Salt Lake County is working with Senator Karen Mayne to pass a Community Preservation Bill during this Legislative session. I am very committed to seeing this bill pass, as I believe our unincorporated areas should have local representation and decision-making authority. We also need to have their borders protected from annexations and the ability for them to maintain their identity.
Currently:
The unincorporated areas are funded through a separate
municipal services budget overseen by the county council and mayor.
The boundaries are not locked which means neighboring cities
continually annex unincorporated areas where valuable tax base exists. This harms
the ability for these areas to pay for services. The individual townships have
a desire to maintain their own identity.
In the past the county has hesitated to put serious
investment in infrastructure or economic development for fear that the areas
will be annexed or incorporate.
If township areas continue to be eaten away be neighboring
communities, there will come a point when the areas which are left may be
divided up and given to neighboring cities, as there will not be sufficient
funds to continue maintaining them as a whole.
Solution for
Townships:
Our six townships include Millcreek, Emigration Canyon, Kearns, Copperton, Magna and White City.
The Community Preservation Bill is an effort to secure boundaries,
maintain township identity, and give decision-making control to the townships.
In November 2015, each township will vote on whether they
want to incorporate or be part of a municipal township.
If a community decides to incorporate, they can still pool
sales tax revenue in the municipal services district and receive the same
services they have historically.
If a community wants to be a metro township, the
following year they would elect a three or five-member council. One member
would serve on the executive board of the municipal services district and make
budgetary decisions.
This municipal services district pools sales tax revenue and
is the financial arm to fund public works and other services. Currently the
townships pay directly via property taxes to UPD and UFA for public safety and
would continue to do so.
Solutions for
Non-Townships:
Throughout the county there are small neighborhood pockets of unincorporated areas, which are not considered townships. In November 2015 there will be a ballot question to see if
these unincorporated areas want to remain status quo or annex to a city,
based on neighboring cities annexation master plans.
QUESTIONS??
Below is a short Q&A that will answer questions about the process for developing the legislation and provide additional details about these updates. Please email communitypreservation@slco.org with any questions, concerns, or suggestions.
Q. If passed, what will the Community Preservation bill do?
A. If passed the bill will:
Q. If passed, what will the Community Preservation bill do?
A. If passed the bill will:
- Allow Townships and unincorporated County residents to decide their future during the municipal election on November 2, 2015. For voters living in a current township, the ballot question will ask whether they want to be incorporated as a new city or become a Metro Townships. For voters living elsewhere in unincorporated Salt Lake County, the ballot question will ask whether they want to annex into an existing city or keep their current status. The new townships or cities would elect council members in 2016. Those council members would then take office in January 2017.
- Create direct representation for residents of unincorporated county regarding budgeting their tax dollars; local planning and zoning ordinance authority.
- Maintain a broad tax base that supports needs throughout the unincorporated county.
- Deliver high quality services at a reasonable cost.
- Stabilize community borders, easing fears of “land grabs” by neighboring cities.
- Ensure self-determination for each unique community to be what it chooses.
- Keep government small with less administrative burden.
Q. Why did Mayor McAdams propose the Community Preservation legislation? Why not keep things the way they are?
A. With or without this legislation, change continues to happen. For decades, thousands of dollars have been expended and community uncertainty created related to annexation and incorporation issues.
Realizing that status quo is not feasible, the Community Preservation legislation is Mayor McAdams’ response to the requests of community members to stop these piecemeal efforts and offer local control over planning, zoning, and the budget. It ensures that high quality services are delivered at a fair cost, that economic development funded with unincorporated dollars stays in and supports those communities, and the unique character of our townships and neighborhoods stays intact.
Q. Did my community have a voice in creating the Community Preservation bill?
A: Yes. In 2014, Mayor McAdams reached out to the community and invited interested individuals to serve on five sub-committees: Islands, Planning, Economic Development, Legislative, and Canyons. The Community Preservation legislation is a result of these discussions.
One of the committee recommendations that has already been initiated is the creation of a Municipal Services District (District). It will provide municipal services (such as animal services, public works, etc) to unincorporated areas under the direction of a board elected from each township area—a concept similar to the Unified Police Department (UPD) and the Unified Fire Authority (UFA). The County will host two public hearings about the Municipal Services District (see the dates and times for these public hearings).
Q. Once the legislative session begins things can move very quickly and committee hearing dates and times can change with little to no notice. In addition to receiving these weekly emails how can I get the most updated information on the status of this bill?
A. The current Community Preservation bill has not yet been released or been assigned a bill number. Once this has occurred, we will send out this bill number and information on how to sign up for the bill tracker. By signing up for the bill tracker you will be sent you updates on the status of this bill and dates/time of committee hearings.
A. With or without this legislation, change continues to happen. For decades, thousands of dollars have been expended and community uncertainty created related to annexation and incorporation issues.
Realizing that status quo is not feasible, the Community Preservation legislation is Mayor McAdams’ response to the requests of community members to stop these piecemeal efforts and offer local control over planning, zoning, and the budget. It ensures that high quality services are delivered at a fair cost, that economic development funded with unincorporated dollars stays in and supports those communities, and the unique character of our townships and neighborhoods stays intact.
Q. Did my community have a voice in creating the Community Preservation bill?
A: Yes. In 2014, Mayor McAdams reached out to the community and invited interested individuals to serve on five sub-committees: Islands, Planning, Economic Development, Legislative, and Canyons. The Community Preservation legislation is a result of these discussions.
One of the committee recommendations that has already been initiated is the creation of a Municipal Services District (District). It will provide municipal services (such as animal services, public works, etc) to unincorporated areas under the direction of a board elected from each township area—a concept similar to the Unified Police Department (UPD) and the Unified Fire Authority (UFA). The County will host two public hearings about the Municipal Services District (see the dates and times for these public hearings).
Q. Once the legislative session begins things can move very quickly and committee hearing dates and times can change with little to no notice. In addition to receiving these weekly emails how can I get the most updated information on the status of this bill?
A. The current Community Preservation bill has not yet been released or been assigned a bill number. Once this has occurred, we will send out this bill number and information on how to sign up for the bill tracker. By signing up for the bill tracker you will be sent you updates on the status of this bill and dates/time of committee hearings.
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