Utah Alliance

The Living Planet Aquarium board of trustees selected Beecher Walker Architects and Layton Construction for the development, design and construction of the new Living Planet Aquarium, to be built in Draper City.

The Living Planet Aquarium solicited statements of interest and qualifications from top design teams and commercial contractors recognized for strong experience to develop a complete design and structure for the 130,000-square-foot building off Interstate 15 near 12300 South which will be the permanent home for the popular non-profit attraction. 
“The new Board, consisting of seasoned executives, is excited with the tremendous progress made by the aquarium in the last two years, including fund raising, state appropriations and land acquisition,” said Ragula Bhaskar, Ph.D., chairman of the Board. “The aquarium has raised nearly $7 million and has obtained the support of the City of Draper to bond $11.7 million to complete the Aquarium. It is expected to be one of the best aquariums in the Intermountain West.”

The Aquarium has continued to grow since opening in a small space in 2004 at The Gateway and, since 2006, in Sandy at 725 E. 10600 South. The current 43,000-square-foot aquarium in Sandy lands over 375,000 visitors each year, and provides science education to elementary schools statewide. With the tremendous growth, donor support and a strong leadership team, the aquarium has grown more than 50 percent during the recession, confirming its popularity with local visitors and out of state tourists.

“We are thrilled to be moving to the next phase in the creation of a 130,000-square-foot world class aquarium for the residents of Utah,” said Brent Andersen, founder & CEO. “We have a remarkable board of trustees who have led the way in making the new, larger aquarium possible, and a dedicated team of staff, volunteers and donors working to build what is sure to become a renowned educational, family friendly attraction.” 

The $18 million project will support 317 construction jobs in Utah and generate $1.7 million in tax revenues for the State.

Jacobsen Construction Company  has made significant changes in its corporate structure to respond more effectively to industry dynamics—and, most importantly, to better serve its clients.
 
Douglas C. Welling, president and chief operating officer since 2006, has been appointed as Jacobsen’s chief executive officer. Doug received the mantle from Lonnie M. Bullard, who served as CEO for 15 years as well as Jacobsen’s chairman of the board. Bullard will retain his post as board chairman and continue his involvement in strategic planning, business development and community affairs. He will continue as a member of key public and private boards, and as Jacobsen’s chief public spokesman.

SALT LAKE CITY — Mayor Ralph Becker announced Tuesday plans to demolish and completely rebuild the Salt Lake City International Airport to address seismic risks and accommodate its emergence as a regional hub.

"The Salt Lake City International Airport was not built to be a hub," Becker said during his State of the City address at the Salt Lake City-County Building. "Today, as the number of passengers has increased annually to (more than) 21 million, it is by all measures a large hub airport, and it must be redeveloped to meet the needs of our region."

An economic think tank has ranked Logan first among small cities in the U.S. for being a good business community.

The Milken Institute, founded in 1991 and based in California, has released a new list of best performing cities for the year. Salt Lake City, Provo and Ogden ranked in the Top 25 among large metro cities, while Logan ranked No. 1 among small cities.

Logan skyrocketed from its No. 19 ranking in last year's list.

Utah has a diverse technology sector, featuring operations such as IM Flash Technologies in Lehi, a quality lifestyle and low relative costs, said Kevin Klowden, an economist and director of the Milken Center in California. When it comes to measuring how well cities nationally and in the region are functioning in today’s challenging economy, Utah metro areas are among the tops, two new reports show.

The Ogden-to-Provo metropolitan corridor placed three cities in the Top 15 in economic activity among a list of the nation’s “Best Performing” metro areas, and Logan was the No. 1 small city.

Salt Lake City was No. 6, Provo-Orem No. 9 and Ogden-Clearfield No. 15 on the Milken Institute’s 2011 index released Thursday.

 Did you know Utah has 36 Office/Tech/R&D parks of 100 acres or more within 10 miles of the Salt Lake International Airport, or that there are 10 heavy industrial sites of 100,000 square feet or more that are located within 10 miles of the interstate highway? Such information is just a smattering of the data now only a few mouse clicks away via EDCUtah's new, improved Utah SURE Sites online database.

The Utah SURE (Select Utah Real Estate) Sites program -- a powerful site analysis tool featuring industrial and office buildings and land sites designed to meet the needs of relocating and expanding businesses -- just received a facelift. It's now more user-friendly, more intuitive, and returns search data faster, says Sherrie Martell, EDCUtah program manager.

SALT LAKE CITY – For the second consecutive year, Forbes has awarded Utah the top spot on its annual “Best States for Business and Careers” list.  
 
“Being again recognized by Forbes as the country’s best state for business and careers is certainly an outstanding honor,” said Governor Gary R. Herbert. “But it is no accident; it is the result of deliberate efforts to make Utah the most business-friendly state.  While accolades are gratifying, the ultimate fruits of our labors are accelerated economic growth for our state and more jobs for Utah’s citizens.”
 
A leading publication for business leaders across America and the world, Forbes chose Utah in part because of its economic consistency. According to the magazine, Utah was the only state that ranked among the top 15 states in each of the list’s six criteria: Business Costs, Labor Supply, Regulatory Environment, Economic Climate, Growth Prospects and Quality of Life.
 
“Because Utah is able to consistently hit the lofty goals that are the hallmark of a high-performing economy, we have continued to grow over the past year,” said Spencer Eccles, executive director of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED). “We have consistently added jobs to the Utah economy, while simultaneously training current and next-generation workers to fill new and in-demand positions. Our focus on jobs is a large part of why Utah is still the best state in the nation for business.”

Please watch your mailboxes for your 2012 membership application.

Or you can download an application and mail it in with your payment.

 We hope to have YOU with us again in 2012!

As we approach the 2011-2012 Winter Season, it's appropriate to celebrate the great ski resorts we have here. Utah is host to 14 world-class ski resorts. Each one of them is a little different and attracts local, as well as international skiers. This week, Ski Magazine ranked Utah Ski resorts at the top of important categories.

Park City Ski Resort was named #1 family vacation by the magazine. It was also named the No. 6 resort in North America. The resort has spent a couple of years developing their family-friendly programs. Their new website www.snowmamas.com is an  online resource for families planning winter vacations. They also have great winter and summer attractions that include  Adventure Alleys, Alpine Coaster and the new Flying Eagle Zip Line. Park City Ski Resort also guarantees a smaller class size of five children or less for skiing and snowboarding lessons.

Deer Valley Resort has been rated the top ski resort in North America by Ski Magazine for the fifth straight year.  Three other Utah resorts were also listed in the top 20: Park City at No. 6, Canyons at No. 16 and Snowbird at No. 20. Deer Valley's customer service, quality dining, great snow and "ski" only hills makes it a favorite of the magazine readers.

Ski Magazine also rates the quality of snow at the nation's resorts. In this category, Utah captured six of the 10 spots, with Alta taking the top honor. The other five resorts with the superb snow were: Powder Mountain at No. 3, Snowbird at No. 4, Brighton at No. 6, Solitude at No. 7 and Deer Valley at No. 10.

Now's the time to make reservations to take advantage of Utah's skiing superiority. For information on all 14 resorts, visit Ski Utah.

Pictured, Deer Valley Mountain host supervisor Tate Shaw, Salt Lake Tribune photo.