Crystal Muellstein, a candidate for Orem City Council, said Orem residents want single-family homes and urged the city to limit new high-density development. “Homeownership is the American dream,” Muellstein said, adding that families “want them to have a place to call home.”

Muellstein pointed to visible vacancies at some apartment complexes as evidence that demand is stronger for single-family homes. “If you drive around Orem, there are a lot of apartment buildings in Orem, and most, if not all of them, have rent today or available now signs,” she said, adding that vacancies can keep rental prices high and “artificially inflate[] the price of housing even more.”

She repeated a numeric claim about rentals in the city, saying, “We have over 45 rentals in Orem.” The candidate did not provide a source or further breakdown for that figure during the interview.

Muellstein criticized projects she said were out of scale with neighborhoods, naming Midtown Village as an example. She said the project was originally presented as owner-occupied housing but is now rentals, calling that a “bait and switch.”

On regional policy, Muellstein warned against state mandates tying higher-density housing to transit corridors, referencing recent state rules she described as housing and transit reinvestment zones. She said those mandates do not fit every community and urged more local control.

The candidate framed her position as pro-family and pro-neighborhood: she said Orem should preserve its neighborhood character and prioritize developments “that will enhance our city and leave a good place for our children to inherit.”