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www.slenterprise.com May 7, 2018 Volume 47, Number 41 $1.50 OF NOTE Herbert decries 'restrictionist' Leaders unite to measures in summit speech address housing Brice Wallace Speaking at the 12th annual Utah Eco- nomic Summit, Herbert — without men- The Enterprise affordability gap tioning names — said he is concerned about “some of the rhetoric I hear coming out of The Salt Lake Chamber has teamed In a passionate plea that elicited occa- Washington, D.C.” that is critical of inter- with Utah business leaders to address the sional robust applause, Gov. Gary Herbert national trade. Utah companies last year state’s growing housing affordability prob- recently urged national government offi cials exported nearly $11.5 billion in goods and lem. The group met last week to launch to refrain from tariffs or other restrictionist services and nearly one in four Utah jobs the Housing Gap Coalition, a business-led Bullets, but no guns measures that the governor believes could group that is the fi rst of its kind in the na- hinder Utah companies involved in interna- Vista Outdoor is getting out of tion, according to the group. tional trade. see SUMMIT page 5 the gun-making business. The “As a business community, we’ve had Farmington-based, nationwide great success when we’ve worked together to address other issues like transportation employer of 6,400 is looking to and education,” said Derek Miller, presi- sell its Savage and Stevens fi re- dent and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber arms brands but will continue to and Downtown Alliance. “In a similar fash- make ammunition, which the fi rm ion, we’ve organized the Housing Gap Co- described as its "largest core alition to proactively address housing af- business." Vista faced pressure fordability before it becomes a crisis.” from outdoor retailers to stop pro- The Housing Gap Coalition is in di- ducing guns following the mass rect response to a study, commissioned by shooting at a Parkland, Florida, the Salt Lake Chamber and conducted by high school in February. the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, which shows the rate that housing prices are in- Industry News Briefs creasing in Utah will threaten the cost of liv- pages 6-7 ing, economic prosperity and quality of life. Unchecked, average Utahns will be priced Business Calendar out of the housing market in 26 years, the page 9 coalition said. Already, Utah housing is Real Estate more expensive than som e of the state’s top page 14 competitor cities in economic development. “Part of our growth and prosperity in this state is due to the fact that so many Utahns want to stay here, close to their The winner crosses the fi nish line at the Utah Motorsports Campus near Erda last summer in the families and in the communities they love,” Pirelli World Challenge GT Class Grand Prix. Following years of legal battles, Tooele County has said Steve Starks, president of the Utah put the embattled facilty up for sale, looking for a buyer that will keep the racing venue operating. Jazz and Larry H. Miller Sports & Enter- tainment, and chair of the Housing Gap Coalition. “The way things are going, that simply won’t be possible for many. They’ll With legal woes in rearview mirror, be priced out. Housing affordability is the greatest unaddressed threat to our economic prosperity in Utah.” Tooele raceway back on the market The business community is determined Tooele. According to the county’s sale an- to address the issue before it becomes a cri- John Rogers nouncement, parts of the installation — sis, Starks said. The Housing Gap Coalition The Enterprise such as the Lucas Oil Grandstands are ex- is looking at opportunities to get in front of cluded from the offering. this issue. With almost three years of legal wran- In early summer 2015, the Larry H. The Gardner Institute study shows that gling out of the way, Tooele County offi - Miller Group — which built and operated actionable steps can be taken, like adopt- cials have put the Utah Motorsports Cam- what was originally known as Miller Mo- ing zoning that allows for a variety of hous- pus (UMC) back on the market. The facility torsports Park — announced that it would ing types and prices to meet the needs of is an auto, motorcycle, bicycle and kart rac- Utahns at all stages of life, improving cost- ing facility that sits on 511 acres in the un- prohibitive impact and permit fees and sup- incorporated rural Erda area just outside of see UMC page 15 porting multi-use land development. 