Press Release
For Immediate Release
Contact: Kevin Fayles, Community Relations Manager
(801) 303-1462 or Kevin@envisionutah.org
Ninth Envision Utah Governor’s Quality Growth Awards
Place: Governor’s Mansion (603 East South Temple)
Date: Tuesday, October 5, 2010 from 10:00 a.m. to 11 a.m.
At the ninth Envision Utah Governor’s Quality Growth Awards program, eight innovative efforts from around the state will be honored as models of quality growth, reflecting creativity, community spirit, and market savvy. (A description of each award winner follows below.) Envision Utah and the Utah Quality Growth Commission give the awards. Including this year’s award winners, 89 Governor’s Quality Growth Awards have been given since 2001.
“Utah’s future will reflect the collective impact of today’s development decisions,” said Alan Matheson, Executive Director of Envision Utah. “With the Quality Growth Award winners as models, the future looks bright. They demonstrate that development can enhance our communities and succeed in the market.”
Governor Gary Herbert will make remarks at 10:05 a.m. Dr. Nan Ellin, the new chair of the City and Metropolitan Planning Department at the University of Utah, will provide the keynote. Dr. Ellis most recently came from Arizona State University and is a well-known and widely-published scholar. Salt Lake City Councilmember and Utah Quality Growth Commission Vice-Chair J.T. Martin will provide closing comments.
2010 Envision Utah Governor’s Quality Growth Award Winners
Daybreak Elementary School and Community Center
The Daybreak Elementary School and Community Center reflect a unique public/private partnership between the Jordan School District and Kennecott Land. The school district and Kennecott Land traveled around the country to find possible models. Many hurdles needed to be overcome to make this building succeed. Opening in 2005, it is the first public school in Utah that is both a school and a neighborhood learning and community center. It has a LEED silver rating and geo-thermal heating, making it one of the district’s most energy-efficient schools. The 116,000 square-foot facility houses students kindergarten through sixth grade.
Parents and families can utilize the Community Center for a variety of activities, such as group fitness classes, weight lifting, cardio machines, and a running track. The building has ground-source heating and cooling, and an abundance of natural lighting in halls and classrooms. Numerous building materials were made of recycled content and more than half of the builder waste was recycled.
The LaPorte Group
The LaPorte Group oversees the construction, maintenance and operations of more than 700 affordable apartment units in Salt Lake City and Ogden as well as in more rural locations, such as Helper and Price. The company specializes in the rehabilitation of historic properties, removing such materials as asbestos and lead paint. Many of the units have solar panels and updated insulation to reduce energy costs. The LaPorte Group is considered a leader in Energy Star Building and LEED construction.
Garbett Homes for the Solaris Development
“Green building” is the practice of using better siting, construction, operation, and maintenance to increase the efficiency of resources and impacts on human health and the environment. Wanting to show other developers that homes can be energy efficient, environmentally responsible, and affordable, Garbett Homes created the Solaris Development in Daybreak. Solaris homes have solar panel, and the wood I-joists and beams use up to 50% less wood fiber. Strand boards are made from wood chips instead of plywood made out of old-growth forests. The sustainable exterior building materials are long-lasting and require low maintenance.
Kennecott Land’s Daybreak Corporate Center
Built on a former brownfield site, Kennecott Land’s Daybreak Corporate Center is the first LEED platinum building in Utah. It is designed to use 22% less energy than a standard office building through smart lighting, building orientation, and a photo-voltaic solar roof system that create energy efficiency. The Corporate Center retains 100% of storm water on-site and, in turn, uses this as a source for irrigating the water-wise landscaping and reducing the need for a traditional conveyance system.
Milford Wind Farm
The Milford Wind Farm is an excellent example of clean, renewal energy. The 203.5 megawatt project includes 97 wind turbine generators; a 90-mile transmission line connecting the wind farm to the Intermountain Power Agency in Delta; 13 meteorological towers; and an underground collection system linking each turbine to the next and to the facility substation. The Wind Farm has no air or water pollution and zero emissions. It provides 300 full and part-time jobs in rural communities. Staff are also working with local high school students on renewable energy careers.
Salt Lake County Cooperative Plan: Crosswalk Collaboration Portal/Active Map Series
The core vision of the County’s Cooperative Plan is to develop and provide the tools that aid local jurisdictions and unite land use planning within Salt Lake County, while still maintaining the individuality of each municipality. The program provides data collection, data management and ordinance writing to help cities focus on jobs, housing and transportation.
AECOM worked with Salt Lake County, the Utah Transit Authority, and the Wasatch Front Regional Council to help forecast jobs, homes, and transportation needs through visual maps for the upcoming decades.
This process began as a conversation with local jurisdictions on developing a common language, respect for each other’s land use plans, understanding how municipalities impact one another, and how to make growth work for the municipalities.
AECOM’s modeling system allowed local jurisdictions to input their land use designations into a system that converted those designations to one map for the entire county. Maps based on land-use designations were created to help balance housing, transportation and jobs. Planners can look at the planned build-out intensity for the entire county as a whole.
Participants have learned that collaborative problem solving allows them to produce results quickly at a fraction of the cost they would all spend individually.
Salt Lake County Cooperative Plan: Bike/Pedestrian/Transit Interactive Map
As the first Cooperative Plan’s project, the cities and counties chose to develop a county-wide bicycle, pedestrian and transit map. In addition to including the most up-to-date transportation routes, the map includes key points of interest, such as activity centers, schools, libraries, senior centers, parks, open space and business districts. The Wasatch Front Regional Council will use the Interactive Map for their 2040 plan. This project helped to identify missing connections among jurisdictions and regional bike routes.
With the help of the Crosswalk and the Interactive Map, connections are being made among bicycle and pedestrian trails and light rail and bus rapid transit lines. Furthermore, rights-of-way are being preserved. Great communities have great connections. These connections will result in a higher quality of life and help create jobs and housing.
University of Utah College of Planning + Architecture
Since 1951, the College’s School of Architecture has been the only architecture school in Utah and is home to the state’s only NAAB-accredited Master of Architecture degree. The College is also home to the only Masters of City and Metropolitan Planning degree program in Utah, which was accredited this year. It is also home to the state’s only joint Master of Real Estate Development program.
The College has ranked second nationally on pass-rates for the ARE exam for the last four years. Between 2008 and 2010, 50% of the faculty have had or will have books published, compared to 15% nationally in five years among Research 1 universities.
The College is planning a net-zero retrofit of its current building, which will be one of the most extensive renovations of its type in the country and a living demonstration model for aging institutional facilities everywhere.
In 2009, the College assisted 19 non-profit organizations or cities with design and planning. Over the years, it has prepared hundreds of planners to make a difference in Utah and elsewhere. Its faculty is among the best in the nation and is having a significant impact on Utah as well.
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Envision Utah is recognized as one of the most successful, broad-based, long-term growth strategies for a major U.S. metropolitan area. According to the Michigan Land Use Institute, “Envision Utah has won the planning equivalent of four Oscars – the Urban Land Institute’s Award for Excellence, the Alliance for Regional Stewardship’s Gold Recognition Award, the American Planning Association’s Daniel Burnham Award, and the American Public Transportation Association’s Distinguished Service Award.” Since 1997, Envision Utah has worked with communities to plan effectively for future growth through collaboration, information-sharing, education and innovative strategies.
