Utah
What are the ‘big gears’ Utah must move for a 2034 Olympics? • Idaho Capital Sun
Former Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt said one of the most important lessons he drew from his time as Utah’s chief executive is to lead on transformational issues, one must look for decisions that will result in “cascading consequences.”
He compared them to gears on a clock. Turning the largest gear will spin the smaller ones with ease.
“If you really want to transform society,” he said, “you have to look at the big gears.”
Perhaps one of most impactful “gears” that could transform Utah’s future is Salt Lake City’s now likely chance of hosting the 2034 Winter Games. The city was selected as a 2034 preferred host in November, and with no serious contenders, Salt Lake is close to formally locking down the Games. A final vote on the bid is expected to be announced in Paris on July 24, Utah’s Pioneer Day.
The International Olympic Committee is coming to Utah this week to tour proposed event venues. Next, the Future Host Commission is expected to submit a report to IOC leaders, who will then decide whether to send Salt Lake City’s bid to a final vote, the Deseret News reported.
A 2034 Winter Games would mark the second time the Olympics has come to Utah. Leavitt was governor when Salt Lake City hosted the 2002 Winter Games — and it’s one of the “legacy” issues Leavitt highlights in his recently released memoir series detailing the lessons the former governor learned from his time in office. Leavitt hopes it will help policymakers tackle some of the biggest issues facing Utah today.
On Friday, Leavitt — along with Utah Sen. Mitt Romney and other Utah officials — joined a panel hosted by the University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, the Hinckley Institute of Politics, and the Deseret News at the Thomas S. Monson Center in Salt Lake City.
The discussion, moderated by Deseret News Executive Editor Doug Wilks, was part of a forum titled “What’s Past is Prologue.” It unpacked generational issues from Leavitt’s memoir that are seemingly coming full circle and resurfacing in new ways for Utah’s government leaders.
The Olympics, Leavitt said, is an “obvious” example. The 2002 Winter Games wasn’t just a 14-day event, it ushered in a new era for Utah. It put the state on the international stage, spurred major growth, attracted tech business leaders, and accelerated transportation infrastructure, including a massive rebuild of Interstate 15 and construction of FrontRunner and Salt Lake County’s TRAX system.
“The Olympics is a 17-day activity, then it’s over,” Leavitt said. “That isn’t the value of the Olympics to the state. The value … is the 10 years in advance of the Games, during which there is a huge amount of back pressure that will allow you to get a lot of things done that you could never get done in their absence.”
Now, with another opportunity to host the Winter Games in 10 years, Leavitt said Utah must act now, not only to use the next decade to prepare, but also brace for and shape the change the Olympics is sure to usher in for the state — another new era.
The discussion focused on what “big gears” Utah must move to make a 2034 Winter Games a generational success. The panel included Leavitt, Romney and other past and current state leaders involved in either the 2002 Olympics or the 2034 bid. They included:
- Fraser Bullock, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of the Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the 2002 Olympic Winter Games, and current president and CEO of the Salt Lake City-Utah Committee for the Games, which is bidding for the 2034 Winter Games.
- Former Utah Sen. Lane Beattie, who helped plan the 2002 Winter Games. He also formerly served as the president and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce before his retirement in 2018.
- Rep. Jon Hawkins, R-Pleasant Grove, who is serving as one of the legislative members of the Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation.
- Sen. Mike McKell, R-Spanish Fork, one of the legislative members of the Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation.
Mitt Romney: Utah leaders must launch immediate effort for federal funding
Romney, participating remotely in the discussion on a TV screen, said Utah leaders must launch an “immediate” effort in Washington, D.C., to generate “energy and passion” for a 2034 Winter Games in Salt Lake City — as well as lay the groundwork now for federal funding to support security and transportation, which the federal government will be tasked with but has not yet funded.
Romney said security for the future Olympics will probably cost billions — perhaps $3-4 billion — but by then he warned Congress will likely be confronting “some very tough financial times,” pointing to frustrations with the federal government’s spending and national debt.
“I’ll tell you, if Salt Lake goes to the government and says we need $3-4 billion dollars for security and transportation, that may not be a welcome request, and it may not be granted,” Romney warned. So he urged Utah and California leaders — ahead of a 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles — to urge Congress to start putting aside funding every year to prepare for national special security events and transportation for an Olympics.
“So instead of asking for $3-4 billion down the road, we’re able to get $200 million or $300 million year after year going into special accounts,” Romney said.
Romney also said Utah leaders should frame the 2034 Games not as a “big gift” to Utah, but an opportunity to “serve the world.” Like they did with the 2002 Olympics, he said leaders should put Utah’s volunteerism at the forefront and ask Utahns to be part of solving problems.
“What made (the 2002) Olympics so successful was that people began to realize this was an opportunity for us to help serve the world. This was about service. It was about giving, not receiving,” Romney said, urging leaders to not shy away from the challenges. “Acknowledge the difficulties. … Travel’s going to be hard. It’s going to be intrusive. Acknowledge those things.”
