Sugar House City Journal | January 2021

January 2021 | Vol. 7 Iss. 01

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HOPE, GRATITUDE AND CONNECTION: SUGAR HOUSE RESIDENTS REFLECT ON 2020

By Drew Crawford | d.crawford@mycityjournals.com

2

020 has been a year filled with unprecedented difficulty and suffering. At the time of this writing the positive test rate for Utah COVID-19 cases is at a record high, and many will spend the holidays alone without their loved ones.

Being in public is risky, and all of us most likely know somebody who has gotten sick.

It’s hard to stay focused on the blessings of daily life.

The media is filled with stories about new and shocking information about overwhelmed hospital capacity. If you scroll through your newsfeed on Facebook or Instagram countless memes appear that poke weary fun at people’s failed expectations for the year.

It’s no understatement to say that many people wish that they could start 2020 over or fast forward to when the vaccine produced by Pfizer is available to take.

Throughout all of the change and gloomy difficulties, it can be hard to appreciate what makes us collectively hopeful and look for the silver lining.

However, this is exactly what multiple Sugar House residents have done.

Faced with challenges, they have taken advantage of the extra time that they have had to accomplish long standing goals, open businesses and grow closer to others.

Their strength and resilience are an inspiration for anyone who is looking for a bright moment to share with a loved one when daily life grows too overwhelming.

Faced with challenges and despite having to limit their interactions to virtual, Sugar House residents have taken advantage of the extra time they had to accomplish long standing goals, open businesses and grow closer to others. (Photo by Dollar Gill on Unsplash)

around children, who she considers to be positive and upbeat. After retiring as a fifth-grade teacher at Highland Park and Uintah Elementary she has volunteered as a tutor, helpAn unexpected virtual friendship at a 2,000-mile dis- ing with homework and difficult concepts.

When the nationwide lockdown happened in spring and tance Dodie Fraughton has always had a passion for being school went virtual, Fraughton was contacted by Volunteer

Match, a volunteer organization, with a unique opportunity.

“I volunteered to tutor a third-grade student in the Bronx who was struggling,” Fraughton described. “He can’t be in school because of COVID, so we meet twice a week on Zoom to do homework and read together.”

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January 2021 | Page 3

As options change for Salt Lake City schools, students views changed too

By Katy Whittingham | k.whittingham@mycityjournals.com

W

hile virtual learning was the only option for area students at the end of the last school year, many schools opened the school year of 2020-21 with multiple options, including some face to face learning depending on circumstances and risk factors within families.

Students enrolled in Salt Lake City District schools, however, have had only a virtual learning option since the start of this school year, but this is set to change, after a much debated and close decision by the school board, for elementary students in late January and early February 2021, while high school and middle school students will remain fully online until a decision is revisited on Jan. 5.

Xavier M., a fifth-grader at Whittier Elementary that falls within the Salt Lake City School District, expressed his ideal scenario for going back to school in early August. At the time he said he would like “three days of home school and two days in school” to have the opportunity to see his friends.

Catching up with Xavier now, he seems to have adapted to the single online option offered by his district, and his feelings are much more ambivalent. He now says, “I’ve gotten used to online school and actually like it for the flexibility. On Wednesday we have digital day, so I did some school in the morning, and then went skiing with my family.” Xavier also said he will be fine whether he can return to face to face learning in school in February or not depending on whether case counts become too high or other factors.

Currently, students in the district attend class online during regular school hours and follow a standard school schedule. Their educators include “live” teaching and inXavier M., a fifth-grade student at Whittier Elementary, works remotely from his home. Photo courtesy Temma teraction with their students using video M.

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conferencing technology such as Zoom and Teams. Depending on their level in school, some self-directed learning is also an option for students.

Temma M., Xavier’s mother, expressed that a large contribution to Xavier’s success is his teacher, Cathy Bigler. Bigler, an educator with decades of teaching experience, learned more about videoconferencing technology right along with her students.

“She would get instructions from Xavier and his classmates on skills like screen sharing,” Temma said. “It’s clear she misses having the kids in person, but she uses engaging language to connect with them remotely.”

Last August, Xavier was also concerned about the social aspect of missing his friends, but he seems to have worked that out for the most part too. He said that ideally he would like to see his friends more and socialize regularly at school, but “scheduling outdoor hangout times when possible lets me still see my friends.”

While some students like Xavier are adapting socially and academically, there have been practical and deeper concerns about fully online learning, especially for younger elementary school students. Some parents and caregivers in the district have been expressing these concerns at school lunch pickups, board meetings, protests, and in letters and emails.

One parent of a first-grade student in the district, who wished to remain anonymous, said, “The expectations for a 4-, 5-, or even 6-year-old to navigate online learning is unrealistic.” She said, while her son’s teacher is “really great,” he does not have the attention at 5 years old to do the work on his own, so she, her husband, or older daughter have to sit with him while he works. “Other elementary schools are

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open, so I don’t understand why the younger children can’t go back now,” she said.

