the field. It approaches five complex systems interconnectedly: criminal justice; behavioral health treatment; housing and temporary shelter; and workforce needs. It’s critical that these systems are addressed comprehensively. I am determined to see it through.
Early next year, the Huntsman Mental Health Kem and Carolyn Gardner Crisis Care Center will open. This 30-bed receiving center and 24-bed acute care unit will help those experiencing a mental health crisis to receive the care they need. This facility will allow individuals, community providers, law enforcement and first responders to bring qualifying individuals directly to mental health and detox services rather than jails or hospitals — helping break a futile and dangerous cycle. Salt Lake County donated the land and $5 million for the construction of the facility. We’ve also increased the number of beds in mental health and behavioral health residential programs to help with longer-term care.
The challenges we’re facing don’t care whether we’re Republicans or Democrats, and neither do I.
I’m committed to serving every county resident, no matter their politics. I will never stop fighting to make the lives of Salt Lake County residents better, and to make Salt Lake County an even better — and more affordable — place to live.
(Jenny Wilson) Jenny Wilson is the mayor of Salt Lake County. She is running for reelection.
Jenny Wilson is the mayor of Salt Lake County. She is running for reelection.