Romney said he’s happy to see Utah leaders talking about the issue now. A 2034 Winter Games is sure to “bring the world’s attention to Utah, for good or bad, and I think we’re going to see the best,” he said. But he also urged leaders to think about whether they really want it to bring “more growth.”
“I’m not sure we want more growth,” he said, noting it’s “not necessarily a bad thing” when a state’s population growth tapers. “I think we have to ask ourselves, ‘Do we want to continue to grow the state?’ I know it’s great for developers … but how much growth do we want to have?”
How to harness Utahns’ support for hosting Olympics
McKell agreed Utah leaders need to start formulating a vision now about how it wants Utah to change in wake of the Olympics.
“It’s time to have that discussion,” McKell said. “I don’t think we know exactly as a state what we want to accomplish, right now. And I think we need to decide. We need to harness government at all levels … we need to decide what is the legacy, what do we want to accomplish.”
Another “big gear” a 2034 Winter Games could turn and help transform Utah’s future, the panel discussed, is acting as a remedy to today’s polarized political climate.
“We have a divisive society today in many ways. How do we overcome that?” Bullock said. He pointed to recent Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics polls that show over 80% of Utahns support hosting another Olympics, and said Utah can coalesce that support and bring people together through volunteer efforts during the Games.
“We’re going to host the world together, as a community. And then utilize that not only at the local level but at the national level and at the international level — an opportunity for unity to celebrate human achievement under the umbrella of sport,” Bullock said. “It’s just a wonderful opportunity for the next 10 years.”
Bullock said last time, when Utah hosted the Olympics in wake of the 9/11 terrorist attack, “we became a healing opportunity for the world.”
“There will be something important that we will be doing at some point along this journey,” he said. “That’s the opportunity. … For us to do something special, for not only our community but the entire world.”
The Utah News Dispatch, like the Idaho Capital Sun, is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Utah News Dispatch maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor McKenzie Romero for questions: [email protected]. Follow Utah News Dispatch on Facebook and Twitter.
Utah
White scores 25 to help Utah women hand No. 8 TCU its 1st loss, 87-77 in overtime
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Lani White scored 25 points to lead Utah past No. 8 TCU 87-77 in overtime Saturday night.
Reese Ross added 15 points and Maty Wilke had 12 for the Utes. Evelina Otto finished with 10 points and eight rebounds. Utah (11-4, 2-1 Big 12) made 13 3-pointers and shot 56.5% from long distance.
Olivia Miles had 31 points, seven rebounds and seven assists to pace the Horned Frogs (14-1, 2-1). Marta Suarez added 23 points and 11 rebounds. TCU shot just 37% from the field, including 9 of 39 from 3-point range.
White forced overtime by making a 3-pointer that tied it 67-all with 12 seconds left in regulation. Utah never trailed in OT and went up 76-69 with 2:47 left after White capped a 9-2 run with her fourth outside basket.
TCU used a 7-0 spurt to erase a four-point deficit in the final minute of the fourth quarter. Back-to-back 3-pointers from Suarez and Donovyn Hunter put TCU up 66-64 with 49 seconds remaining.
Ross had a chance to tie it on two free throws with 33.3 seconds left, but missed both. Miles made one of two foul shots with 22 seconds to go before White tied it.
Utah took advantage of cold shooting by the Horned Frogs to pull ahead in the third quarter. Back-to-back baskets from Suarez were TCU’s only field goals over an eight-minute stretch. The Utes scored on three straight possessions, culminating in a layup from Wilke, to take a 52-48 lead.
Miles made back-to-back baskets to put the Horned Frogs back up 58-56. Utah used a 7-0 run, punctuated by a 3-pointer from Ross, to go ahead 63-58 with 4:32 left in regulation.
Up next
TCU hosts Oklahoma State on Wednesday.
Utah plays at Kansas on Wednesday.
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Utah
Judge files ruling allowing for appeal to Utah Supreme Court in redistricting case
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — The judge in Utah’s redistricting case filed a ruling making it possible for the Legislature to appeal to the Utah Supreme Court, but not without a strong rebuke of their process.
On Friday, Judge Dianna Gibson ruled partially in favor of the Legislature’s most recent request in the redistricting case, certifying its August 25th ruling as final in order to allow them to appeal to the Utah Supreme Court.
However, she strongly denied their request to enter a final judgment and end the case, saying, “This case is far from over.”
MORE | Utah Redistricting:
File – Utah Congressional Redistricting Maps (Image: KUTV)
“Quite literally – this Court is between the proverbial rock and a hard spot. This entire case is not ‘final,’” Gibson wrote in the ruling. “But the Court agrees that the important legal issues decided by this Court and reflected in each of its rulings … should be reviewed by the Utah Supreme Court as quickly as possible.”
Gibson said it was the legislative defendant’s “duty to seek appellate review” regarding any of her interlocutory, or non-final orders, within 21 days of the rulings. She said they repeatedly claimed they would but never did.
