KDXU Sunrise Stories for February 7, 2024: Utah Says No to Land Swap with Federal Government

KDXU Sunrise Stories: Volume 147 

Statewide News – 02/07/24 

Utah Officials Halt Land Swap with Federal Government 

A planned land swap between Utah and the Federal Government has been called off by some of the state’s top officials. 

The original plan was to trade acres of land in San Juan, Emery, and Millard Counties in exchange for equivalent acres of land in Bear’s Ears. 

Utah Governor Spencer Cox, Utah Senate President Stuart Adams, and Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz held a press conference to announce the cancellation of the trading of land and accused the Biden Administration of ignoring their input regarding the trade. 

Utah County Population Increase Causes Infrastructure Concerns 

The fastest-growing county in the beehive state is Utah County, but that may not be a good thing. 

Residents of Utah County are concerned about the rapid growth of the region causing infrastructure issues. One resident in Lehi said his usual workplace is only eight minutes away from home, but the surplus of housing and people in the area makes the commute significantly longer. 

Lehi’s Community Director Kim Struthers said the issue is being investigated to address any change to infrastructure. 

New Salt Flat Preservation May Have Opposite Effect 

A new preservation method implemented at the Bonneville Salt Flats may be making things worse for the region. 

According to new research from the Utah Geological Association Journal, the process of mining salts with groundwater and flooding it across the flats won’t fix the shrinking problem that’s plagued the Bonneville Salt Flats. 

You can find out more about the situation at the Bonneville Salt Flats through an article from Leia Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune. 

Southern Utah/St. George News – 02/07/24 

Victim Identified in Southern Utah Auto-Pedestrian Accident 

The victim of the January 31 auto-pedestrian accident on Old Highway 91 by St. George has been identified.  

36-year-old Robert Willis Anderson from St. George reportedly survived a rollover crash before exiting the wreckage of his vehicle and walking onto Old Highway 91 where he was unfortunately died after being struck by a car in the dark of night. 

Anderson has a reported history with the authorities due to an alleged child abuse case in 2022. 

St. George Fire Truck Taken Out of Commission Following Collision 

A fire truck is out of service following a collision with a forklift on February 6 at a Utah Tech University construction site on 1000 East in St. George. 

The fire truck was dispatched to the area to assist with a medical call with emergency workers parking the vehicle in the center lane with the emergency lights on. A forklift carrying two large stacks of insulation panels then collided with the fire truck due to the materials obscuring the view of the driver. 

Repairs are expected to take a few weeks before the fire truck is back on the streets. No injuries were reported during the accident. 

St. George Musical Theater to Remodel Abandoned St. George Movie Theater 

St. George Musical Theater will remodel the abandoned Cinema 6 movie theater on Main Street in St. George to allow for more artistic events. 

All six of the auditoriums will be remodeled to allow smaller musical productions, tribute concerts, children’s programs, and many other types of events to take the stage in St. George. 

SGMT will raise money for the remodeled facility along with their new theater being built on Main Street through a benefit concert on February 10 in the Hafen Theater at Tuacahn. You can purchase tickets for the concert by clicking this link. 

Other 

Fun fact about Stockton Myers, the writer of Sunrise Stories. 

Stockton remembers when Cinema 6 was the premium movie theater in St. George. He saw countless movies at the old theater as a kid with his parents. He would always get the kid’s meal with a small popcorn, a small soda, and a candy bar. Now he can order full meals at a movie theater. Times have changed. 

Happy Wednesday!