The Geography Challenge
Also: Township Compromise, Digging for Research Dollars
By Katharine Biele @kathybiele
The Geography Challenge
You know Ogden—that city north of Salt Lake City but not north enough to be Logan. Well, Salt Lake Magazine stepped off a cliff recently when its 2015 Dining Awards announced Utah's 25 best restaurants, one of which was Elements. The discerning reader might notice that Elements is actually in Logan, although the magazine put it in ... Ogden. After getting a parade of comments, SLMag changed the category to Ogden/Northern Utah. Not soon enough. The Facebook page OnlyInOgden is up to 65 comments on the issue, including "Nothing exists outside of the Salt Lake Valley." The magazine cut off its website comments, and we await a FB post from Boulder, whose best restaurant was in the Moab category.
Township Compromise
You could call it Common Core for townships, but don't. That would be the kiss of death, for sure. The much-misunderstood Common Core is a state-led effort in which states and school districts decide how to teach math and reading. The township initiative now is similar in that townships from unincorporated areas are duking out a proposal to solve infighting over what kind of governments to have. To quiet the incorporation cabal, Mayor Ben McAdams came up with a megacity plan, but it too was controversial. Now Sen. Karen Mayne, D-West Valley City, is carrying Senate Bill 199, a yearlong compromise that will allow unincorporated areas to govern themselves while using county services. Seems it's all good—just don't tell the Legislature that it's about local control born of consensus.
Digging for Research Dollars
Matthew Beckstead is the recipient of university research that allows him to move his "hands," prostheses with a neural interface, according to a Deseret News story. This kind of breakthrough is what you get with research grants—and the researchers to figure it out. Meanwhile, the U of U and Utah State University are seeking $10 million to attract researchers who are bypassing Utah for more money elsewhere. Graduate students aren't the priciest researchers, but Utah isn't offering them enough to be attractive. The universities told the Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee that the money could fund some two dozen new positions and help solve the need for those highly trained workers the state is always seeking—and help more people like Beckstead.
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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