Virtual learning can be affected by internet problems, background sound within a student’s work space, and difficulty with focus, especially when other members of a household may also be working or schooling from home. Younger students, those from lower income households, those with

working parents, especially essential workers, and those with learning and other disabilities that may require special services may be most affected. Studies continue on the longer term effects on social development, mental health, and academic motivation without an in-person school network.

Some parents and community members that were in favor of elementary schools in the district reopening pointed to

the four other districts in the county: Canyons, Granite, Jordan and Murray as having successful elementary reopenings and first quarters with positive test rates for students attending face to face school not statistically much different than those online learning at 1% for face to face and .7% for online learning, according to health department data in November 2020. Others who opposed reopening noted a lack of an available vaccine and lack of extensive teacher feedback considered as two major issues.

Those in this camp simply feel that safety must come first, and the district should stick to the original metric set of 5% or less positivity rate for those tested in the greater county. At the time of the board decision in November, the county was at one of its highest positivity rates since the start of the pandemic at 24.4%.

Despite the debate, Xavier and many other children and educators have shown their ability to adapt and have shined despite the obstacles. His teacher, Bigler, said that while online learning has been stressful for everyone at times, she has learned new ways of teaching and reaching students.

“After 36 years of teaching, that’s really saying something,” she said. “I’m also extremely impressed by the resilience of students dealing with the challenges. My students are amazing.” l

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Continued from front page At first Fraughton was hesitant to take the opportunity because of the virtual nature of the instruction, but over time she has come to love her student, and she now has a new best friend.

“It’s just been great for both of us. He’s got cats that he loves to show me, and I’ve got a dog and some fish in the pond out back. He always asks to see the dog and the fish at the end,” Fraughton said.

“He is just the most delightful young man and works so hard. I really want to keep track of him and see what he ends up doing.”

One of Fraughton’s favorite parts of her relationship with her student is how much he has taught her.

“I had to learn how to share my screen and how to use the whiteboard. I learned from him. He has shown me the way,” she explained, describing a new method of solving an arithmetic problem that he showed her.

The relationship that the two share is incredibly friendly and has become much more than a 45-minute tutoring session. After seven months of working together the student frequently asks if he can meet more times with Fraughton throughout the week and shares jokes and stories about his weekend trips on the subway.

“The great thing about it is that people that are stuck at home, it gives them something to do. It’s a win-win situation for both,” Fraughton said.

She recommends that anyone struggling with loneliness right now should seek out safe opportunities to volunteer.

“It’s such a great idea because it really gets you out of yourself, and it gets you something to look forward to and it makes you feel useful,” Fraughton said. “It’s been a real lifesaver for me because I look forward to these hours during the week.”

took a long time to be shipped and installed.

Eventually, the June opening that he had originally planned on ended up being delayed until the fall.

There were many opportunities for Craig to be frustrated with the delays, but he managed to take everything in stride and see the project through to completion, with his store opening a few weeks ago.

“We hit a couple of roadblocks throughout the whole process, but we were just like, ‘What’s the next step, what do we do?’”

Craig said. “Eventually we got all the jewelry and everything in here in that September to October range and got everything to the place where I liked it.”

Reflecting back, Craig jokes, “Don’t open a business during coronavirus!” But he tenaciously recounts what it took for him to get to where he is at now. “Honestly, the biggest thing was just the challenge through adversity: being able to go from one day to the next, and not be buried by problems, but try and just find the solutions to those problems the best way that you can.”

One of the difficulties that stood out to Craig was building a custom ring for an engagement, despite supply change issues.

“I had a gentleman who was needing to get a ring made for his son in late April, so that his son could propose to his girlfriend,” he said. “They had a diamond that they wanted to get. I was able to find that diamond, but that company had a breakout of coronavirus and they were not able to actually get in there and ship it out.”

Through searching, Craig was able to find a vendor in California that carried the diamond, and his client arranged for it to be delivered to him through a business associate.

“It takes a village to make everything happen, and I think that really applies to the business here as well,” he says, reflecting on the dedication and support that he has Taking risks to open a new business and received. fulfill a labor of love “It takes the village that got us from the After working in jewelry repair and concept of the idea to actually being able to custom jewelry on the wholesale side for the open up our doors. It’s really exciting.” last nine years, Brent Craig had an itch to return to customer facing interactions.

A real estate license and an imaginative When he recognized that this is what he children’s book wanted to do, he started to look for the right When instruction for schools went location to open his jewelry shop, Timeless virtual in March, Katie Ferriello a physiDesign and Jewelry. cal education teacher at Northwest Middle Craig’s search ultimately led him to School, found a lot more time on her hands Sugar House where he found an attrac- to pursue goals that had previously been tive location at 900 South and 352 East in hard to fit into her schedule. mid-January. Leasing negotiations lasted Ferriello was able to take the 120-hour for a few months, and the final details were course to get her real estate license in June hammered out before signing the contract and spent lots of time mountain biking with two weeks before the national lockdown. her husband.

