The mayor of South Ogden announced the city will keep the Gibbs Loop trail routed around the golf course rather than build a new trail that cuts through the course, saying the decision balances safety, public input and operational concerns.

The mayor told the council the city hired Logan Simpson to design and analyze a short public survey after criticism about the earlier process. He said the survey's results were roughly split and that responses spiked when the survey was promoted on social media. "It came back approximately split," he said, adding that the city sought a neutral third party so the process would not be perceived as biased.

Councilmembers pressed the mayor on the survey's scientific validity. One member said the questionnaire appeared confusing and that final vote spikes cast doubt on whether it produced a representative sample. The mayor acknowledged those limits, saying a fully scientific, stratified survey would have been costly and time-consuming and that the goal was to characterize public sentiment rather than produce a definitive statistical finding.

Safety concerns were a central factor. The mayor recounted reports of close calls between golfers and trail users and cited a recent incident in which a golf cart tipped and a man broke his leg at a convergence point. He said mixing trail users with active golfing in tight areas increased the risk and could require additional enforcement resources. "There's definitely an element of danger and risk around having trail users on the golf course and golf balls flying around," he said.

The mayor also noted financial and operational considerations: limiting trail access across the course coincided with increased golf participation and reduced vandalism during a prior summer closure, which strengthened revenue for the golf operation that could be reinvested in winter recreation and trail improvements.

Members of the trails community and Trails Foundation provided input that was mixed: some groups urged preserving the formal network and routing the trail around the course, while others thought a cut-through might focus access pressure. The mayor said the administration intends to continue investing in other trail improvements, pointing to council appropriations and potential partnerships to leverage trail funding.

The mayor characterized the decision as one of many hard choices leaders must make and said he would present options and details to the council for their review rather than making unilateral, permanent changes. The city will also look to the trail community for advisement on bike-appropriate routing and additional trail investments.

The council did not hold a formal vote at the work session; the mayor described this as an administrative decision informed by public input and safety analysis.

The administration said it will pursue further outreach and potential investments in trail repair and stabilization work in partnership with the Trails Foundation and other local partners.