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Tooele County official urges Erda council to back Mid Valley Highway ahead of state tour
Summary
Kendall Thomas of the Tooele County Council asked the Erda City Council to present a unified local position to state transportation officials during a Feb. 8–9 site tour, saying getting the project on the state funding list is critical to advance the next phase.
Kendall Thomas, a member of the Tooele County Council, told the Erda City Council on Jan. 11 that the next phase of Mid Valley Highway is at a critical point and urged local officials to show a unified front when state transportation officials visit.
"We need somebody there and we'll probably through Cogger or myself or somebody will get a hold of, I guess Sheldon, you're the new chairman," Thomas said, asking the council to attend a Feb. 8 road tour and a Feb. 9 transportation-committee meeting where project priorities will be set. He said the first phase of Mid Valley Highway opened in October 2021, that the project dates to the 1970s, and that later funding and planning pushed work forward only after the chamber of commerce got involved in 2014.
Why it matters: Thomas said getting the project on the state————funding list is the immediate priority and that visible, consistent local advocacy can influence the five-member commission that sets statewide project priorities. He warned that appearing divided could hurt Erda————————————————————————————————————————————————'s case. "The worst thing you can do to Tooele County is be divisive," he said.
Details and context: Thomas described the financing history in broad terms, saying earlier work cost tens of millions and later work has exceeded $100 million. He said the environmental assessment for the project has already begun and that input from local stakeholders — including gravel-pit operators and inland-port interests — is valuable because those groups "are impact players, especially the gravel truck miners and the people from the import" who will raise concerns about truck volumes and safety.
What comes next: Thomas said county staff and the project's lobbyist will coordinate logistics and encouraged the council chair and any available members to attend the February site visit and meeting so Erda can be represented when the commission sets priorities. "We need to come together and make a good presentation," Thomas said.
No formal council action on Mid Valley Highway was recorded at the Jan. 11 meeting; Thomas indicated staff would provide more information about meeting times and locations.
