Rose Park residents speak for the trees in Salt Lake's arid west side
Hits & Misses
By Katharine Biele @kathybiele
Speak for the Trees
They shall never see a poem lovely as a tree—or something along those lines. Despite Erin Mendenhall's 1,000-tree planting initiative, it's not just about digging them into the ground. Drought, clay soil and historical redlining have kept the west side of Salt Lake City an urban hot spot. And now, an apartment development is about to cut down 20 trees in Rose Park. Residents are not happy, even while the apartment manager says the trees are dying and might fall. Trees die all the time on the west side. In 2019, they died off at a rate of 20% compared to a 12.5% die-off on the east side. Water is part of the problem, but not all of it. The city plants trees but doesn't necessarily follow through with education and upkeep. A century ago, minority populations were kept from the more desirable and tree-lined east side and have since suffered greater health problems because of it. The city needs to focus on the life of trees, not just the planting of them.
Mr. Right
"Warning: May cause Leftist meltdown." Indeed, gubernatorial candidate Phil Lyman's social media shows just how dark and ominous the future will be even without you-know-who in the White House. At almost four minutes long, you'd think Lyman's new ad was more about the zombie apocalypse than a MAGA future. "It seeks to erase us ... now they have come for us and they have come for our children," it proclaims. "We are great men. We are great men with a great leader," it repeats in case you didn't get that the future is about men, mostly white, but men led by "Trump 2024." No mention of Joe Biden in the video, which this time leaves out the spiritual message from a previous video proclaiming "God made Trump." There is, however, some truth in the video, which talks about a hurricane of deceit and moral decay. You can write in whoever you think that was about.
Tender Is the Night
Utah is the unequivocal leader in natural landscapes, parks and even dark skies. A recent Salt Lake Tribune story pointed out that we lead the nation with 23 Dark Sky designations. That's not nothing, considering how development is spreading throughout the state. Now, Moab may be the recipient of the state's 24th Dark Sky designation, although it's not a done deal. They've been working for five years on rules that might restrict businesses from lighting after they close. Seems logical, doesn't it? But dark skies are fading at an alarming rate. Former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson tried to make it happen in 2006 with a street lighting policy. The street lights still shine upward. And the Wasatch County Council approved outdoor church lighting for a new temple despite pushback from the community. If Moab succeeds, urbanites will be flocking there to see the stars.
About The Author
Katharine Biele
A City Weekly contributor since 1992, Katharine Biele is the informed voice behind our Hits & Misses column. When not writing, you can catch her working to empower voters and defend democracy alongside the League of Women Voters.
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