Utah
Utah’s bar license reforms now coming into final focus
Remember when I told you to temper your expectations last month? Remember when I told you to not get too excited? You did listen, right? News from several outlets this week (FOX13, Trib, KPCW) seems to point to what is increasingly looking like the final iteration of Utah’s annual omnibus liquor bill. One bill to rule them all. Well, rule all the drinkers.
Amongst the items on the proposed HB548 is the banning of high ABV products like Everclear, adding a few cents tax to your liquor bill, and also allowing guests to take hotel bar drinks back to their room. I’ll go over the full list when the final bill is stamped and signed. Until then, a look at bar licenses in the state – 2023’s hot topic item.
Antimatter, neodymium, Utah bar licenses – so goes the list of the most scarce resources in the Beehive. The relative exhaustion of Utah’s inventory has forced DABS commissioner’s hands into contriving what are now known as the “ready to operate” guidelines. Simply put: appear before the commission for your golden ticket to open a bar, and you’ll need to demonstrate your ability to open right now. No waiting on a final hire, no promises the stools will arrive tomorrow. Skip away from the meeting and be prepared to unlock your doors – today.
On paper the logic seems solid, why hand out a license to a business not ready to operate? As we saw in the previous year though, the lack of certainty can put businesses in a huge financial bind; having to support a litany of ongoing expenses without clarity or confidence. 2023 had plenty of precarious examples – Edison House having to retain staff to the tune of $70,000 per month while waiting indefinitely for the greenlight – just one.
As a reminder, the dearth of bar licenses is a completely avoidable one. One bar license is presently permitted per 10,200 residents in Utah. That number? Arbitrarily plucked from the ether some six years ago. With that in mind, and kudos to the state for appreciating that point – the folks in charge arranged a study of other control states. What exactly was everyone else up to?
At the start of this year, FOX 13 ran an interview covering what the study discovered. No one was surprised to learn that the ratio in other states, was indeed lower. Much lower. On average, like-minded control states saw a ratio closer to one per 5000. While you’d probably need the smelling salts if I told you Utah was set to double the number of bars overnight – lawmakers did throw out a range of one license per 7-8000 as something that might make this year’s bill. Note: in the notoriously debauched state of Idaho, the limit is one per 1,500 residents (per city). Just sayin’
Sean Means’ piece in the Tribune this week had some granular detail that proved enlightening. While I previously cautioned against getting too hot under the collar about Utah returning to a quota of 1 per 7850 (merely reverting to 2018 limits) it’s possible we now might see a somewhat racy quota of one per 7,246 residents. As Means explained in his article, expect that to boost the state’s current 350 bars by another 136. Crack open the babycham right? Wrong.
Those 136 new licenses will be doled out incrementally through 2031. Should that happen uniformly over the proposed seven-year period – expect 19 (ish) new licenses each year. And of course, sprinkle a few more in there for population increases. There’s just one small wrinkle in the plan.
Even in a year drier than the West Dessert, Utah managed to dole out 28 bar licenses in 2023. Slightly more names than that appeared (and still do) on wait lists. Remember that commissioners themselves called last year’s fifteen new licenses, “basically a Band-Aid”. This presumably makes 2024’s triage ostensibly more of the same treatment, albeit with a little kiss, and some soothing there theres.
What this all means, unless any substantial changes expect the DABS policy of “ready to operate” to continue for at least the next half-decade.
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Hi, I’m Stuart, nice to meet you! I’m the founder, writer and wrangler at Gastronomic SLC. I’m a multiple-award winning journalist and have written in myopic detail about the Salt Lake City dining scene for the better part of seventeen years.
I’ve worked extensively with multiple local publications from Visit Salt Lake to Salt Lake Magazine, not least helped to consult on national TV. Pause those credits, yep, that’s me! I’m also a former restaurant critic of more than five years, working for the Salt Lake Tribune. I’m largely fueled by a critical obsession with rice, alliteration and the use of big words I don’t understand. What they’re saying about me: “Not inaccurate”, “I thought he was older”, “I don’t share his feelings”.
Want to know more? This is why I am the way I am.
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Utah
Teens airlifted to Utah County hospitals after rollover of at least 50 yards | Gephardt Daily
UTAH COUNTY, May 11, 2026 (Gephardt Daily) — Two males, ages 14 and 19, were transported to area hospitals Sunday after the side-by-side they were riding rolled down the side of a mountain.
Utah County Sheriff deputies and Santaquin police responded to the 6:07 p.m. call. Two medical helicopters were called to the scene, in the Pole Canyon area, as was a Department of Public Safety helicopter with a hoist in case it was needed, Sgt. Austin Edwards, Utah County Sheriff‘s Office, told Gephardt Daily.
“Eventually, rescue workers were able to make it to the spot on the hill where the vehicle had come to rest, and they were able to secure the victims, stabilize the victims, and get them back down the hill again to where the helicopters were waiting,” Edwards said.
