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Community Corner

🌱 Gov Cox: Substitute Teacher + New Home For Historic Archives

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Hello, people of Salt Lake City! It's me again, Joseph Peterson, your host of the Salt Lake City Daily.

First, today's weather:

Hazy sunshine. High: 45 Low: 31.

Here are the top four stories in Salt Lake City today:

  1. After signing an executive order to allow employees of the state paid time off to substitute teach in public schools, Governor Spencer Cox signed up to sub an 8th grade class at a Salt Lake City junior high school, asking his Twitter followers to pray for him. In the end, Cox vocalized appreciation for teachers and said the experience was positive, expressing that he hopes many of the state's 22,000 employees would take part in the program to support schools facing staffing shortages due to the spread of COVID-19. (KUTV 2News)
  2. Relief for Utah's housing scarcity? The Housing Authority of SLC, Utah's largest provider of affordable housing, has been accepted into the federal Moving to Work Landlord Incentives cohort, and as a result will be able to expand affordable housing inventory, which hasn't seen shortages like it's currently experiencing since World War II. (fox13now.com)
  3. A new home for the state's historic archives currently being transported to temporary housing from the basement under the Rio Grande train depot will eventually be constructed but not before a 60-year-old state building just north of the captiol will be torn down, making way for a sparkling new home for the historical collection. The five-story, 151,535-square-foot building the state legislature is trying to fund will not only be an archive for the artifacts but will reserve space for meetings, parking, and a state history museum. (KSL.com)
  4. Salt Lake City's west side neighborhoods are represented by two newly elected city council memebers, the outcome of a campaign season that saw not only multiple candidates vying for the vacant seats on the council, but higher funds raised and, in one district, a higher voter turnout than previous years. Whether this spells more interest in — and more clout for — the historically neglected west side remains to be seen, but changing demographics and heightened property values undoubtedly brings new economic realities to the political landscape among the working and diverse neighborhoods west of 400 W. (Subscription: Salt Lake Tribune)

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Today in Salt Lake City:

  • Utah Art Market at Foothill Village presents its 2022 Valentine Art Market. Visit the marketplace for local artists who have a passion to share their talents with the community, today and through the weekend. (All Day)
  • The Salt Lake City Arts Council, with Finch Lane Gallery at the Art Barn, present Casey Lou Miller – "Intrinsic Nature" // Elpitha Tsoutsounakis - "Unknown Prospect," two new exhibits that bring elements of the arid landscape of the southern Utah desert into stark relief, on display now. (All Day)
  • Singer/songwriter Josh Ritter comes to Salt Lake in pursuit of places to sing quieter, more narrative songs to strangers. Catch him tonight at The Commonwealth Room. (7:00 PM)

From my notebook:

  • "Right now is a great time to see one of the most impressive birds in the sky. Hundreds of bald eagles visit Utah during their winter migration. Numbers build and build, reaching their peak in February. Here are some of the best places to see bald eagles in northern Utah this year." (Utah Division of Wildlife Resources)
  • The University of Utah announced this year's commencement speaker, President of Nintendo America and University of Utah College of Humanities alumnus Doug Bowser. (The University of Utah)
  • The continued dry weather is taking its toll on the snowpack across Utah, with snow water equivalents for several basins dipping below the median for this time of year. Here are the latest numbers. (US National Weather Service Salt Lake City Utah)
  • "It's National School Counseling Week, and we want to thank our counselors for their unique contribution to our schools. School counselors have a tremendous impact in helping students achieve school success and plan for a career." (Salt Lake City School District)
  • "We offer twice-weekly virtual study sessions for High School students preparing to take the ACT test in 2022! You'll review test subjects, learn strategies, time management, and more. Registration is required." (Salt Lake City Public Library)
  • "The Utah Film Center is presenting the next episode of its Black, Bold, and Brilliant series that focuses on conversations about Black-centric films and media on February 15 at 7 p.m.⁠ ⁠" (Utah Arts & Museums)
  • "We are saddened to learn of the passing of Senator Haven J. Barlow, a wonderful friend of the Utah Symphony | Utah Opera since 1967 as a member and emeriti member of our Board of Trustees. We will forever be grateful for Senator Barlow's dedication to our education programs serving students across Utah." (Utah Opera)
  • "What is a border? What does it mean when art taken from one place is displayed across the same borders its people may be denied? Horacio Rodriguez asks these questions of the US-Mexico border with his sculptural objects in his exhibition at the UMFA." (Utah Museum of Fine Arts)
  • "Check out these great classes from the Fairpark Family Learning Center! ¡Vea estas excelentes clases del Fairpark Family Learning Center!" (NeighborWorks Salt Lake)

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Don't miss this week's batch of adoptable pets in the Salt Lake area. OK, now you're in the loop and ready to head out the door on this Thursday! See you tomorrow morning for another update.

— Joseph Peterson

About me: Joseph is a writer and marketing communications strategist with a degree in Mass Communication and Public Relations from the University of Utah. He's keen on city life, public libraries, national parks, and promoting events that build community.

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

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