APRIL 2020
RIVERTON REVIEW Official Newsletter of the Riverton, Utah City Government MAYOR’S MESSAGE
Salt Lake County Ignores Local Opposition; Approves Olympia Hills By Mayor Trent Staggs
that will be directly affected by this high-density development. There are many flaws with the current Olympia Hills development plan that will directly affect Riverton, including:
Over the last two years the Southwest 1. Community General Plan: Mayors In 2008, the County’s Southwest Coalition made up of Bluffdale, Cop- General Plan was amended and perton, Herriman, Riverton, South allowed for 3-5 units per acre. With Jordan, and West Jordan have been this amendment, cities including very vocal about our opposition to Riverton have used those numbers the Olympia Hills development projto appropriately plan for our own ect. There is an uncanny opinion by infrastructure needs. The approved some of our county officials that the density is almost 40% greater than southwest region needs to absorb the upper limit of the county’s genermore of the growth that is coming. al plan. Coincidentally, this opinion largely coincides with individuals who don’t 2. Density Studies: The Southwest live in our area, don’t understand Vision Study is currently ongoing the needs of our and is planned to residents or what be completed by planning decisions the end of this year. “It is unfortunate that have already been The county spent the county officials who $100,000 of taxpaymade. er money to fund voted for this change Last month, the this study which was ignored the thousands of meant to help procounty council votresidents who voiced their actively plan for the ed 6-3 to approve zoning changes that opposition to the project.” future of the southallow for Olymwest region. The pia Hills to move approval of Olympia forward with their Hills ultimately ne933-acre development. It is unforgates the effectiveness of that study tunate that the county officials who and negatively impacts the planning voted for this change ignored the efforts for this region. thousands of residents who voiced their opposition to the project, along 3. Infrastructure Impact: The imwith the six mayors from the cities pact to existing municipal infrastruc-
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| APRIL 2020
ture is estimated to cost the surrounding cities at least $40 million. Even more troublesome is the fact that there are no funding mechanisms in place to pay for current roadway infrastructure needs along Mt. View Corridor and Bangerter Highway, let alone funds available to pay for the additional infrastructure needed to support this project. 4. Inadequate Water Supplies: The Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District (JVWCD) has estimated that this development, which is approximately 10% the size of Riverton’s footprint, would use the equivalent amount of water that our entire city would use. It would also push JVWCD’s planning timeline forward ten years, which jeopardizes their ability to deliver water supplies moving forward. I want to reiterate that Riverton and our surrounding cities are not scared of growth. In fact, the southwest region has accounted for over 70% of the population growth since 2000. We simply believe in smart responsible growth accompanied by infrastructure that won’t diminish our quality of life. Although a majority of county leadership has completely disregarded the “people’s voice,” I want to reassure you that you are my priority and I will continue to listen and fight for the needs of this great city.
Take The Census Today! The 2020 U.S. Census is in full swing. You should have received your official census information in the mail. Please take a few minutes to complete it. It is vital that every person living in Riverton be counted. The Census is critical to: • Measure Riverton’s growth • Determine political representation • Plan for the city’s future • Ensure federal and state resources are appropriately allocated For more information, visit: rivertonutah.gov/census
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PUBLIC SAFETY MESSAGE
Minimize Your Burglary Risk MAYOR Trent Staggs tstaggs@rivertonutah.gov 801-208-3129
CITY COUNCIL Sheldon Stewart - District 1 sstewart@rivertonutah.gov 801-953-5672 Troy McDougal - District 2 tmcdougal@rivertonutah.gov 801-931-9933 Tawnee McCay - District 3 tmccay@rivertonutah.gov 801-634-7692 Tish Buroker - District 4 tburoker@rivertonutah.gov 801-673-6103 Claude Wells - District 5 cwells@rivertonutah.gov 801-875-0116
CITY MANAGER Interim City Manager Ryan Carter rcarter@rivertonutah.gov 801-208-3171
CITY OFFICES
City Hall............................... Cemetery............................ Animal Control.................... Building............................... Code Enforcement.............. Fire Dispatch (UFA)............. Justice Court....................... Parks & Recreation............. Planning & Zoning.............. Police.................................. Public Works....................... Recorder.............................. Utility Billing........................ Water...................................