Over the next couple of months there Her proudest accomplishment has been were a lot of logistical challenges. Craig waking up early every morning during the spent the next six months balancing the de- time that she would usually commute to mands of fulfilling custom orders to gener- work to write a middle school story about a ate income, while also preparing to open his time traveling special-needs class. store.

“I’ve been in the [League of Utah WritDue to production line issues the glass ers] since before I moved here, but I never and iron used to make cases in the store really sat down and dedicated time to writ-

Page 6 | January 2021

Faced with challenges and despite having to limit their interactions to virtual, Sugar House residents have taken advantage of the extra time they had to accomplish long standing goals, open businesses and grow closer to others. (Photo by Dollar Gill on Unsplash)

ing. I just dabbled before,” she said.

Ferriello has been able to spend a lot of her free moments thinking about her book that draws inspirations from “Harry Potter,” “The Amazing Race,” as well as obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).

“It’s about a sixth-grade class. They have a teacher who doesn’t like working with them and is pretty nasty. They come back the next year, and instead of that teacher being there they have another teacher who I’m calling ‘Mr. Ridley,’ at this point, and they slowly learn that he’s part of a time travel league,” she described.

Ferriello feels that her book, which is now at a length of 35,000 words, would have shaped up differently if it wasn’t for the restrictions of COVID-19.

“I had a little bit of the concept swirling in my brain for the past year, but I didn’t really have any ambition to sit down and actually set it on paper,” she said. “Even if I found time for it outside of what’s going on with the pandemic, like if it was two years from now and everything is back to normal and I decide to write it, I don’t know if I would have written it the same way,” Ferriello said.

“When you have so much time, and you’re spending time by yourself, and you’re alone it gives you room for your imagination to think,” she said. “Once I’m done with work for the day I’m just thinking of little fun details I can include in the story.”

dispensable relationships with the community

At the beginning of the year, Stacey Breidenstein took a few months off of work as the store manager of Natural Grocers to heal a broken foot.

Over the next few months she went to yoga and meditated to aid in her recovery.

Investing large amount of time into self-care paid off. By the time that the COVID-19 restrictions went into effect Breidenstein was in a prime position to oversee her staff as they grappled with the challenges of being essential workers.

“My staff did an amazing job of doing what they do, being kind and compassionate, and working their tails off,” Breidenstein said.

“I think that when we’re faced with challenges your fight or flight sometimes kicks in.

You can choose flight or panic, or just really retreating, or you can choose resilience and pull out all of the coping mechanisms that you have learned. That’s what I had to do running the store, because I have a lot of people that are my employees that I care deeply about that rely on me and look to me to be the leader in the storm—to be the general,” Breidenstein said.

Helping provide her customers with food and supplies during the pandemic has really been a humbling experience for her.

“It brought to me personally so much Forging renewed bonds of trust and in- gratitude. What I found is that when you’re

Sugar House City Journal

grateful for having toilet paper, having these basic things, when you see around the world people are really in desperate need. You reflect back on the fact that we wake up in the morning, turn on the lights, and we have electricity,” Breidenstein said. “When I could come back to everything that I had, even though we have to wear masks, it’s difficult, we don’t see our friends or do the things we used to, we’re still so blessed beyond belief.”

Breidenstein made sure to implement safety protocols in her store early on to create an environment where the community felt comfortable while shopping. This enabled her staff to be able to continue creating relationships with the community during the height of its struggle.

“We’re a community gathering spot. We provide food, a place to help people pick out immune support supplements and make sure they have their vitamin D and elderberry syrup and vitamin C,” Breidenstein said. “In myriad ways we’re serving the community. I serve my staff; they serve the community.”

The greatest lesson that the pandemic has taught Breidenstein is how fragile our systems are and the importance of relying on others.

From connecting with moms in the community who are having a difficult time home schooling, to having Sandy Cummings of Cummings Chocolate deliver a gift basket of handmade chocolate for her staff, there have been plenty of moments where she has seen her community grow stronger.

“I think when you can just be present for people—that’s been the greatest thing.”

A new job opportunity and a fresh outlook on life

This year was both the worst and best year for Sierra Lynne. Plans that she had to buy a house with her longterm boyfriend fell through, and the dance studio that she worked at temporarily closed.

Over the next few months Lynne had to sacrifice her long-standing ideas and open herself up to new possibilities. It was particularly hard with chronic anxiety depressive disorder.

She had headaches every day, and oftentimes her medication did not work.

Employment at the dance studio became tenuous as well.

“With the pandemic it just kind of brought out the best, but also the worst in people. With that I kind of saw a different side to the business that I was working for and realized that they weren’t as genuine as they appeared to be,” Lynne said. “They didn’t care about people the way that

MyS ugar HouseJournal .com

they said they did, and if it weren’t for the pandemic, I wouldn’t be able to see that.”

