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CONSTRUCTION
• Premier Pools & Spas, a swimming pool builder, has announced an expansion into Utah. The Salt Lake City office is founded by Scott Laing and Jason Swallow and will serve the greater Wasatch Front region. Laing and Swallow have owned and operated Premier Pools and Spas of Boise for the past five years and will continue to do so. The partners each have over a decade of pool industry experience in both residential and commercial projects.
CONTESTS
• The Downtown Alliance is accepting nominations through April 30 for Downtown Achievement Awards, designed to recognize exceptional contributions to Salt Lake City’s downtown. Nominations can be made at http://downtownslc.org/create-downtown-slc/achievement-awards. Awards will be presented to a group, company or individual who has made a significant contribution to downtown, helping to build a more dynamic and diverse community that is the regional center for culture, commerce and entertainment. The contribution must be for accomplishments located within Salt Lake City’s Central Business District — within the boundaries of 400 South, 700 West, North Temple Street and 300 East.
DIRECT SALES
• Young Living Essential Oils, Lehi, has promoted Ben Riley to chief sales officer. He has more than 15 years of experience in the network marketing industry and sales. He joined the company in 2016 to oversee global sales and served as regional president of North America. Prior to joining Young Living, Riley held several positions, including vice president of leadership at Cloudberry Nutritionals and vice president of sales at Avon in Australia and New Zealand.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
• Utah is third, behind No. 1 Iowa and No. 2 Minnesota, in the “Best States 2018” rankings compiled by U.S. News & World Report. The rankings used thousands of data points to measure how well states are performing for their citizens. In addition to health care and education, the metrics take into account a state’s economy; the opportunity and quality of life it offers people; its roads, bridges, Internet and other infrastructure; its public safety; and the fiscal stability of state government. Utah’s rankings in breakout categories included healthcare, 10th among states; education, third; economy, second; opportunity, 35th; infrastructure, eighth; crime and corrections, 14th; fiscal stability, first; and quality of life, 22nd.
• Provo-Orem was ranked No. 2 and Ogden-Clearfield was No. 5 in Forbes’ list of “Where to Invest in Housing in 2018.” Provo-Orem was ranked only behind Orlando, Florida. It has an average home price of $266,169, a three-year population growth rate of 7.2 percent; two-year job growth of 6.7 percent; a one-year home price growth rate of 10 percent; and a three-year price growth forecast of 31 percent. Ogden-Clearfield has an average home price of $246,251; a three-year population growth of 5.1 percent; two-year job growth of 5.7 percent; one-year home price growth of 10 percent; and a three-year price growth forecast of 29 percent.
ENERGY
• Rocky Mountain Power has announced more than $1.8 million in Blue Sky funding awards to support 15 renewable energy projects for community-serving organizations in Utah and Wyoming. The grants will help build solar arrays that offset energy costs, allowing the organizations to focus more funding on the populations they serve. The projects will add an estimated 1.6 million kilowatt-hours of renewable energy in the communities. Recipients are Bluffdale City Fire No. 91 and No. 92, Bluffdale City Hall, Utah State University, Ogden Rescue Mission, Your Community Connection Family Crisis Center in Ogden, Christian Center of Park City, Utah Department of Transportation, Summit County, Centro Civico of Salt Lake City, SLC Corp., SpyHop of Salt Lake City, State of Utah Multi-Agency State Office Building, Community of Grace Presbyterian Church and WY Downtown Clinic in Laramie, Wyoming.
ENVIRONMENT
• Weber State University and others are having a lottery to help 762 Utahns exchange gas-powered mowers for electric mowers. Those who enter the lottery and are selected through a random process can exchange their operable gas-powered mower for a new Kobalt 40-volt, cordless, electric lawn mower for $100 plus tax and a 3 percent credit-card fee. Fee waivers are available for those in need. Typical retail price of the electric mower is $329. Utahns who live in areas that regularly experience poor air quality as determined by the Environmental Protection Agency, are eligible for the program. Residents can check weber.edu/mowelectric/eligibility.html to determine if they qualify. Applications will be accepted throughout March. The “Cut Pollution — Mow Electric” initiative is being undertaken by Weber State University’s sustainability offices, in partnership with the Weber-Morgan and Davis County health departments, the Utah Department of Environmental Quality and the Utah Clean Air Partnership.
