- Lehi's new 60,000-square-foot civic center opened Monday with a grand ceremony.
- Mayor Paul Binns emphasized celebrating progress, vision and community spirit.
- The center features a library, community rooms and art honoring Lehi's heritage.
LEHI — For all the growth Lehi continues to experience, historical aspects still remain on the city's Main Street. The rodeo grounds and Lehi Bakery have provided generations of memories — and the bucking bronco at the roundabout on 500 West has stood in place for nearly a quarter of a century.
Lehi's new City Hall is also a nod to the community's past.
On Monday, Lehi leaders and community members gathered for the ceremonial grand opening of the new 60,000-square-foot civic center.
"Today, we're not just cutting a ribbon — we're celebrating progress," said Lehi Mayor Paul Binns. "We're celebrating vision. And most importantly, we're celebrating the people who make this community special."
Located at 131 N. 100 East, the facility includes a new library, community rooms, information services, city administration offices and a brand new, larger City Council chamber.
City leaders and officials say they want Lehi residents to feel that the civic center isn't just a new building, but a place they can utilize and call their own.
"I love that we can be able to have this space to gather and be able to celebrate events, and be able to have places where people can come for all different types of purposes and feel that this is their home," Councilwoman Heather Newall told KSL.
Donna Evans, a Lehi resident for 30 years, was among dozens at the civic center on Monday. As she and her family checked out the modernized library, Evans said she's excited about the new building.
"I mean, Lehi is growing and growing, and I think it's a building that we needed for a long time," she said.
Architectural inspiration for the new Civic Center was largely drawn from the Lehi Tabernacle that stood in the heart of the city throughout the early to mid-1900s.
Art displayed inside the civic center honors the city's heritage and others acknowledge Lehi's future.
"We have one in particular: it's a display of discs that are the microchips that they make at Texas Instruments that kind of show the innovation that comes from Lehi as well," said Cameron Boyle, assistant city administrator.
People will soon be able to rent space in the community rooms and flexible gathering spaces for meetings, celebrations, receptions and other events.
"The best part of this building isn't what it is — it's what it will help us become," Binns said.