In October, Lynne tested positive for COVID-19. Due to preexisting health conditions, it took her longer than others to recover. She decided to cut ties with the dance studio and started looking for another job.

“At first, I didn’t know where I was going to go, or what I was going to do. I was lost. I just looked for anything. I searched for about three months and had a whole lot of interviews. I didn’t think that I was going to get anything, and while I had COVID, I got a call from my new employers and they said, ‘We want to hire you and work with you.’”

Lynne knows that she has made the right decision with taking her new job in business operations and feels that it is her most favorite place that she has been employed at. She has learned countless things about her mindset and has been able to empathize with the suffering of others. This has helped her to understand that she isn’t alone.

“There’s some limits, but really if you just don’t close your mind off, there’s no limits,” she said, elaborating on how this realization has enlightened her. “If the world is OK, then I can be OK too.”

A cookbook with recipes from Utah’s past

“I’m a cookbook nerd. I pretty much own every cookbook ever written,” Jordan Miller, a professional chef at Victory Ranch in Park City, said. “You can talk to my wife and she would confirm that. I have a cookbook problem.”

Miller has been a chef for a couple of decades and sees the trends that come and go in the world of cooking. His long-term desire has been to produce a cookbook that focuses on recipes that are unique to Utah and its history while updating them for a modern audience.

“Nobody has ever written a book about Rocky Mountain cuisine or, more specifically, with a Utah focus on it,” Miller said. He’s had such an idea for two years.

“I think there’s a lot of places that hit on it. They’ll have a cool version of Utah scones, or a cool version of funeral potatoes, but there’s no one place that focuses on it, and every place will get lost in the trend that’s hot now.”

With extra time on his hands, Miller spent copious amounts of time in the library pouring over books to understand the history of food in Utah.

He focused on ways that he could

incorporate ingredients, such as the beet; cooking equipment, such as cast iron; and culinary techniques, such as how Native Americans used native species in their cooking among other things.

One of the most exciting historical details that he has found during his research is why halibut is widely consumed in Utah.

“I did a deep dive on that one, and I found out that back in the day this was the last stop that the railroad made from the Pacific Northwest before they had to dump off all of their fish before it went rotten,” Miller said.

“I’ve spent my whole life in fine dining. I think it’s using time and place as my focus while paying respect to the past and its stories while making it unique by modernizing it,” Miller said.

Miller currently has an agent who is reviewing his work with him and is open minded about the possibilities that lie ahead for his work.

“I hope it could be something that the world could enjoy, but at the end of the day, if a couple people in Salt Lake City and Park City get some use and learn a few things then I’m good with that too.”

He recommends that people take time during the next couple of months to reflect on what they want to do.

“What’s important is your family, the people you love, and what you actually want to do in this life,” he said. “Is it just about grinding and paying your electricity bill, or is it about actually going for it?”

Thoughts for the New Year

Despite challenges, many in the Salt Lake Valley have shown there is much to look forward to all around us. There are new opportunities for connection, ways to be grateful, and original ways to invest talents into the community.

While some of the greatest difficulties lie ahead, the changes brought

by COVID-19 have been an unconventional blessing for many, if one looks hard enough.

“There’s something when you have a shared experience with people.

So, even though we’re all huddled alone in our homes, we’re all going through the same thing mentally and we have the same fears and we’re getting information together at the same time. We have that shared bond of this experience and knowing that we can lean on each other,” Ferriello said, adding that she is excited for what lies ahead.

The new year will bring uncertainty, but it will also bring many people who are filled with the hopes expressed by her. l

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January 2021 | Page 7

Local organization raising awareness of radon gas dangers

By Justin Adams | justin.a@thecityjournals.com

J

an Poulsen was 60 years old when she was diagnosed with lung cancer. She was confused because she had never smoked a day in her life. After a little research, she learned that her cancer was caused by a chemical in her very own home, one that is invisible, odorless, tasteless and otherwise impossible to detect without a test: Radon.

Poulsen was lucky in that she was able to beat her cancer diagnosis, but only after having undergone multiple rounds of chemotherapy and surgeries, including the removal of one of her lungs. But many are not so lucky.

Each year, radon is responsible for an estimated 21,000 deaths in the United States alone, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Exposure to radon usually happens in one’s own home. The gas forms naturally when uranium in soil or rock breaks down, according to the American Lung Association. It then “enters a home through cracks in walls, basement floors, foundations and other openings.”

Luckily there are relatively inexpensive tests available to measure the level of radon gas in a home. The only problem is that they need to be done regularly.

Poulsen’s home was tested for radon over a decade before her diagnosis and the results showed a radon level of 2.2 pCi/L, much less

than the recommended action level of 4.0.

However, radon levels can rise over time and home renovations can also lead to increased exposure. Poulsen’s family, for example, added a walk-out basement. Following her diagnosis, they had their home tested again and the result was 24.9 pci/L, more than six times the recommended EPA action level.

“If we had known, we would have had our house tested and remediated immediately after we had it remodeled,” said Poulsen.