INVESTMENT
• Goldman Sachs has increased its equity commitment to Restore West LLC’s Multifamily Acquisition Fund to $27 million. Since its inception in 2012, Restore West — through local affiliate Restore Utah and Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group — have revitalized low- and moderate-income neighborhoods by transforming vacant or neglected properties into affordable rental homes for low-income families. Over the past five years, Restore West and Goldman Sachs have invested over $150 million to acquire and renovate more than 500 single-family homes and eight multifamily properties totaling over 450 units. The new investment will enable Restore West to significantly increase its acquisitions and improve affordable housing throughout the Wasatch Front. Restore West also will be expanding its multifamily acquisition effort this year into Arizona, Colorado, Idaho and Nevada.
• Sorenson Capital, a Salt Lake City-based private equity firm, has promoted Bert Roberts to managing director. Roberts, a long-time industry veteran and principal at Sorenson Capital, will focus on the company’s efforts in business development, fundraising, and investor relations. Roberts joined Sorenson Capital in 2011. Prior to joining Sorenson Capital, Roberts served as vice president of institutional client services at Wasatch Advisors and held senior-level investment banking positions at UBS, SoundView Technology Group and Montgomery Securities (now Bank of America Merrill Lynch).
GOVERNMENT
• Roger Killpack has been appointed by Gov. Gary Herbert to serve on the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) board, succeeding Bevan Wilson. Killpack is owner and manager at Service Drug, which has locations in Delta and Fillmore. Killpack attended the College of Pharmacy at the University of Utah, graduating in 1985. He also has been heavily involved in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, including serving as president of the Arizona Tuscon Mission starting in 2011.
HEALTHCARE
• ProLung Inc., Salt Lake City, has appointed Kristin M. Larson as director of clinical affairs. The company is focused on predictive analytics technology and non-invasive tests for the risk stratification of lung cancer. Larson joined the company as the manager of clinical research and training in 2015. Before that, she was an educator for medical device and pharmaceutical companies. She is currently an adjunct instructor for the University of North Dakota Nurse Practitioner program.
LAW
• Jones Waldo, Salt Lake City, has announced an expansion with a new office in Lehi. Located at Thanksgiving Point, the office will initially have eight attorneys. Partners in the office are Travis Wilson and Daniel Daines.
PHILANTHROPY
• The Ikon Pass, a new ski and snowboard pass product from Alterra Mountain Co., has partnered with Protect Our Winters (POW) to further climate change education and advocacy through a three-level, $50,000 partnership. It involves the creation of the Ikon Pass Fund, a Summit Level donation and a complimentary one-year Protect Our Winters membership to each Ikon Pass holder for the 2018-2019 winter season. Protect Our Winters will be presented $25,000 to establish the Ikon Pass Fund, to be used toward thoughtful, collaborative initiatives based in education and action throughout the year. Also, all Ikon Pass holders will receive a complimentary one-year membership valued at $50 to POW upon purchase.
REAL ESTATE
• Traverse Ridge Center III, a nine-story, 220,000-square-foot Class A office space in Lehi, is scheduled to break ground in April. Developed by Perry Commercial, the building is slated to be completed in the summer of 2019 and will be the tallest building in Lehi. Located at the intersection of Triumph Boulevard and State Route 92, Traverse Ridge Center III is part of the 22-acre Traverse Ridge Center development. It is the third office building to be constructed within the park, which also includes an on-site Staybridge Suites hotel and UTA stop with direct shuttle service to the FrontRunner Station. A total of 50,000 square feet of Traverse Ridge Center III has already been reserved for an anchor tenant. Exclusive leasing agents are Eric Smith, Kreg Peterson, James Mecham and Laurie Adair of CBRE.
• Olympus Property, based in Texas, has acquired Crossing at Daybreak in South Jordan and changed its name to Olympus at Daybreak. Financial terms were not disclosed. Olympus at Daybreak is the only apartment community located within the 4,000-acre master-planned Daybreak community. It is a garden-style apartment community featuring 315 units with two- and three-story buildings. It was constructed in 2011. Olympus owns and manages over 15,000 units across 10 states.
