Salt Lake City Public Lands’ 2025 Annual Report
The trails that you walk, the trees that shade your street, and the parks you visit with your family are all cared for with purpose. They are the result of hundreds of dedicated professionals who show up every day to care for the parks, natural lands, urban forests, and open spaces that make Salt Lake City feel like home.
We’re proud to share the highlights of our 2025 Annual Report, a look back at a year full of caring for nature and building community.
Guided by a Vision
Everything we do stems from the 2022 Reimagine Nature Master Plan, our 20-year blueprint for what Salt Lake City’s public lands can become. In 2025, we made strides toward that vision, organized around our five core commitments: Sustain, Connect, Welcome, Protect, and Grow.
Sustaining Our Environment
Sustainability is a priority in every division in our department.
- Our Parks team expanded the use of electric and low-emission equipment, upgraded irrigation controllers, and transitioned multiple parks to low-water landscaping.
- Our Planning and Design team completed projects including the reopening of Seven Canyons Refuge with water-saving design features, and the opening of Glendale Park Phase 1, set to become Utah’s first SITES-certified park. We also secured $1 million for Liberty Park Lake dredging and aeration improvements that will reduce algal blooms and improve water quality for years to come.
- Our Trails and Natural Lands team added more than 50,000 plants at Foothills trailheads, Cornell Wetlands, Glendale Park, and other natural areas, improving biodiversity across the city. They also completed development of the Genesee Native Seed Farm, a new hub for plant production built out of a previously neglected space within 900 South River Park.
- Urban Forestry planted more than 1,900 trees citywide, with more than half planted on the West Side for the fifth consecutive year in a row. Teams pruned nearly 6,000 trees and treated hundreds more for disease and pest infestations.
- At the Cemetery, a new high-efficiency irrigation system was installed in the Northeast Quadrant and is already reducing water use by 20–25 percent.
- Across all six municipal golf courses, the Golf team developed turf reduction plans to cut irrigation demand.
Connecting People to Place
Parks are places where all people should feel they truly belong.
- In 2025, our Community Events team expanded high-quality programming into equity-priority neighborhoods, while also implementing sustainable event practices like reducing single-use materials, improving waste sorting, and protecting turf.
- Our Park Rangers were out in communities every day, not just patrolling, but teaching. Rangers engaged with more than 2,000 program participants in conversations about conservation, led educational programs on biodiversity and wildlife health, and partnered with the stewardship team on habitat restoration and planting projects. They also removed thousands of hazardous materials and nearly 8,000 buckets of litter from parks and natural areas.
- Our Stewardship Team hosted 83 volunteer sessions across the city and continued to make a huge impact to keep our public lands beautiful and safe for everyone to enjoy.
Looking Ahead
2025 was a year of momentum. The work done by every division, from Golf and the Regional Athletic Complex to Urban Forestry to Park Rangers, reflects a shared belief that public lands belong to everyone. We’re proud of what was accomplished and are even more excited about what comes next.
Read the full Annual Report today! https://www.slc.gov/parks/home/2025-annual-report/