August 2018 | Vol. 5 Iss. 08
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Blinds & Shades
TAYLORSVILLE OFFICIALS TRAVEL TO LAS VEGAS IN HOPES OF ‘WINNING’ SOME NEW BUSINESS FOR THE CITY By Carl Fauver | carlf@mycityjournals.com “It’s like ‘speed dating’ for economic development.” That’s the best way Taylorsville Mayor Kristie Overson could describe the whirlwind three days she recently spent in Las Vegas — with City Council Chairman Brad Christopherson and Economic Development Director Wayne Harper — as they met with people who could change the city’s shopping and dining landscape at the drop of a hat. Or the investment of several million dollars, to be more precise. Overson, Christopherson and Harper were the city’s three-member lobbying tag team at the annual International Council of Shopping Centers Real Estate Convention (ICSC RECon) in Las Vegas. And at least one person who is in a position to know said the Taylorsville team does it better than anyone from our state. “(Taylorsville representatives at the ICSC RECon) are the best in the business when it comes to this kind of show,” said Economic Development Corporation of Utah Community Strategy Director Max Backlund. “They run a very good, clean process of lining up meetings ahead of time and then not wasting any time, talking with potential developers. We (edcUTAH) help them prep for the meetings. But the city reps take the meetings themselves and are pretty tight-lipped about who they speak with.” Indeed, when you try to ask Overson, Christopherson or Harper who they met with, “speed dating” quickly becomes more of an espionage spy thriller. “We really can’t talk about what particular businesses are
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Taylorsville City Council Chairman Brad Christopherson (L) and Mayor Kristie Overson (facing away) talk to potential developers and investors at the annual International Council of Shopping Centers Real Estate convention in Las Vegas. (Taylor Brightwell/Economic Development Corporation of Utah)
considering coming because it is so competitive trying to get them here,” said Christopherson. “You really should talk to (Economic Development Director) Wayne (Harper),” Overson said. “He might be able to give you more specifics.”
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Then Harper is quick to add, “I would really love to talk specifics, but the businesses have asked me not to.” So no one is saying exactly who the Taylorsville people met with in their more than 20 meetings with various commercial representatives at the conference. But they Continued on page 5...
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