Former Mayor Ralph Becker hired as director for new Central Wasatch Commission

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SANDY — Former Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker has a new gig.

Call him "Director Becker."

The Central Wasatch Commission, the new government entity that was born out of the now-defunct Mountain Accord, voted Wednesday to hire him as its executive director.

It'll be familiar ground for Becker, who helped drive the multi-stakeholder group's creation and the 2014 signing of the Mountain Accord, a plan to guide long-term decision making to enhance recreational, environmental and transportation needs in the central Wasatch Mountains.

But since the accord's creation nearly four years ago, crippling traffic and parking issues continue to plague the Big and Little Cottonwood canyons. Despite millions spent on consulting and studies, implementation of the Mountain Accord's goals stalled, pending the creation of the Central Wasatch Commission.

Now Becker wants to "hit the ground running" to implement the Mountain Accord to help improve transportation and other issues facing the canyons.

"Certainly there are a number of things that need to be done, and done quickly," Becker told the commission in April when he made his case to be appointed director. "For the last at least year or two years, the work in implementing Mountain Accord has been either moving slowly or stagnated."

Becker said in an interview after his appointment he's "looking forward to jumping in" and to bring new momentum to the Mountain Accord.

"I'm not someone to sit around and twiddle my thumbs," he said. "This will be a great opportunity for me to work for the commission and accomplish things we've been working towards for a long time."

Of course, solving the canyons' traffic jams won't happen overnight, Becker said. But he'll start by prioritizing federal designation legislation that has yet to see any action in Congress. He hopes to get a specific proposal drafted to be considered "potentially even this year," he said.

Meanwhile, $65 million in state funds has already been appropriated to a Little Cottonwood Canyon project, and the Legislature passed a new law to allow tolling. UDOT is expected to bring forth project recommendations in October.

"Having the Central Wasatch Commission serve in a coordinating role with all of the entities — (Utah Department of Transportation), Utah Transit Authority, Salt Lake County, the Forest Service, others — will help facilitate both better solutions but also probably quicker implementation," Becker said.

Becker was given a salary of $110,000 a year, plus benefits, according to his contract. He'll also be allowed $400 a month for mileage, as well as the potential to earn "incentives" if the commission sees fit.

The commission is working off of a $1.8 million budget, which it formally adopted Wednesday. Its revenue comes from dues of participating entities, including Salt Lake County, Salt Lake City, Draper, Cottonwood Heights, Sandy, Park City, Summit County and Alta.

The Central Wasatch Commission prior to its creation saw some controversy, with critics — mainly canyon property owners — citing objections over a lack of accountability and transparency and questions about what role the new commission would fulfill in jurisdictions already overseen by other authorities such as UDOT, Salt Lake County and others.

Critics have also complained there's been little to show for the $8 million previously spent on Mountain Accord consultants and a transportation study. While a state audit found no evidence of spending misconduct, the auditor pointed out the legislative intent for the state money simply stated it be used to "support the Mountain Accord."

Looking to give the Mountain Accord the authority it needed to implement its goals, Salt Lake County and other jurisdictional groups approved interlocal agreements to create the Central Wasatch Commission.

Since its approval last year, the commission has met six times, but has done little except approve staffing contracts like Becker's and consider expanding the board to include seats for Alta and Summit County. Wednesday, commission members were still working to gear up the commission, which they hope will see progress more quickly, now that it has an executive director.

"(Becker) has tremendous experience in the Wasatch Front, personally and professionally," said the commission's chairman, Sandy City Councilman Chris McCandless. "So there's no learning curve for him."

"We're excited to work with him," McCandless added. "He is a workhorse. His passion is high, and his knowledge is high."

Citing Becker's experience, McCandless said he was chosen out of a pool of more than 60 candidates. The commission selected Becker in a ranking process during a closed session last month, after interviewing four finalists.

Aside from Becker, those finalists included consultant Laynee Jones, who formerly worked as Mountain Accord's program manager; Shawn Teigan, research director at Utah Foundation, a nonprofit research organization; and Ben Gaddis, a consultant specializing in environmental impact analysis.

No one on the commission voted against Becker's appointment, but Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski — who beat Becker in 2015 in his bid for re-election — didn't vote. Biskupski wasn't present for the meeting, but she called in and participated by phone. When her name was called for the vote, she didn't answer. It's unclear if the call dropped or if she abstained, but she did participate in the remainder of the meeting.