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Council tables $180,000 Utah Lake jetty feasibility study; seeks partner commitments
Summary
Division staff proposed a $150,000–$180,000 feasibility study for ADA‑accessible fishing jetties on Utah Lake; the Utah Lake Authority expressed support, but the council unanimously asked staff to return with written partner commitments and phased estimates before approving funding.
Division staff presented a proposal to fund a feasibility study to identify durable, ADA‑accessible fishing jetties and platforms on Utah Lake. The presenter said similar work at Fishlake cost roughly $150,000 and that construction could range from $1 million to several million depending on design and location. The initial Habitat Council ask was roughly $180,000, with a potential $100,000 Division of Outdoor Recreation match. Sam Brager, deputy director of the Utah Lake Authority, said the authority strongly supports the study and noted the lake’s economic importance, citing a 2024 Ernst & Young analysis that estimated a $74 million annual economic impact for Utah Lake.
Council members expressed concern that a feasibility study alone could yield design recommendations that lead to a very large construction price tag without committed partners. One council member said, "I would rather see some formal commitments, even if they're future commitments...we will go after grants, we will dig in our own pockets," and urged letters of support or other concrete evidence the Utah Lake Authority and other partners would pursue funding if the study recommended construction.
After discussion, the council withdrew an initial motion and passed a new motion to table the feasibility study. The council directed presenters to collect and return with a list of financially interested partners, letters of support and refined cost estimates; staff were asked to explore dividing the request to prioritize direct feasibility tasks that would allow leveraging an ORPA planning grant if possible.
The decision leaves the study on hold pending partner commitments and updated engineering estimates to be provided before the council’s budget meeting.
