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TAYLORSVILLE — Substantial progress has been made in the 15 years since residents of Taylorsville decided to "control their own destiny" and incorporate as a city in 1995.
"Our first city hall was a rented space in a strip mall," said Janice Auger Rasmussen, one of the first council members and later a Taylorsville mayor. "We started saving our money the first day we became a city."
In 2002, city hall moved to a new facility that was paid for in cash. Other all-cash projects include a fire station, a recreation center and senior center. The city also built Millrace Park, Vista Park, a bass fishing pond, dog park and skate park.
The city boasts innovative traffic-flow options. Four continuous-flow intersections are operational, and a reversible-lanes project will soon open on 5400 South. "Our city sits in the center of the valley," Mayor Russ Wall said. "Traffic has become an issue."
- Taylorsville will get its own zip code on July 1.
- Baseball is part of Taylorsville's identity. Babe Ruth teams have won the World Series twice and Taylorsville High School baseball has won the state title many times.
- Taylorsville is home to the main campus of the Salt Lake Community College.
Though the economy has hurt city revenue, Wall said he is determined to increase funds through economic development efforts. According to John Inch Morgan, city administrator, "Last year we brought in businesses that added over 860 jobs." Companies such as Nelson Labs, the Royal Bank of Scotland and ICU Medical have helped in this endeavor.
"The best thing about our city is our citizen volunteers," Wall said. "We have dozens of committees. Events like Taylorsville Dayzz only happen because of volunteers." Wall estimates the city has 150-200 volunteers.
Rep. Jim Dunnigan (R-Utah), chair of the Taylorsville Dayzz committee and a former city council member, agreed. "Hundreds of hours are donated to make this event happen. Many things in Taylorsville have changed since we incorporated, but one thing remains the same — citizen commitment to volunteerism," Dunnigan said.
Taylorsville will mark its 15th anniversary this weekend with four days of celebrations, including a parade, carnival, Elvis impersonator, Utah Symphony concert, ABBA concert and three nights of fireworks. The events, at Valley Regional Park (5100 S. 2700 W.), began Thursday afternoon and will end Monday evening. For more information, see taylorsvilleut.gov.
Aimee Winder Newton is the author of taylorsvilletidbits.com, a blog about Taylorsville politics. She lives in Taylorsville with her husband and four children.
