Salt Lake City Council News Briefs

Set Up a Neighborhood Watch Program on Your Block

Neighborhood Watch is one of the most effective and least expensive ways to prevent crime and reduce fear. It fights the isolation that crime both creates and feeds upon. It forges bonds among area residents; helps reduce burglaries, robberies and car prowls; and improves relations between law enforcement and the community.

Any community resident can join and learn how to make their homes more secure, watch out for each other and the neighborhood, and report activities that raise their suspicions. You may form a Neighborhood Watch group around any geographical unit: a block, apartment complex or business area.

To form a Neighborhood Watch group, contact Detective Gregory Wilking at [email protected]

Schools are now back in session for the school year. 

Salt Lake City reminds parents, caregivers, and students to take extra care when heading back to school by obeying the rules of the road and being attentive of pedestrians while driving.

The Salt Lake City Transportation Division has several pedestrian safety brochures available for download. Information includes street crossing tips; explanations of what various pedestrian signals mean; pedestrian laws; and information on crosswalk flags and the Adopt-A-Crosswalk Program.

The Transportation Division has been installing $3.49 million worth of signal infrastructure this year to help improve pedestrian safety.

UDOT’s SNAP program provides resources for students, parents, principals, and crossing guards to educate your children about walking and biking safely to school.

UDOT’s Walking School Bus App

UDOT’s Walking School Bus app is a forward-thinking digital tool for iPhone and Android that makes walking and biking to school easier and safer than ever. The app allows parents to search by elementary school for existing walking groups, create new groups and invite neighbors to join, plan walks to and from school, assign parent leaders to walk with students, and group text within the app. It also alerts parents when students have arrived safely at school. It’s like a carpool without the car!

Leaves Bins Available Free of Charge

Have a lot of leaves? “Leaves only” bins may be requested free of charge. There are a limited number of bins, and they will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. Leaves will be collected weekly, on the same day as your garbage collection day, until the City retrieves the bins in early January. Request a bin by calling 801-535-6999 or via email: [email protected].

1300 East Fiber Installation

900 South to 2100 South: Crews have begun installing Google Fiber along 1300 East between 900 South and 2100 South. The installation is scheduled as aerial fiber, requiring only short-term use of the street. Crews will work to minimize traffic disruptions during construction. Most likely the only road closures that will occur will be in the immediate vicinity of the construction, and will not preclude either direction of traffic from flowing. The project is expected to last several weeks. For more information, contact James at General Dynamics: 385-715-3772

McClelland Trail Community Workshop

Wednesday, October 7
Tracy Aviary Education Center
4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

The public is invited to participate in a discussion on the final design for the McClelland Trail. The Jordan and Salt Lake City Canal “McClelland” Trail will create a safe and comfortable route for walking and bicycling between residential neighborhoods, recreational opportunities, shopping destinations, and community gathering places.

Increased TRAX and S-Line Service

Extensive rail and bus service enhancements went into effect on August 16. The schedule changes are part of a UTA initiative to pass cost savings earned through efficient operation along to riders.

TRAX Sunday service has been extended for all three lines from approximately 6:30 a.m. to 11p.m.

S-Line service has been extended to offer the same daily hours of service as TRAX. For the first two and half years of operation, S-Line service has started later and ended earlier than TRAX service due to a limited budget.

 Vote by Mail Primary Voting

The City’s first vote by mail balloting improved turnout for the primary when compared to recent elections. The City Recorder reports that more than 40 percent of registered voters either sent in, dropped off, or voted in person for the Aug. 11 primary in Salt Lake City. That’s double the turnout from the Mayoral primary in 2011. Ballots for the General Election will be mailed 28 days prior to the Tuesday, November 3 election date.

Governor, Utah Legislature Approve SLC Site for New Prison

The Governor and the Utah legislature have approved a recommendation that a new, 4000-bed prison be built west of the Salt Lake Airport off of 7200 West. Both the City Council and the Mayor objected to the recommendation and will continue to explore options to fight the move from Draper. The Salt Lake City Council delivered a letter to the Governor before the legislative vote on Aug. 19 opposing the recommendation.