801-254-0704 801-208-3128 801-208-3108 801-208-3127 801-208-3174 801-743-7200 801-208-3131 801-208-3101 801-208-3138 385-281-2455 801-208-3162 801-208-3128 801-208-3133 801-208-3164
By Riverton Police Chief Don Hutson
are inclined to victimize others by stealing their property Spring has or burglarsprung and izing their Riverton is alive homes, take with the beauty advantage we associate of the milder with this wontemperatures. derful time of year. Flowers are Criminals are blooming and the young, as well as aware we are the young at heart, are spending approaching much more time outside enjoying vacation seathe warmer weather and longer son and they days. are always looking for an Pedestrian traffic and bicycle riding opportunity to Criminals are aware we are approaching vacation season and they increase dramatically for obvious break into an are always looking for an opportunity to break into an empty house or reasons, and motorcycle riding is empty house far more enjoyable and prevalent. or business. It business. These changes in the traffic dynam- is also easier ic on our roadways make visibility for them to hide or avoid us tracking leaving town, let your neighbors more of a challenge them with additional know who should or should not be and cause us confoliage and no snow at your home so they can keep an cern as public safety to leave footprints. eye out for suspicious vehicles. officers. It is importsomeone retrieve your mail “Have someone For these reasons, it Have ant for all of us to be and ensure papers or flyers don’t aware of this changis a good time for all accumulate on your porch. retrieve your ing traffic landscape of us to assess the mail and ensure security of our prop- As always, please don’t hesitate and be more vigilant in identifying potenpapers or flyers erty and be reminded to call the Riverton Police Departtial hazards as we how to minimize ment at 801-840-4000 if you see don’t accumulate of travel on our streets. risk. First, always lock something suspicious. Stay safe on your porch.” your doors and keep and enjoy our beautiful city as we Additionally, some in your external lights transition from soggy spring to hot our community, who on at night. If you are summer.
SECONDARY WATER
RIVERTONUTAH.GOV/WATER/SECONDARY
Riverton’s secondary water system will be available for use begining May 1, 2020.
FIND US ONLINE! @rivertonutahgov www.rivertonutah.gov PAGE 2
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COUNCIL MESSAGE
Census & COVID-19 Update By Councilman Claude Wells As a resident of Riverton City you should have received the 2020 U.S. Census reminder in mid-March in the mail. The Census count is critical for Riverton’s future and it’s important to remember that you matter, your children matter, and our community matters…so make sure you get counted! Census data is used for planning and accurate allocation of funds for roads and infrastructure, education funding, school planning and political representation. It only takes about 10 minutes, but accuracy is important. The recent COVID-19 virus outbreak is a reminder to us how important it is to be prepared but stay calm understanding that we have a grocery supply chain in place to allow us to get are basic everyday needs and a little more if we have to stay self-quarantined for a few weeks. Fear based buying for things we don’t need causes panic for everyone. Empty shelves leave uncertainty and especially for those that don’t prepare at all. It’s a domino effect that left shortages for more critical items that are not needed for
the COVID-19 Virus. This resulted in shortages for things like distilled water needed for CPAP and other medical devices and products needed to protect medical providers and disinfectant and sanitation products we could all use to help stay safe. Hopefully we can all take away some things we learned from this time period to better prepare us Census data is used for planning and accurate allocation of funds for the next challenge for roads and infrastructure, education funding, school planning that is not a natural and political representation. It only takes about 10 minutes, but disaster. We will accuracy is important. all get through this together if we take My experience serving on the City a deep breath, work together and Council has taught me a lot. For keep calm. everything you think you know you need to learn even more to get Our city leaders and public offidifferent perspectives, learn facts cials are all required to take FEMA based on research to be able to classes through Homeland Security. make the best possible decisions as Because of this training the leaders a member of the council. You have have a good understanding of certo put in the work to stay on top of tain protocols of both federal, state, the issues and challenges of the and local agencies when declaring city. It really is a full-time position national emergencies. This helps to continuously learn as much as release needed funding to help fight you can. I am honored to serve with the COVID-19 outbreak and get such great city leaders, employees help for each state. We are in good and other state and county reprehands! sentatives!
APRIL 2020
Arbor Day Tree Planting Workshop
Attend Riverton City’s annual Arbor Day Tree Planting Workshop. Learn how to properly plant a tree and your questions answered by Riverton’s own certified arborist. To help prevent COVID-19 spreading, we ask that healthy attendees practice responsible social distancing at this outdoor event.
Saturday, April 25 9 a.m. Centennial Park 13000 S 2700 W Riverton, Utah
For more information, visit: rivertonutah.gov/beautiful
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COVID-19 VISIT RIVERTONUTAH.GOV/COVID19 • COVID-19 Hotline & Symptoms Information • Vulnerable Populations & Service Opportunities • Price Gouging Reporting • City Issued Updates • Community Facility / Business Closures • Community Event & Meeting Updates
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Main Reception 801-254-0704 Attorney’s Office Animal Control Building Code Enforcement Finance/Accounting Human Resources
801-208-3140 801-208-3108 801-208-3127 801-208-3174 801-208-3107 801-208-3135
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801-208-3131 801-208-3145 801-208-3138
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801-208-3175 801-208-3128 801-208-3133
conduct business online at rivertonutah.gov
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UPCOMING RIVERTON CITY EVENTS With the rapidly changing events due to the COVID-19 virus, we recommend you regularly visit rivertonutah.gov to find the most recent event and meeting information. PAGE 4
RIVERTON REVIEW
| APRIL 2020