RECOGNITIONS
• ChamberWest recently honored several businesses and individuals at its annual Awards Gala. Harmons received the Hall of Fame Award. Business of the Year is Ken Garff West Valley. Small Business of the Year is Salt Lake City Stars. Best New Business of the Year is The Joint Chiropractic. The Best Place to Work is Aspire Home Health and Hospice. Volunteer of the Year is Maggie Mills, Hunter Library.
• JourneyFront earned the top prize at the recent “$10,000 Give Your Business a Shot” Competition, organized by business accelerator RevRoad, Provo. Winning $10,000, JourneyFront is a Utah-based predictive hiring platform that helps companies improve the accuracy of their hiring using predictive analytics, machine learning and psychometric assessments. The runner-up and winner of $2,500 is Neighbor, a technology platform that connects people with extra space to individuals looking for affordable storage. The $1,000 Fan Favorite winner is Piero, which helps people with disabilities make their way through public doors by way of a smartphone app and a small device that institutions can attach to any automatic door motor. The contest was co-sponsored by Startup Utah and other community partners.
• Health Catalyst, Salt Lake City, and Pittsburgh-based UPMC have been named joint recipients of Microsoft Corp.’s 2018 Health Innovation Awards. The awards recognize health organizations and their technology solution partners for using Microsoft’s health technologies in innovative ways that help engage patients, empower care teams, optimize clinical and operational effectiveness, and transform health. UPMC and Health Catalyst won for their use of the Health Catalyst CORUS Suite, a cost-management system co-developed by the two and based on Microsoft technology.
• USANA has been ranked as the “Top-Rated Supplement Brand on Overall Customer Satisfaction” in the direct-selling space by ConsumerLab.com. The company also was ranked as the “Top-rated Supplement Merchants on Overall Consumer Satisfaction” in direct sales in the ConsumerLab.com 2018 Survey of Vitamin and Supplement Users Report. ConsumerLab.com is an independent, third-party supplement testing company providing results, reviews, ratings and comparisons of vitamins, supplements, herbs and nutrition products to consumers. It surveys its readers annually regarding their use, choice, and satisfaction with supplements.
RETAIL
• H&M (Hennes and Mauritz Inc.) has announced a new retail location in Sandy. To open this summer, the 20,000-square-foot store will be in The Shops at South Town. The clothing company has about 16,000 U.S. employees and 524 locations in the U.S.
RURAL UTAH
• The Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) board, at its March meeting, endorsed Rural Fast Track grants for five companies. Dairy Farmers of America—Beaver, was endorsed for a $50,000 grant to help the company construct a building. The $5 million project is expected to result in three new full-time positions. Lyle Young Welding, of Gunnison, Sanpete County, was endorsed for a $50,000 grant to help build a storage shed at the facility. The $217,231 project is expected to result in three new positions. Sanpete Veterinary Clinic, of Mount Pleasant in Sanpete County, was endorsed for a $50,000 grant to help construct a building. The $300,000 project is expected to result in one new position. Superior Enterprises, doing business as Superior Striping and Asphalt Maintenance, of Orangeville, Emery County, was endorsed for a $39,000 grant to help the company purchase a sweeper truck and storage tank. The $83,000 project is expected to result in two new positions. Hillbilly Mill of Lyman, Wayne County, was endorsed for a grant of $11,875 to help it purchase equipment. The $33,800 project is expected to result in one new position. The grants were approved by the Governor’s Rural Partnership Board.
TECHNOLOGY/LIFE SCIENCES
• Varex Imaging Corp., Salt Lake City, has appointed Shaohua Liang as vice president and managing director for China. In connection with the appointment, Varex has consolidated all of its operations in China under Liang’s leadership. It includes the management of all sales and operational teams, as well as the shared responsibilities of corporate functions of human resources, finance and quality/regulatory. Liang has 35 years of experience in management, manufacturing operations, services and sales of healthcare equipment and components through his roles at Elekta Instruments, Draeger Greater China and Siemens Technology Development Co. He also worked at the Bureau of Quality and Standard of State Food & Drug Administration of China (SFDA) and the China National Pharmaceutical Group Corp. (Sinopharm) in a variety of roles in China and internationally. Varex designs and manufactures X-ray imaging components.