Happy New Year, my friends! 2025 will be an exciting year for South Jordan. We will be cutting several ribbons this year as we open a variety of new commercial, office, restaurant and entertainment venues.
We recently held our second annual State of the City event where we highlighted some of the many exciting projects we are working on. Guest presenters that night included Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson, Larry H. Miller Corporation Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Amanda Covington, Utah Transit Authority Trustee Beth Holbrook, and recently retired Legislator Susan Pulsipher. These strong leaders are all working with us as we strive to accomplish great things that will enhance opportunity and bring fantastic amenities to South Jordan. I appreciate their willingness to spend the evening discussing a few of the projects we are working on.
As you know, the Salt Lake Bees are moving to South Jordan and we couldn’t be more excited! The name for their permanent new home will be The Ballpark at America First
Square, and our friends at the Larry H. Miller Company are excited to be bringing the nicest minor league ballpark in America right here to our community. We discussed the progress of the ballpark, which is on track to open when the season starts in April 2025. It is important to note that this incredible facility is privately funded; it is not being built with tax dollars. The Larry H. Miller Company is paying for the entire ballpark, and we are grateful for their partnership and significant investment in our city. We hope you’ll join us at The Ballpark to cheer for the Bees just two months from now!
We have several other exciting amenities opening this year including the LHM Megaplex Family Entertainment Center, the Plaza with shopping, restaurants, a playground, amphitheater, and an ice rink in the winter. We will also have a new UTA TRAX stop on the Red Line, halfway between the South Jordan Parkway and the Daybreak Parkway stops. This new stop will open right out onto the plaza and is just a few steps away from the ballpark. The stop was
originally planned for construction 10 years from now, so we appreciate the support of the LHM Company and UTA as South Jordan worked with the state transportation commission to advance the project by a decade. (Trust me, this is no small task.) We are proud of our success and the partnerships we have built across the state to get important things done in our city.
Another exciting project coming to South Jordan is the new South Valley Performing Arts Center, slated to break ground in early 2026. Salt Lake County has been a strong supporter of the work we are doing and we could not be more thrilled to have them place this incredible regional amenity in our city. Negotiations for the performing arts center have been underway for several years and this project would not be possible without the support of Salt Lake County, the LHM Company, and a generous donation from the Larry H. and Gail Miller Family Foundation. Located on Lake Avenue, the new venue will
be just a few steps away from the SLCO Daybreak Library branch, South Jordan Fire Station 64, The Ballpark, Family Entertainment Center, and great places to eat before taking in a performance.
We have also been working with Salt Lake County for several years on a three-way partnership to get new lap lanes built at the South Jordan Fitness and Aquatic Center, and we’re thrilled to have that project starting soon. Salt Lake County will fund the majority of the project, with South Jordan City donating the land and Jordan School District covering a portion of the operating costs so swimmers from Bingham High (and potentially other schools) can practice there, bringing practice facilities closer to home for so many South Jordan families and lap lane options for all who use the South Jordan Fitness and Aquatic Center.
With Rep. Susan Pulsipher’s recent retirement from the legislature, we wanted to highlight a few of the great things she accomplished during her tenure representing our community on the Jordan District Board of Education and in the Utah State Legislature. From passing protections for Century Farms to reducing the cost of new schools by 17%, and passing Child Tax Credit to providing additional concurrent enrollment opportunities, she has
worked closely with South Jordan City and has supported our legislative priorities, working to accomplish significant things that will benefit our community for generations.
The future of South Jordan is bright, my friends. Our micro-economy is strong, and we are committed to our promise of being a businessfriendly city, allowing for economic development that will keep taxes low as we maintain our high service levels and ensure our continued quality of life. We are proud of our success in acquiring funding and project prioritization for critical transportation projects, and we know more is needed. As a city council, we will continue working with our legislative and congressional partners to bring additional infrastructure funding to our city. We are working closely with the legislature and development community on ways to make housing more attainable, and we’re leading by example with our water conservation efforts by acquiring grants to remove unnecessary turf in publicly owned spaces, while being water wise in our parks and offering among the most comprehensive water conservation rebate programs in Utah. In 2024 our Pure SoJo project was nationally recognized as one of the most important water reuse projects in America, and we are committed to ensuring water security for our city,
