Erin Mendenhall

Built World

Leading the shift from planning to execution at the Ballpark site

Salt Lake City's council voted 7-0 on Oct. 20 to rezone the 14.8-acre former Smith's Ballpark site for housing, business and open space. Buildings are capped at 95 feet, and at least 5 acres must stay publicly accessible open space.

Updated 14 hours ago

Built World

Mayor; project tied to citywide traffic safety efforts

For years, 600/700 North carried more than 21,000 vehicle trips a day on failing pavement. Angled crashes made up over half of collisions, and three-fourths happened at intersections. On Nov. 9, Salt Lake City said two years of construction are complete.

Updated Yesterday

Built World

In office; overseeing the Leonardo office conversion

Salt Lake City has finished scrapping the Convair C-131 that hung inside the former Leonardo museum and is close to completing demolition of a Cold War-era MiG-21 fighter jet. The city filed a building permit in September to convert the 110,000-square-foot building into offices and youth-services space.

Updated 4 days ago

Built World

Endorsed the proposed market building

Pioneer Park reopens Nov. 13 with new recreation space, a covered pavilion and a ranger office, but the permanent market building planned for the park will not be part of it. The Salt Lake City Downtown Alliance ended the project on Nov. 3 after the city and the nonprofit could not agree on who would own the structure.

Updated 5 days ago

Built World

Active

Salt Lake City reopened Liberty Park's Rotary Play Park on Monday, Oct. 26, after about a year of construction. The $5 million project used $3 million from the 2022 park bond and $2 million in impact fees. The redesigned play area has a wheelchair-accessible carousel, a splash zone and sensory-play features for children of all abilities.

Updated Oct 29

Built World

Spoke at the October 24, 2026 celebration marking the end of airport construction

Salt Lake City International Airport marked the end of its 12-year, $5.1 billion rebuild on October 24. Its final seven gates opened October 27, bringing the airport to 94 gates and 101 concessions.

Updated Oct 28

Rule Changes

Opposed the facility; co-plaintiff in lawsuit

The federal government is selling the Salt Lake City warehouse it bought in March for immigration detention, along with six other buildings U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) acquired this year. Commercial real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield lists the seven sites, 5.3 million square feet in all, as its Federal Warehouse Portfolio, and the listing does not mention ICE. Green Street News reported an opening bid of $114 per square foot, about $600 million, roughly 15 percent below what the government paid.

Updated Oct 27

Built World

Defends the pool cut as a feasibility decision

Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall promised an outdoor pool at Glendale Regional Park in her January 2024 State of the City address. Nearly three years later, the pool is out of the plans.

Updated Oct 23

Money Moves

Oversees the city-owned airport authority that controls the land proposed for sale

Salt Lake City wants to hand nearly 1,000 acres of airport wetland to the state, at no charge, under a conservation easement that would bar development. The parcel sits northwest of Salt Lake City International Airport, near the Great Salt Lake.

Updated Oct 23

Built World

Backed the $50,000 relief fund and a review of how the city handles flood claims

Two months after a broken 20-inch water main flooded Poplar Grove, the Salt Lake City Council has approved $50,000 to help displaced families pay rent, buy food and replace essentials. Who pays for the damage itself is still unresolved.

Updated Oct 23

Money Moves

In office

Salt Lake City's Community Reinvestment Agency approved $7,030,501 in loans to six housing and retail projects Tuesday, backing nearly $54 million in planned development. The slate includes a 122-unit apartment building in Ballpark, a food pantry and thrift store project in Poplar Grove, and five townhomes in Liberty Wells.

Updated Oct 18

Built World

As of October 2026: Implemented 12.5% property tax increase for FY2027

Salt Lake City spent more than $850 million on a new sewage treatment plant, funded in part by over $600 million in debt. A September audit by the Utah Legislative Auditor General found the city cannot cover its annual debt service, now over $60 million, from current revenue, and recommended a new property tax or a dedicated water district.

Updated Oct 10

Built World

As of October 2026: In office; champion of the parks bond

Salt Lake City has completed its revitalization of Donner Trail Park, a 14.27-acre green space at the base of the Wasatch foothills in the East Bench neighborhood. The project adds new playgrounds for a wider range of ages, water-wise landscaping, a connected walking pathway, public art, and the city's first Memorial Tree Grove where residents can dedicate a tree to a loved one. The improvements ran on $870,000 from the voter-approved Parks, Trails, and Open Space General Obligation Bond, with an additional $434,000 for the tree grove through the city's capital improvement program.

Updated Oct 3

Built World

As of October 2026: Leading city investment in west-side development

The Salt Lake City Planning Commission unanimously approved the design review for La Esquina, a mixed-use project along 1000 North in Rose Park. The vote clears the way for the developer to seek building permits—the last major city hurdle before construction.

Updated Oct 1

Built World

As of September 2026: Leading a city weighing housing needs against open land

Cross E Ranch, the seasonal farm where Salt Lake City families pick pumpkins and buy cider doughnuts each fall, may shrink to make room for new homes. The owners have asked city officials to allow residential development on part of the property as what they call a 'last effort' to keep the ranch open.

Updated Sep 29

Rule Changes

As of September 2026: Announced the appointment alongside the Arts Council

Salt Lake City has its first poet laureate. Joel Long, an award-winning poet and creative writing teacher, will serve a three-year term through June 2029.

Updated Sep 24

Rule Changes

As of September 2026: Selected Stiles from five candidates forwarded by the Judicial Nominating Commission

Salt Lake City's Justice Court is getting its first new judge in more than two decades. Mayor Erin Mendenhall named Nick Stiles to a newly created sixth judgeship, and the City Council approved the pick on September 23.

Updated Sep 23

Money Moves

As of September 2026: In office since 2020

LiveSwitch opened a downtown Salt Lake City office on Sept. 22. The video communications firm is now offering local small businesses free lifetime access to its software if they register by Oct. 23.

Updated Sep 22

Rule Changes

As of September 2026: Backs the permanent cap; opposed ICE detention center over water use

Salt Lake City's council voted Tuesday to make permanent a rule capping daily water use for new nonresidential buildings at 200,000 gallons. The limit, an emergency measure in place since March, was set to expire Sunday.

Updated Sep 15

Built World

As of September 2026: In office; attended Camden Court groundbreaking

Salt Lake City's Community Reinvestment Agency confirmed Sept. 8 that construction is underway on Camden Court, a seven-story, 96-unit income-restricted complex in Ballpark. Rents for households earning up to 60% of area median income will run $600 to $1,800 a month, keeping housing costs under 30% of income. The building will include 36 one-bedroom apartments.

Updated Sep 8

Rule Changes

As of September 2026: Mayor; launched the historical markers pilot in January 2025

Utah's legislature twice voted against memorializing Thomas Coleman, a former slave lynched on Capitol Hill in 1866. Salt Lake City installed the marker anyway, on its own land a block from the state Capitol.

Updated Sep 8

Built World

As of September 2026: Supporting the relocation

LDS Hospital has anchored Salt Lake City's Avenues neighborhood since 1905, when it opened to treat patients away from the valley's coal-burning smog. After 121 years, Intermountain Health plans to move it to a new downtown campus.

Updated Sep 5