Poulsen’s journey led her to help form the Utah Radon Coalition, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness of this rarely-talked-about issue. They hold regular radon awareness seminars, offer free testing kits to qualified individuals and lobby local lawmakers to adopt reasonable measures related to radon safety.

This month, for example, they’ll be encouraging a number of Utah cities including Cottonwood Heights, Draper, Herriman, Millcreek, Sandy and South Jordan to join the EPA and many others across the country in designating January as Radon Action Month.

National Radon Action Month “provides a fresh opportunity at the beginning of each new year for all Americans to protect their families by becoming more aware of radon, testing their home, and mitigating radon if the

Common radon entry points found in homes. (Courtesy Wikimedia Commons)

test finds a high level of radon,” according to the URC website.

They will also be offering free radon testing for homeowners of those six cities during

the month of January. Residents can request their free test by visiting www.utahradoncoalition.org and clicking on Radon Action Month 2021. l

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Best photos 2020: Sugarhouse

Tristan England loves to compete in Monster Jam with his truck, the Earth Shaker. (Photo courtesy Monster Jam)

Kaija Glasker unleashes a roar after Highland scored an important basket to pull away from Olympus. The Rams would go on to take the 5A state championship. (Travis Barton/City Journals)

The Medical Reserve Corps is a group of volunteers that helped provide underserved populations testing without barriers. (Photo courtesy of Aaron Smith)

Page 10 | January 2021

A family plants a tree in their plot during a tree-planting event at Fairmont Park in May. (Photo courtesy Sarah Woolsey)

Sugar House City Journal

Best photos 2020: Sugarhouse

Drive-by parties became a new way to celebrate birthdays during social distancing. (Photo courtesy of Shelly Kaihuta) (Left to right) Grace Gray (Babette), Ben Bauman (Chip), Liam Daines (Maurice), Nate Holcomb, Mim Dewall (Belle), and Johnny Baer (Beast) after a production of Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” at Hillside Middle School pre COVID. (Photo courtesy of Nate Holcomb)

Michael Wallis swims at the region meet. At state in February, Wallis finished runner-up in the 200 individual medley. (Photo by Cindy Nordstrom)

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Leilah Seui’s family created a banner for her. Sugar House Park provided the ideal location to hold a social-distancing graduation ceremony for Highland High School grads. (Jerilyn Langston Toro/City Journals)

January 2021 | Page 11

BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT

Boys & Girls Club of Greater Salt Lake 801.261.6180

Business Spotlights are a service offered to our advertisers to help them inform our readers about their businesses. For information on scheduling a Spotlight, please call us at 801-254-5974 or email us at ryan.c@thecityjournals.com

A destination and a donation that make a difference The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Salt Lake remains open and ready to serve the community during the pandemic. The Larry H. and Gail Miller Family Club in Murray on 244 E. Myrtle Ave. offers child care and after school help Mon. – Fri. “Early on in the pandemic, we were approved as an emergency child care center. We have adopted stringent safety practices and are here to help families,” said LeAnn Saldivar, CEO of the nonprofit Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Salt Lake.

“Child care and education were big challenges last year. Parents need to go to work, and most who work from home can’t function effectively and help kids who are out of school.

“As a licensed care center, we’re a great one-stop shop. We provide child care and academic support, whether you’re attending in person or learning online,” Saldivar said.

With so many learning disruptions last year, the Club ramped up their efforts to help with higher level math and science subjects.

“As a nonprofit, our mission is to enable all young people to reach their potential. It’s especially important during times of social and educational instability. Some students are behind or missing credits. We’re doing our best to mitigate those learning losses,” Saldivar said.

Tuition and memberships are affordable and the hours work with most schedules. The Club is open 6:30 AM – 6:30 PM, with programs for kids from pre k – 12th grade. More information is on their website at www.gslclubs.org or by calling the Miller Club at 801.261.6180.

Success stories of people who participated in Boys & Girls Clubs include Utah District Attorney Sim Gill. On the website,

Gill writes about how his experience at the Club started his love of competitive sports and helped him make new friends.

Another success story is Sheila H., the Club’s 2020 Youth of the Year. Sheila attended West High School where she played volleyball, took AP classes and was in student government.

In a statement, Sheila wrote, “Going to the Club allowed me to express myself in ways that I could not have done at home or school. I could be happy or sad but I always knew there would be someone, staff or another member, who would be willing to help.”

Saldivar wants people to know two things about the Club:

first, there are spaces available for kids to come and safely enjoy social experiences while getting help with school work.

Second, the Clubs rely on donations from the community to keep their programs going strong.

“It’s rare for us to be able to say that we have openings. We know people are worried about spreading the virus.

We’re following all recommended safety guidelines, including smaller group sizes, temp checks and extra cleaning. We have this down,” Saldivar said.

Donations ensure that Club programs stay available and affordable.

“Costs have escalated while revenues have declined. We encourage people to consider making a tax deductible donation on our website under the tab ‘Donate,’ and you can choose which club you’d like your donation to go towards,” Saldivar said.

