Bountiful council reviews economic development element of general plan; adds zoning, downtown action items

Bountiful City Council held a work session Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, to review the economic development element of the draft general plan and to identify action items for zoning, downtown vitality and transportation. Staff and consultants presented a Zions Public Finance “leakage” analysis showing that sales tax is the city’s primary general-fund revenue source, that many resident jobs are located outside city limits, and that opportunities exist to capture retail and entertainment spending now leaving the city.

The study’s findings matter because, as Gary Hill, presenter for the Zions Bank analysis, put it, “for purposes of Bountiful in this study, economic development means generating and protecting sufficient revenue to provide desired services.” He told the council that the study therefore focused on revenue production rather than job creation.

Councilmembers and staff discussed the implications of a city that the study identified as a bedroom community. The presentation said roughly 22,000–23,000 jobs are held by Bountiful residents, about 14,000 of which are outside city limits; roughly 1,600 of the jobs held by residents are…