Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall delivered her sixth State of the City Address, highlighting major strides in public safety, housing affordability, and sustainability while remaining purpose-driven to serve residents at the closest level.
The administration continues its focus on affordable housing, with commitments to expediting 200 more homes at The Other Side Village and seeking an additional $5 million in funding toward deeply affordable housing in FY2026. The Mayor also introduced a new Affordable Housing Construction and Preservation Dashboard to transparently provide updates on the city’s progress in closing the housing gap. Since 2020, Salt Lake City has funded or completed over 6,500 affordable housing units. The city’s Tenant Resource Center and Relocation Assistance Fund for Tenants (RAFT) was also launched to help residents with housing issues.
Mayor Mendenhall launched Clean Air SLC, an initiative to distribute equipment and information to help residents improve air quality in their communities and homes. She noted that the landscaping equipment exchange program removed more than 6,000 pounds of pollution by replacing gas-powered equipment with electric alternatives. Additionally, the Mayor highlighted the completion of Elektron solar, a solar farm spread across 550 acres that has already powered 80% of the city’s municipal electricity.
The administration’s vision to reimagine the city’s wide downtown streets is also moving forward, with a complete design for the Civic Campus portion of the Green Loop expected in 2025. The Mayor plans to request $3 million in the FY26 budget toward constructing the Civic Campus that would connect Library Square to Washington Square Park. Those funds would then be leveraged with private-sector support as part of a capital campaign.
Watch the Mayor’s full address here.
At a time when our rights, freedoms, and futures are under threat, Democratic Mayors are showing the nation what real leadership looks like.