To donate or get more information about their programs, visit the website or call the Miller Club at 801.261.6180.

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Best photos 2020: Sugarhouse

Ceramicist Clayton Keyes explaining how he made the artwork. (Photo courtesy Living Museum of Sugar House)

Moira Hicks was one of the top returning 100-meter sprinters in Class 5A before the spring season was shut down. (Photo courtesy Moira Hicks)

Jason Cryan is a systematist, a branch of biology that deals with the classification and taxonomy of species.

Cryan took over in March as the head of the Natural History Museum of Utah. (Photo courtesy Jason Cryan)

Page 16 | January 2021

Instead of hosting their annual Spectrum of Colors 5K Glow Run and 5K Turkey Trot like they do every fall, Spectrum Academy held its first SA5K where students perform 5,000 combined acts of community service during a five-week period. (Photo courtesy Spectrum Academy)

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January 2021 | Page 19

10 iconic signs to set your sights on in SSL

By Bill Hardesty | b.hardesty@mycityjournals.com

I

n the past year, South Salt Lake City has worked on revisions to the city’s sign code. One part of the code is to designate certain signs as iconic and protected them from removal. This reporter went on a hunt for iconic signs, some neon, and others not, and found at least 10 notable signs.

Lisa-Michele Church of Relentlesshistory.com said last year, “Historic treasures should be preserved because they add beauty and fun to our lives, because they reflect the creativity and vitality of long-time family businesses, and because they remind us of earlier days when more care, effort, and personality went into a sign’s design.

A unique sign became inseparable with the business’s identity and resonated with customers.”

The list certainly is not inclusive and if you have another suggestion, tell us, or better yet, tell the Community Development Department.

The 10 iconic signs of SSL (in no particular order): Ritz Classic Lanes Bowling Pin: The Ritz Classic Bowling Pin sign was erected in 1958 when Verne McCullough opened Ritz Classic Lanes at 2265 S. State St. The pin is 90 feet high and is known as the largest bowling pin in the nation. Initially, the middle rotated letters with “Classic” on one side and “Bowling” on the other. At the base, it advertised a coffee shop, a sports shop and 54 lanes. With 54 lanes, the Ritz Classic was the largest bowling establishment west of the Mississippi at the time.

During a windstorm, the sign tipped over and damaged 20 cars at the dealership next door in 1959. The sign has undergone many changes over the years. An explosion destroyed part of the bowling alley in 1967. The owners chose to build a skating rink over the damaged lanes. The sign was changed to read “Skating” on one side. In the 1980s, the rink was removed and more lanes were added, and “Classic” replaced “Skating.” In 2015, the bowling alley was closed, and the sign soon fell into disrepair.

The sign was removed in 2017. However, as part of the permitting process, SSL required the Ritz Classic Apartments builders to restore the sign. A new sign based on the old one created using LED lights instead of neon by YESCO, which built the original sign.

Bonwood Bowl: Bonnie and Woodrow (Woody) White opened Bonwood Bowling in 1957. The name comes from combining their names. At the time, there were 18 lanes. The bowling craze took off, and the Whites added 10 additional lanes and a lounge in 1958. In 1972, Bonwood added 14 lanes. This addition gave Bonwood Bowing 42 lanes making it one of the largest in the state.

Page 20 | January 2021

The biggest bowling pin in the nation shines again along State Street. (Bill Hardesty/City Journals)

Outside of the bowling alley at 2500 S. Main is a sign with an 8-foot bowling pin and ball and “Bowl” spelled in neon letters. In 2018, an alleged drunk driver hit the sign.

The White family, who owns and manages the Bonwood Bowl, decided to restore the sign rather than replace it.

“The Bonwood Bowl sign is very important to the streetscape of South Salt Lake. It represents a unique and creative design that is unlike any other sign or building feature to be found there,” Church said in 2019 at the ribbon cutting for the restored sign. “Because it has been there more than 60 years, it is a familiar and iconic visual that people associate with this area of the city.”

Standard Building Supply: At 220 W. 2700 South stands a large neon hammer with a direction arrow to the old home of Standard Building Supply. The hammer was installed in the ’50s or ’60s. When it was working, neon light outlined the hammer giving it a bluish hue at night.

Standard Building Supply was founded in 1948. They were acquired by Sunroc Corp., a subsidiary of Clyde Companies, in 2008. In 2009, Sunroc divided its operations and created Sunroc Building Material, which changed its name to Sunpro in 2019.

Town & Country Market: The old fruit neon sign still marks the Town & Country Market location at 2840 S. Main St. The sign was installed in the ’50s and still works. However, because the market isn’t open at night, the sign is off.

The Town & Country Market was initially an open-door fruit market for the farmers in the valley. Dennis Michelson bought the market over 30 years ago. Now

Top: Parker Theatre marquee. Bottom: The Chinatown Gate welcomes people to the Chinatown Plaza. (Bill Hardesty/City Journals)

the market is a deli specializing in made-toorder sandwiches.

