Salt Lake City

Council District 5

Ballpark, Central Ninth, East Liberty Park, Liberty Wells

Mano’s Meeting Thoughts: September 7, 2021

COUNCIL WORK SESSION:

ADMINISTRATIVE UPDATES:

  • COVID: Case numbers and all metrics have been going the wrong direction. Next week will be the next time for us to discuss extending the K-12 Mask Requirement. We will be looking at our data as related to other districts when we consider that extension. Vaccines have started to go up again slowly. There is still about $8.2M available to help people with unpaid rent and in order to help people stay in their homes. Evictions are starting to increase so if you know anyone in need please let them know.
  • HOMELESSNESS: Homeless Resource Centers capacity is a bit over 90% (which is effectively full). On September 10th. Volunteers are needed! Other outreach efforts are still ongoing and there are always opportunities to help.
  • POLICING: Chief Brown gave us some information regarding our calls for service. In 2020 the police responded to 19% more calls than the previous 3 year average. That has not slowed in 2021. In August, the highest location generating calls in the Liberty Division (Districts 5, 6, and 7) were: Walmart (110 Calls), Palmer Court (98), and Jefferson School Apartments (63). Of course these are all in the North Ballpark area.

UPDATES ON RACIAL EQUITY AND POLICING: We are in the middle of a process to formalize and process advice and consent votes for the commissioners. This will make the commission a more formalized board and commission.

REZONE/MASTER PLAN AMENDMENT AT 554/560 SOUTH AND 300 EAST: This is a change to allow retail services on the site. The current zone (RO) would change to Residential Mixed Use (R-MU). Planning Staff and the Planning Commission have recommended approval.

URBAN FOREST ACTION PLAN AND ZONING AMENDMENT: This is a new plan for the city to guide our development and maintenance of our Urban Forest. This will be a collaborative effort led by Planning but including other departments and city resources. There are many positive and important reasons for us to make this effort a priority including climate change, stormwater management, geographic and economic equity, etc.

REZONE/MASTER PLAN AMENDMENT AT 461 SOUTH AND 400 EAST: This is similar to the item a couple of agenda items earlier. This is a proposed rezone from RMU-45 to TAS-UN-C. This is close to transit and would represent a significant increase in density and a reduction in parking.

REZONE/MASTER PLAN AMENDMENT THREE PARCELS NEAR 200 EAST AND 2100 SOUTH: This item is in District 5. The property owner is seeking a change from RMU-45 to FB-UN2. This parcel is just east of the County Complex and includes the existing Georgia Apartments. The major difference between the zones is that FB-UN2 does not require off-street parking. Staff and Planning Commission both forwarded positive recommendations for this.

ELM AVENUE ALLEY VACATION: This is near Elm Ave between Lincoln Street and 1000 East. The Planning Commission forwarded a positive recommendation but planning staff recommended against approval. This is a tricky situation. There are some existing structures that are in the alleyway. These structures were all placed by previous owners. Vacating this alley would make legal what has existed for over 20 years. However, there are also Rocky Mountain Power lines in the area to which access needs to be provided.

SERIES 2021 STREET RECONSTRUCTION BONDS: This is the next block of bonds which the city will issue for the Bond Resolution that was voter-approved a few years ago. This will account for just over $23 million of the roughly $85 million in funding that was included in the voter resolution.

2021 RESIDENT SURVEY RESULTS: The city hires an outside company to go a general survey of residents throughout the city. They ask residents from throughout the city questions related to items like quality of life, how effective the city was in responding to COVID, what residents feel about their neighborhood, etc. Overall the results are good and the response rate was statistically strong. The major takeaway for me is that there are slight but statistically significant differences between districts. The differences generally match what we would expect regarding East/West Equity. We had lower response rates from Districts 1 and 2. District 6 reported the highest quality of life rating.

BOARD APPOINTMENTS: We met with the following individuals who have indicated willingness to serve the City in a volunteer capacity: Mike Christensen to the Planning Commission, Alejandro Moya to the Art Design Board, Colour Maisch to the Art Design Board, Josanne Glass to the Arts Council Board, Sarah Longoria to the Arts Council Board, and Carlton Getz to the Historic Landmark Commission. Boards and Commissions are one of the first ways I began my community service. If anyone is interested in getting involved check out the options here.

FORMAL COUNCIL MEETING

PUBLIC HEARINGS:

  • GRANT APPLICATIONS: The city has applied for the following grants: Victims Of Crime Grant, Law Enforcement Mental Health And Wellness, and State Of Utah Asset Forfeiture Grant. This was our opportunity to hear from the public on applying for and (hopefully) receiving funding. No public comments were received.
  • DESIGNATE CENTRAL BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT AREA 2022: This is related to the creation/re-establishment of a special assessment area for the Downtown Business Improvement District. This is a mechanism where businesses/property owners in a specific area within the city agree to pay an additional tax in order for enhanced services benefiting the area. No public comments were received.
  • REZONE NEAR 830 WEST AND 200 NORTH: This is something we learned about a couple weeks ago for some parcels near the Trax line. We had about 6 public comments on this topic. Most, but not all, comments were opposed. The concerns related to gentrification and changing neighborhoods, general distrust of new development, etc. We closed the public hearing and deferred action on this item.
  • PERMITTING RESTAURANTS IN THE PUBLIC LANDS ZONE: This allows restaurants in our PL zones. No comments were received. We closed the public hearing and adopted this ordinance.
  • FENCE, WALL, AND HEDGE HEIGHTS: This clarifies the height requirements for fences and removes the special exceptions. We heard from 3 people on this and they were split between proposed and supporting. We closed the public hearing and deferred action to a future meeting.
  • AIRPORT UNITED SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS (USO LOUNGE): This would be a waiver of airport lease fees for the USO to build a lounge for our military service members. We closed and deferred action on this item.
  • GENERAL COMMENTS: We received about 9 comments on varied items. The topics included: management of the PNUT board, environmental impacts of the inland port, the Foothills Trails Master Plan, lowering Great Salt Lake water levels, the Utah Theater, the proposed overflow shelter,

OTHER BUSINESS:

  • MEETING REMOTELY WITHOUT AN ANCHOR LOCATION: Adopted
  • AUTHORIZING USE OF SALE AND USE TAX REVENUE FOR REPAYMENT OF BONDS: Adopted
  • FORMALIZING THE RACIAL EQUITY IN POLICING COMMISSION IN ORDINANCE: Adopted
  • RENAMING PEOPLE’S FREEWAY PARK TO BALLPARK PLAYGROUND: Adopted
  • STATE INFRASTRUCTURE BANK LOAN FOR INDUSTRY (GRANARY) PROJECT: Adopted

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