Utahâs great challenge: Bringing all sectors together to plan for rapid growth
By LaVarr Webb
Our state and nation face a variety of immediate challenges that consume most of our attention. Some of these issues are highly controversial and partisan in nature. But as we spend time on these political issues, we shouldnât lose sight of the fact that the biggest and most consequential issue Utah must grapple with is rapid growth.
Utah is the nationâs fastest-growing state with many features that make rapid growth difficult â a shortage of land (some 70% of the state is owned by government agencies), a dearth of water, a population concentrated along the Wasatch Front, and topography that creates natural inversions and contributes dramatically to air pollution. Despite our wide open spaces, we are among the top 10 most-urbanized states, with much of the population crowded into the narrow Wasatch Front.
When we think about coping with rapid growth, we usually think in terms of infrastructure â highways, bridges, water, wastewater, etc. But the consequences of rapid growth are manifest in many other sectors, including housing, energy, education, land use, parks and recreation, clean air, good-paying jobs, and overall quality of life.
I recently participated in a thought-provoking discussion with Andrew Gruber, executive director of the Wasatch Front Regional Council (WFRC), regarding the many facets of the growth challenges. WFRC, which represents dozens of local governments on the Wasatch Front, is one of the key agencies helping elected leaders prepare for a doubling of the population over the next several decades.
Gruber noted, and I agree, that one of the great assets Utah deploys in planning for the future is an attitude of collaboration and cooperation among many agencies and organizations dealing with rapid growth. (Read More)
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