Siesta Motel: A neon sign advertising the Siesta Motel, 3109 S. State St., looks to be from the 1950s. The neon portions of the sign are covered with plastic to protect it from the weather. It still lights up every night.

Century Theaters: The Century 21 (aka Century 6) sign needs repair, but it reminds people of the dome theaters built around 200 East and 3300 South. The first dome theater (Century 21) opened in 1967.

It had 985 seats and an 80-foot curved screen, which was the second largest in Utah. The dome ceiling was 155 high.

In 1969, another dome theater (Centu-

ry 22) was built across 200 East. In a few years, the theaters fell victim to the trend of splitting large theaters. Century 22 was divided into two screens and Century 21 into three.

Over the years, the theaters were not maintained well, and severe water damage forced the theaters to close. In 1998, both buildings were demolished, making way for a parking lot for the Century 16.

Parker Theatre: The classic cinema marquee at the Parker Theatre, 3605 S. State St., has undergone a few changes over the years.

The building was originally named the Apollo Theater and open Dec. 31, 1946. It had 500 seats. In 1963, it was renamed the

Sugar House City Journal

The Spiking Tourist Lodge with its golden railroad spike is still along State Street. (Bill Hardesty/City Journals)

The fruit sign still points to the Town & Country Market on Main Street. (Bill Hardesty/City Journals)

Avalon Theater. The theater mainly showed second-run or classic films, with a hypnotist show on Saturday night. The theater was the love of Art Proctor. After closing as a movie theater, it was used mainly for concerts.

Joanne and Tom Parker, founders of the Salt Lake Children’s Theatre Company, did extensive renovations in March 2012.

The theater reopened as the Utah Children’s Theatre.

They added to the marquee by adding “The Children’s” running vertical and “Theatre” running horizontally. Earlier this year, the theatre was renamed Parker Theatre and replaced Children’s.

Busy Bee Bar & Grill: This nowclosed bar and grill, 2115 S. State St., was known for its garlic burger and the unique neon sign. The sign doesn’t light anymore, but the tubing spelling out the name harkens back to the ’50s or ’60s.

Spiking Tourist Lodge: The sign at the Spiking Tourist Lodge isn’t neon anymore.

MyS ugar HouseJournal .com

The old Century 21 and Century 22 sign is in need of repair but still stands. (Bill Hardesty/City Journals)

The Siesta Motel sign has shined on State Street for almost 60 years. (Bill Hardesty/ City Journals)

The neon tubing was removed around 2010. But the iconic golden railroad spike is still part of the design.

The motel was open around 1946, and The Standard Builders Supply still stands at 220 W. 2700 South. (Bill Hardesty/City Journals) the sign was erected around the same time.

For many years, in the ’50s and ’60s, the motel’s advertising tagline was “Look for the Spike.”

Chinatown Gate: The Chinatown Gate isn’t old (it was built in 2011) nor is it neon, but it is iconic because of its design and placement on State Street. The gate uses colors and architecture in the traditional Chinese style.

The gate welcomes people to an Asian focused shopping center covering 5.7 acres and includes over 100,000 square feet of shopping and dining space. The Chinatown Supermarket anchors the Chinatown Plaza.

It is the largest Asian grocery store in Utah with an 18-foot-long tank and fish-marketstyle presentation. l Bonwood Bowling renovated its sign in 2019. (Bill The Busy Bee Bar & Grill sign still remains alone Hardesty/City Journals)

on State Street. (Bill Hardesty/City Journals)

January 2021 | Page 21

Salt Lake County concludes budget process with no tax increase

Aimee Winder Newton Salt Lake County Council | District 3

With the final approval of the 2021 Salt Lake County budget drawing near, I wanted to share some of the proactive steps we have taken as your County Council to tighten up spending.

In June, because of concerns surrounding revenue impacts from COVID-19, we scoured our budget to find as many cuts as possible – leading to a massive $77 million budget reduction. Because of all the cuts we made in June, and because sales tax revenue did not fall as much as we anticipated, we ultimately had a fairly uneventful budget season.

As we strive to be as fiscally prudent as possible, one of our top priorities is maintaining our AAA bond rating. We are one of only 27 counties in the entire nation with this highest-achievable bond rating. Keeping this bond rating results in much lower interest rates on bonds and loans.

Here are some key principles I have always prioritized during the budget process, this year included.

First and foremost, tax dollars don’t “belong” to the county. The funds are yours. Taxpayers entrust the county, or any government for that matter, with a portion of their hard-earned money because they expect that entity to pro-

vide essential services for society to function. There is no amount of tax dollars that is too small to be scrutinized.

That is why I push back aggressively anytime I hear someone flippantly say, “It’s only x dollars… so we shouldn’t worry about it.”

Any expenditure, whether it is $10 or $10 million, should be reviewed, and if it can’t be fully justified to the taxpayers, it should be cut.

