South Salt Lake council reviews staff survey results, flags housing and infrastructure as top budget priorities

South Salt Lake City Council members reviewed the results of a council and resident survey at a work meeting on March 12, 2025, and directed staff to fold council feedback into Mayor Wood’s tentative budget.

The survey results, presented by Lindsey Ferrari, show affordable housing listed most frequently as the number-one challenge facing the city, followed by concerns about water and sewer infrastructure, aging streets and ongoing funding uncertainty. Family support services — including after-school programs, food assistance and child care — rose to the top of the list of budget priorities this year, the presentation said.

Why it matters: Council members said the results will guide policy choices and budget allocations for the coming fiscal year. Several council members said basic infrastructure and public safety remain essential services, and that funding pressures at the state and federal levels made investment decisions more urgent.

Ferrari described the exercise as information gathering. “My goal today is to just share what your results look like as a whole back to you and then get a little better understanding,” she said. The staff consultant noted the results combine ranked questions (1–5) and open-ended responses; items with mean scores above 4.5 were flagged as especially high priority.

Key findings discussed by the council - Housing: Multiple council members and staff said affordable housing and homeownership opportunities repeatedly appeared in the comments and ranked responses. Councilmember Clarissa, who identified herself as the person who suggested examining a new city hall and other redevelopment opportunities, said the council’s ability to directly build or finance housing is limited by its non-lending role and state policy constraints. “We are not in the realty business of finding more housing,” she said, urging a focus on tools the city can control.

- Water and sewer infrastructure: Staff and council members said development downtown and aging pipes drive concern. Councilmember Paul A. Cutler asked whether residents lacked access to clean water and sewer; staff answered that the concern largely reflects upgrades needed for growth and an aging system.

- Family support services and after-school programs: The survey elevated family supports into the highest-priority group this year. Several council members said those services are often grant-funded and that uncertainty about federal and state grant streams raised the priority.

- Streets and fire facilities: Maintaining and improving streets and a new or improved fire facility were among top-rated items. The public works campus under discussion later in the meeting was referenced as part of broader infrastructure planning.

- Public safety staffing and retention: Council members repeatedly said recruitment and retention for police and fire personnel remain an ongoing issue; some described pay and training as areas for investment.

Council comments and next steps Councilmembers raised a range of follow-up items the staff should consider: targeted code changes to encourage redevelopment, parking enforcement on narrow streets, review of compensation for volunteer advisory bodies (planning commission and civilian review board), and a possible “Olympic task force” to plan for 2034 opportunities. Councilmember Williams suggested examining whether the city could purchase and rehabilitate one vacant home per year as a pilot for ownership opportunities.

Mayor Wood told the council she would combine stakeholder input into the tentative budget. “Here’s your last chance to give some feedback, and then Mayor Wood’s gonna take this and be working on combining all of the stakeholders into her tentative budget,” staff said.

No formal vote was taken at the work meeting. Staff said the survey results and council discussion will inform the draft budget process and future agenda items.