2 • May 7-13, 2018 • The Enterprise - Utah's Business Journal Dominion Energy seeks rate decrease OED launches C-PACE Dominion Energy Utah is requesting an $82.7 At least twice a year, Dominion Energy and the The Governor’s Office of “We’re proud to advance million decrease in its Utah natural gas rates. If PSC use third-party forecasts of natural gas prices Energy Development (OED) has Utah’s economy and air quality the request is approved by the Public Service Com- to estimate how much the utility’s rates should be launched the Utah C-PACE Dis- through the Utah C-PACE Dis- mission of Utah (PSC), the decrease will lower the adjusted to cover anticipated costs of buying nat- trict and Provo is the first city to trict, allowing building owners to typical residential customer’s annual bill by about ural gas for its customers, Bell said. These costs opt into the commercial building achieve affordable energy costs $60 beginning June 1. are passed on to customers with no markup and energy financing program. Com- while making important upgrades,” “This rate decrease is due to lower gas-produc- have no impact on the utility’s profits. The “pass- mercial Property Assessed Clean said Laura Nelson, Gov. Gary Her- tion costs of company-owned supplies, tax reform through” adjustments simply enable the company Energy (C-PACE) is a financing bert’s energy advisor. “With the savings and the lower cost of market gas purchas- to change rates to reflect changes in gas supply and structure in which building own- energy savings from the improve- es for Utah customers,” said Colleen Larkin Bell, other costs. ers borrow money for energy-effi- ments, it’s possible for building vice president and general manager of Dominion Dominion Energy Utah is a subsidiary of Vir- cient and renewable energy proj- owners to be cash flow positive Energy Utah. “As a result, our rates continue to be ginia-based Dominion Energy and provides natural ects and make repayment through from Day One.” among the lowest in the nation.” gas service to 1 million Utah homes and businesses. an assessment on their property tax Provo will be joining the Utah bill. The financing arrangement re- C-PACE District in May and ad- mains with the property even if it is ditional cities are pending. Once a sold. city or county opts into the program, C-PACE financing is funded commercial building owners can BYU buys station, saves classical format by private investors, but is only work with the C-PACE District to In October, BYU Broadcast- ing explained, “However, follow- Broadcasting. “And I am just available in jurisdictions created access new templates and tools to ing caused ripples among classical ing a thorough strategic review of thrilled for what this means to our by legislation and designated by implement their projects. music lovers along the Wasatch its nationwide broadcast and digi- thousands of ardent Classical 89 agencies such as OED. This re- “Opting into the C-PACE Dis- Front when it announced the “con- tal channels and seeking a way to fans we have in this market. This quirement was fulfilled by the trict was the best option for Provo. solidation” of its radio format by keep classical music in Utah based acquisition is truly a win-win for OED declaration of the Utah C- We want to see building improve- moving the SiriusXM-exclusive upon listeners feedback, BYU all.” PACE District. ments, economic development and BYUradio to a simulcast on its Broadcasting became aware that BYUradio has continued to C-PACE provides zero down fewer emissions, but don’t want KBYU-FM radio dial spot, elim- KUMT-FM, which provided a grow its nationwide audience on and up to 100 percent private fi- to take on the burden of building inating the classical format. June coverage footprint that included satellite radio by offering more nancing for up to 30 years for com- our own program. We are in the 30 was announced as the date that most of the Wasatch Front, was up than 3,000 hours of original content mercial building improvements. process of opting in now and look KBYU-FM would disappear and for sale. The strategic decision by each year, including unprecedent- Improvements can include energy- forward to realizing C-PACE ben- fans of the format raised a stink — BYU Broadcasting to enter into a ed growth in podcasts, the school efficiency upgrades, renewable en- efits throughout our city,” said Pro- especially on social media. purchase agreement with KUMT- said. BYUradio is the only Utah- ergy systems, water conservation vo Councilman David Sewell, “By Now that won’t happen. FM in early April will preserve an based radio service available na- measures, seismic upgrades, hy- joining the district, local cities and BYU apparently heard the cries over-the-air classical music station tionwide on SiriusXM. BYUradio brid elevators and escalators, elec- counties can enjoy the benefits of of its listeners. In an announce- in Utah and allow Classical 89 to is a 24/7 non-commercial radio tric vehicle infrastructure and park- C-PACE financing without com- ment on April 26, BYU Broad- continue to operate on its current with a mixed format of live-hosted ing automation.