Now, they are requesting she finalize the case, or at the very least one of her orders, to allow them to file an appeal.
Because Gibson does not want to delay appellate review, she agreed to certify the August 25, 2025 Ruling and Order as final.
“Every Utah voter, every Utah congressional candidate and arguably every Utah citizen is impacted by this case. Issuing a final ruling – on even a portion of this case – ultimately serves the public’s interest and will lead to a faster resolution of the entire case,” she wrote.
The redistricting case dates back to 2018, when voters passed a ballot initiative to create a commission to redraw the congressional district boundaries.
State legislators repealed the ballot initiative in 2020, and attempted to draw their own congressional map the following year.
This prompted a lawsuit, which has led to several rulings, including the one on August 25th, which declared that the Utah Legislature violated voters’ rights by approving congressional boundaries that split Salt Lake County.
“Until there is a final decision on these legal issues from our Supreme Court, there will be a cloud on Utah’s congressional elections and an open question regarding the power of the Legislature and the power of the people,” Gibson wrote in her most recent ruling.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Utah
Utah man missing for 3 years presumed dead. What happened? – East Idaho News
SOUTH SALT LAKE (KSL) — Investigators believe a South Salt Lake man who disappeared in 2022 is likely dead, but they’re still trying to figure out what happened to him more than three years later.
“To my knowledge we don’t have one working theory as to whether it’s a homicide or a suicide or if he just completely went off the grid, essentially,” officer Shaun Ward said Monday.
But according to a recent search warrant affidavit filed in 3rd District Court, “There has been no financial or digital footprint indicating that (Cornelis ‘Casey’ Frederik Bokslag) is still alive. It is presumed he is deceased.”
Ward says the search warrant, filed in late November, is to look at Bokslag’s Google accounts, such as his email history, internet search history and location data. Investigators are hoping those records “might provide additional information about where Bokslag had been in the days and hours leading up to his disappearance as well as any correspondence, contacts, locations and a slew of other sources of information that could lead Investigators to the location of Bokslag’s body, which will allow us to determine if his disappearance was a result of suicide or foul play,” the warrant states.
As of Monday, the request for that information from Google was still pending.
Ward, 30, was last seen on June 6, 2022. Police have recovered surveillance video of Bokslag leaving his apartment complex that day in his car by himself. He then went to an ATM in South Salt Lake and withdrew $100. Bokslag, a four-year Marine veteran who had worked for a watershed company since 2016, did not go to work that day, which family members, his employer and police said was highly unusual.
“Investigators eventually learned that Bokslag had taken the day off work and told friends and family that he was traveling to Evanston, Wyoming, to participate in the gay pride parade festivities,” according to the recently unsealed search warrant.
Hours after Bokslag was reported missing on June 8, 2022, his 2012 Suzuki SX4 was found by a passerby in Summit County, near the Castle Rock exit off I-80, about 18 miles west of the Wyoming border.
“It was discovered that the vehicle’s license plates were removed from the car. Meticulously, the screws were put back into the license plate frame, and the vehicle was essentially clean in nature,” police said at the time.
The warrant further states that “there was a noticeable absence of fingerprints inside the vehicle. This was determined to be consistent with the interior having been wiped clean.
“Later, DNA swabs were taken and submitted for testing. They revealed two genetic profiles. One was matched to Bokslag by exemplar samples provided by the family. A second profile was identified. The profile was checked through the Combined DNA Index System, and no positive identification was made,” the warrant states.
Ward said Monday that investigators have done extensive searches around where Bokslag’s car was found in 2022, both on the ground and by drone. His residence was also searched, and a few items of potential evidence, such as Bokslag’s laptop, were seized.
A co-worker called Bokslag several times one night before he disappeared, according to cellphone records collected by investigators. Several witnesses told police that the co-worker and Bokslag “were up for the same promotion, but Bokslag was eventually selected for it, causing resentment. Those cellphone records also showed Bokslag’s phone being turned off at some point on June 6,” according to the warrant.
“A records check revealed that shortly after receiving numerous calls in one night from the hostile co-worker, and prior to being reported missing, Bokslag purchased a handgun in Salt Lake County along with two boxes of ammunition,” the warrant says.
Ward did not have any additional information Monday about the co-worker, including whether police had questioned him or if he had been ruled out as a possible suspect.
A $50,000 reward is still being offered for information that leads to Bokslag being found. According to a web page set up by his family, Bokslag is 6 feet 2 inches tall, weighs about 140 pounds, has blond hair and gray eyes. He also had a goatee at the time of his disappearance. A missing persons poster is hanging in the lobby of the South Salt Lake Police Department with Bokslag’s information.
Anyone who has information on what may have happened to Bokslag or anyone who may have seen him is asked to call police at 801-840-4000. Ward says all tips will be investigated.
“Really, anything at this point. If they think that they saw him or have seen him recently, or if they have any information into his personal life that our investigators may not know … any information is welcome,” he said. “We want to bring closure to the family. The family still wants answers.”
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