Second, I believe that all government functions should be viewed in two different categories: “need to have” and “nice to have.”

The “need to have” list obviously includes things that are statutorily required of the county to perform, think constitutionally mandated services such as criminal justice and election administration. I also consider public safety to be in the “need to have” category, since keeping our residents safe is a core function of government. However, just because they are essential does not mean they are above scrutiny, because efficiencies can still be found.

The “nice to have” list includes quality of life services the county provides, as well as any other program or initiative that can easily be described as a benefit to county residents, but

not necessarily considered essential.

Libraries and open space some of the things in this category.

The separation of these two categories demonstrates the same principle that every family in our county goes through in their annual budgets. They strive to live within their means and focus on essential family expenditures sometimes at the expense of luxuries.

Lastly, I review each aspect of our budget and ask, “Is this the proper role of county government?” I’ve said many times that government can’t and shouldn’t be all things to all people.

There are many programs or services that are better suited to other government entities, nonprofits, or the private sector. Particularly in a tight budget year, it’s important to review each program, service, or expenditure and ask that question again and again.

I’m confident that these principles are the essence of good budgeting and fiscal discipline, and I will always advocate for this approach any time government is entrusted with taxpayer dollars. You can rest assured that for 2021, Salt Lake County has a balanced budget with no tax increase.

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HEATING & AIR

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Single Story $425 - $325 2 Story $525 - $425

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Electric

ROOFING

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All types of electrical work.

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strating unprecedented resilience.

Many kids are failing this year, but are they really? Can you fail when a global pandemic changes the rules? When teachers adapt daily to shifting conditions?

Can you fail when parents work full-time jobs at home while staying on top of online assignments and hybrid schedules?

Teachers are a mighty mix of educator/guidance counselor/ cheerleader/cruise director, and this year their creativity and patience has been tested. It brings to mind my husband’s favorite quote, “Looks like I picked the wrong [year] to stop sniffing glue.”

This is a thank you to the teachers who work with my grandchildren. The teachers who are innovative and kind. The teachers who show up like a boss and get to work. This is also a thank you to the students who have proven to be flexible and strong. They’re all doing the best they can as they watch adults try to figure everything out.

Maybe we write this school year off; maybe it’s not the year to learn geometry or teach Latin. Perhaps it’s the year we value kindness, connection, and self-care for everyone involved. I promise, there’ll be much less encyclopedia throwing and desk flipping.

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FLAT ROOF SPECIALISTS

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January 2021 | Page 23

UTAH’S #1 SEWER COMPANY Licensed • Insured • Bonded • Over 50 Years Experience

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CLEAN HOME GUARANTEE

We will leave your work area cleaner than when we arrived, or we will pay for a cleaner to come through. (available with drain cleaning and many other services)

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1063 E. 3300 S. Ste # 100 | Salt Lake City

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January 2021 | Vol. 7 Iss. 01

FREE

HOPE, GRATITUDE AND CONNECTION: SUGAR HOUSE RESIDENTS REFLECT ON 2020

By Drew Crawford | d.crawford@mycityjournals.com

2

020 has been a year filled with unprecedented difficulty and suffering. At the time of this writing the positive test rate for Utah COVID-19 cases is at a record high, and many will spend the holidays alone without their loved ones.

Being in public is risky, and all of us most likely know somebody who has gotten sick.

It’s hard to stay focused on the blessings of daily life.

The media is filled with stories about new and shocking information about overwhelmed hospital capacity. If you scroll through your newsfeed on Facebook or Instagram countless memes appear that poke weary fun at people’s failed expectations for the year.

It’s no understatement to say that many people wish that they could start 2020 over or fast forward to when the vaccine produced by Pfizer is available to take.

Throughout all of the change and gloomy difficulties, it can be hard to appreciate what makes us collectively hopeful and look for the silver lining.

However, this is exactly what multiple Sugar House residents have done.

Faced with challenges, they have taken advantage of the extra time that they have had to accomplish long standing goals, open businesses and grow closer to others.

Their strength and resilience are an inspiration for anyone who is looking for a bright moment to share with a loved one when daily life grows too overwhelming.

Faced with challenges and despite having to limit their interactions to virtual, Sugar House residents have taken advantage of the extra time they had to accomplish long standing goals, open businesses and grow closer to others. (Photo by Dollar Gill on Unsplash)

around children, who she considers to be positive and upbeat. After retiring as a fifth-grade teacher at Highland Park and Uintah Elementary she has volunteered as a tutor, helpAn unexpected virtual friendship at a 2,000-mile dis- ing with homework and difficult concepts.

When the nationwide lockdown happened in spring and tance Dodie Fraughton has always had a passion for being school went virtual, Fraughton was contacted by Volunteer

Match, a volunteer organization, with a unique opportunity.

“I volunteered to tutor a third-grade student in the Bronx who was struggling,” Fraughton described. “He can’t be in school because of COVID, so we meet twice a week on Zoom to do homework and read together.”

Continued page 6

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