As Covid-19 cases in variant form surge in Utah and across the US, the divide between those who support mask and vaccine mandates and those who do not continues to widen. Owners of three local businesses were interviewed for this story, to see how a vaccine mandate would impact employees already stretched thin by the pandemic’s heavy hand. Quality of life, not … [Read more...]
Homeless in Sugar House
As apartment buildings rise and the shelters fill, the voices of the homeless on homeless policy. “I’ve given up on the homeless resource center,” said a man who we’ll call John. Now camping around Fairmont Park for the past few months, John added, “They say they want to help, but I showed up two minutes after eight o’clock and they took my room and kept all of my … [Read more...]
Angered Over COVID Mask Requirements Customers Assault Small Businesses in Eden, Utah
Customers are not “masking” their hostility toward business owners In-person attacks towards small businesses in Eden, Utah — an idyllic, quiet town, as the name suggests — have been an almost daily occurrence over the past year from both locals and out-of-state visitors seeking dining and shopping in the popular Ogden Valley tourist destination. Angered over mask … [Read more...]
The Story of Sugar House
A Sugar House that never produced sugar: How initial attempts failed, but in the end produced a huge industry from which Utah would greatly benefit. Sugar House is an area in Salt Lake City that is full of bungalow houses, parks, tree-lined streets and a community of mostly liberal, yuppie-types who drive their Subaru wagons to Whole Foods to buy overpriced organic … [Read more...]
Gas Chamber Pet Euthanasia Orem, Utah
OREM ― Animal rights activists are making their voices heard in the second largest city in Utah County, hoping to get elected officials to halt the use of gas chambers to euthanize shelter animals. “I’ve had about 40 emails, and we’ve had multiple people show up at city council in our personal appearance section ... it’s been a very large outcry against what’s going on,” … [Read more...]
X96 Radio From Hell Show: Still Hell After All These Years
Radio From Hell on X-96 continues to find success in "Sticking it to the Man." Outposts of 1980s counterculture in the Salt Lake Valley like Cosmic Aeroplane Records, Bandaloops Café, The Speedway Café, and dance clubs like the Palladium and Ritz, have all disappeared over the decades like so much clove cigarette smoke. But, while the places are gone and the patrons … [Read more...]
Foothill: Residents Outraged Over a Proposed Lamplighter Square Project of Five-Story, 135-Unit Apartment Complex
East-bench neighborhood worries state and developer will bypass city zoning with liquor store development. The following story was reported by The Utah Investigative Journalism Project in partnership with Utah Stories. The East Bench Community Council’s November 2020 Zoom meeting was so packed that residents were doubling up on computers to allow others in. In the hot … [Read more...]
The Unintended Consequences of Utah’s Tech Boom
Utah's tech boom has been incredible. There are more tech jobs in Utah per capita than any other state in the country, and our tech economy keeps growing. Utah has minted tech billionaires such as Ryan Smith (who recently bought the Utah Jazz), and Josh James who is taking Domo to new heights. But as more tech moguls move in and want to inhabit the loveliest places along the … [Read more...]
Renovated Sprague Library Retains its Historic Charm
Four years after a flash flood filled the Sprague Library’s basement with more than five feet of water and caused extensive damage, the branch is better than ever thanks to a $4.5 million renovation. The library, at 2131 South 1100 East, which is considered by many to be the heart of Sugar House, reopened May 3. The design and remodel of Sprague Branch was done by … [Read more...]
Ticket to Ride: “Political Pressure” Comes to Bear on Little Cottonwood Canyon Transportation Plans
By Eric S. Peterson and Jennifer Greenlee In December 2020, Central Wasatch Commission executive director, and former Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker, was fixated on one of several transportation alternatives that were discussed regarding how to get skiers, hikers and bikers up Little Cottonwood Canyon while keeping cars out. “With a train, it’s possible we could … [Read more...]