The Daily Buzz

Mini “port” proposals keep popping up across Utah, which may signal a shift in strategy and purpose for the Utah Inland Port Authority.

To read more, check out https://www.sltrib.com/news/environment/2023/05/11/it-seems-theyre-hyperdrive-least-9/

Finding an affordable home or apartment in Washington County to rent poses a challenge. According to a recent report, a full-time worker in the county had to earn $20.21 an hour to afford to rent an average two-bedroom apartment without exceeding 30% of their income. But the average hourly income for workers in the area is just $14.19. The waitlist to get into lower-income housing in some complexes can be two years or more.

To read more, check out: https://www.sltrib.com/news/2023/04/24/st-georges-housing-crunch-leaves/

Utahns are more likely than most Americans to believe there are good financial times ahead but are still uncertain about the economy.

Consumer sentiment, which measures attitudes, feelings, values, motivations and behaviors of people within a particular market, rose less than one point between March and April 2023, according to a new report from the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute.

Read more:

https://www.sltrib.com/news/2023/05/09/how-utahns-feel-about-economy

Homeless shelters will now be allowed in most areas of Salt Lake City under an ordinance the City Council passed just hours before a self-imposed deadline to set new regulations was due to expire. Now, homeless shelters will be permitted in all zones except those dedicated to manufacturing. Previously, shelters were allowed in only a few zones.

Read more:

https://www.sltrib.com/news/2023/05/05/new-rules-will-allow-homeless

Some community members are calling for the Salt Lake City School District to consider building a new high school on the west side of the city — where students deal with the distance between neighborhoods like Glendale and east side high schools.

But it would come at a high cost while the district is already working on repairs to two older schools.

Utah is just one of nine states that allow swan hunting, and until this year, that included trumpeter swans, considered North America’s largest bird. The trumpeter swans are still struggling to reestablish migratory populations nearly a century after hunters blasted them to near extinction.

But now Utah wildlife officials have proposed banning the taking of trumpeter swans.

Tundra swans would remain legal to shoot during Utah’s 73-day fall swan-hunting season.

Planned Parenthood and other clinics can continue to offer abortions in Utah, at least for now, a district court judge decided Tuesday in the latest development in a case that will determine the future of reproductive options in the Beehive State.

Whether a law that bans abortion clinics in Utah goes into effect now depends on a larger question that lies with the state’s highest court as it considers the state’s blocked trigger law: Is the right to an abortion protected by the Utah Constitution?

In his order Tuesday, 3rd District Court Judge Andrew Stone completely avoided that question, saying it is out of his jurisdiction. He instead focused on whether the law unfairly targets abortion clinics like those run by Planned Parenthood.

Read more:

https://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2023/05/02/breaking-utah-court-blocks-abortion

Whether the news coming out of Zion National Park over the weekend is good or bad largely depends on a person’s perspective — and whether they have designs on visiting the Southern Utah jewel in the near future.

The optimistic takeaway is that the park was less crowded in 2022, when its visitation dropped from a record 5 million visitors the year prior, according to a news release issued by the National Park Service on Friday. More pessimistically, last year still ranked as the second-busiest in Zion’s history with 4.5 million visitors. Among the 63 official national parks, it saw the third-most visits.

Read more:

https://www.sltrib.com/news/2023/05/03/zion-national-parks-visitation-is/

As the temperatures warm and snow melts, five waterways in northern Utah are forecast to experience minor flooding over the next few days, according to the National Weather Service.

Read more:

https://www.sltrib.com/news/2023/05/01/utahs-record-heat-record-snowpack

https://www.sltrib.com/news/2023/05/01/five-northern-utah-waterways-see

Utah's Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) is proposing a reduction in deer tags after a harsh winter devastated the population in the northern counties.

The state's deer population is at 335,000, well below the target of 405,000, due to drought and severe winter conditions.

Read more: https://www.sltrib.com/news/environment/2023/05/01/utah-reduce-deer-tags-after-winter