“The 19-year-old male was transported to Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo, and the 14 year old was transported to Primary Children’s in Lehi.”
Both were said to have critical injuries, which were not considered to be life threatening, Edwards said.
“The cause of the rollover is still under investigation, so we don’t have that information available just yet.”
Photos: Utah County Sheriff
Utah
Utah Jazz jump to #2 in the lottery, plus full results
In what has a chance to be one of the most important nights in Jazz history, the Utah Jazz jumped in the NBA Lottery to the #2 spot for the upcoming NBA draft.
Here are the final results, which show all the movement.
Aside from it being a massive night for the Wizards, Jazz, Grizzlies, and Bulls, it was a devastating night for a few teams, but no one more than the Indiana Pacers. The Pacers, in their trade for Ivica Zubac, had a stipulation on their pick that if the pick was top-4 they kept it. But if it fell below 4, they would give it to the Clippers which is exactly what happened. Now, the Clippers, who are without Zubac, find themselves with a #5 pick to build around.
For the Jazz this is a culmination of four years of rebuilding that ends with an extremely satisfying end. Utah will now have one of the tier-1 players from this draft: AJ Dybantsa or Darryn Peterson. The player Utah drafts will be one of their cornerstone pieces and will have the chance to not only play, but be a part of a team that will be competing for the playoffs this season.
The Utah Jazz now have a Sinister Six core: Darryn Peterson (If AJ Dybantsa goes #1), Keyonte George, Ace Bailey, Lauri Markkanen, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Walker Kessler (if he signs). It’s quite the core with a mix of youth and veterans in their prime. With this group, the Jazz will have a chance to be one of the top teams in the Western Conference. Yes, the Thunder and Spurs are going to be difficult to beat, but Utah has the mix of talent, coaching, and depth that could absolutely do the trick.
Now the Utah Jazz look forward to the NBA Draft that be on June 23rd. Let the posturing begin!!
Utah
Provo’s new Boys & Girls clubhouse gives Utah youth more space to learn, grow and belong
PROVO — An organization that has been a beacon of hope for Utah children and families just got a big upgrade in Provo.
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County on Friday held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its newest facility, marking the start of a new chapter in providing support for those who need it the most.
The new Kent B. Nelson Clubhouse, 131 N. Olympic Blvd., replaces the organization’s former Provo clubhouse, which had been in operation for more than 50 years. Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County leaders said they had outgrown the aging facility and needed a larger, more modern space to support more community members.
“This new clubhouse is more than a building — it’s a central place where we can coordinate programs, support our staff, and amplify our impact across the region,” said David Bayles, CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County, in a statement.
The organization’s mission was something the late former Utah County Commissioner Tom Sakievich was passionate about. His wife Marji and daughter Emily Sakievich attended Friday’s grand opening ceremony just as if he would’ve wanted to.
“He loved this project, and it meant the world to him,” Emily Sakievich told KSL. “This was actually one of the last places he went before he passed. (He) and my mom stopped by to just see how progress was going; he would be so excited to see this come together.”
The former commissioner died last December at the age of 72. Tom Sakievich resigned from the seat in September 2024 after being diagnosed with glioblastoma brain cancer.
Emily Sakievich said her father was a big supporter of helping children in the Boys & Girls Clubs feel supported while he was in office.
“He would have all of them come to his office and talk about how government works and how they can be a part of it someday,” she said.
The new 20,000 square-foot facility expands on resources and programs offered at its previous site for community youth and families experiencing hardships.
The clubhouse will provide safe, engaging, and educational programs in a modernized building fit to serve more than 14,000 Utah children and teens.
A variety of programs including after-school, summer activities and STEM learning will be offered at the new facility. Other resources include internet safety programs, mental health support, nutrition initiatives, and housing assistance for families experiencing homelessness.
“We’ve been able to increase the capacity so much and add preschool and other things; we can even benefit more families — and we can benefit them for a longer period of time, from younger to older, where there are no gaps.” Provo City Council Chair Katrice MacKay told KSL. “So I’m really excited. It’s a fantastic thing for the city and for our residents.”
Leaders of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County say the new $6 million Provo clubhouse was designed as a welcoming space where children and teens can explore new interests, build life skills, and receive mentorship from caring staff.
“The Boys & Girls Clubs have been a cornerstone of youth development in Utah County for decades,” said Janet Frank, board president, in a statement “This new clubhouse strengthens that mission, allowing the organization to extend its reach and impact across the entire region.”
Friday’s event took place while children who attend the Boys & Girls Clubs were in school, so another ceremony for kids and their families is planned for the end of the month.
“The Boys & Girls Club is for every kid out there,” Bayles said. “We want to accomplish what every parent wants for their kids — we want them to have a safe place to learn and grow, to be successful in school, to build social skills and to go on and be great members of society.”
The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.
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