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ASSOCIATIONS
• The Utah Black Chamber of Commerce has launched “Utah: Black and Open For Business” retail experience, taking place Fridays and Saturdays through April 8. During the 2023 NBA All-Star Weekend celebrations, back businesses had the opportunity to insert themselves into the marketing mix through partnerships with the Utah Black Chamber of Commerce, the NBA Foundation, Microsoft and others. Now the chamber has partnered with Zion’s Bank to continue the experience for black entrepreneurs in downtown Salt Lake City for a limited time. From 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on those weekend days, 10 vendors and a DJ will take over the Zion’s Bank Eagle Emporium, 102 S. Main St., Salt Lake City, to celebrate enterprise with a black marketplace.
BANKING
• Piper Sandler, an independent investment bank and financial services company, has promoted Aly Blossom and Maria Mamaril. Blossom has been promoted to senior associate in the Salt Lake City office of the special district group at Piper Sandler, specializing in special district and tax increment financings. She works with clients at all phases of the development cycle. Mamaril has been promoted to senior associate in the Salt Lake City office of Piper Sandler’s special district group, specializing in special district and tax increment financings. She works with clients at all stages of the development cycle to structure financings that meet their goals. Prior to joining Piper Sandler, both Blossom and Mamaril were associates in the Alternative Investments & Manager Selection Group at Goldman Sachs, with Mamaril focusing on the public equity and fixed income platforms. In this position, she was responsible for portfolio construction, asset allocation and manager selection on behalf of institutional clients’ portfolios.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
• Utah is ranked No. 38 on a list of states with the best education systems, compiled by Scholaroo. It compared states across three key dimensions: student success, student safety and school quality. On breakout lists, Utah was No. 49 for spending per pupil and last for highest number of students per teacher. The top-ranked state overall is New Jersey. The No. 50 state is Arizona. Details are at https://scholaroo.com/report/state-education-rankings/.
• Utah is ranked No. 29 on a list of “2023’s Best States for Camping in America,” compiled by Lawn Love. It compared the 50 states based on 25 metrics, such as campsite access, acreage and trails. It also considered safety, supplies, camper satisfaction and affordability. The top-ranked state is California. The bottom-ranked state is North Dakota. Details are at https://lawnlove.com/blog/best-states-camping/.
• Nearly 1.68 million people in Utah (or 74 percent) consider themselves to be “survivalists,” according to a survey by Primal Survivor, a website dedicated to providing practical prepping advice. Nearly 150 million Americans (57 percent) say they are preparing for the worst. The percentage is lowest in Rhode Island, at 17 percent. It is highest in Hawaii, at 80 percent. Nationally, survivalists say they are prepping for extreme weather events (54 percent), economic uncertainty (16 percent), an international conflict (14 percent) and another pandemic (13 percent). Details are at https://www.primalsurvivor.net/how-many-preppers/.
• Salt Lake City is ranked No. 116 and West Valley City is No. 189 on a list of “2023’s Most Irish Cities in America,” compiled by LawnStarter. It considered access to Irish pubs, dance schools and social groups. On a breakout list, Salt Lake City tied for No. 1 for fewest local Irish organizations. The top-ranked city overall is New York City. The No. 200 city is Hialeah, Florida. Details are at https://www.lawnstarter.com/blog/studies/most-irish-cities-in-america/.
EDUCATION/TRAINING
• Aspen Laser Systems LLC, a Lindon-based medical device company, has launched a Laser Safety Officer and Laser Technician Program. In collaboration with Laser Safety Certification LLC, based in Arizona, Aspen Laser will offer the program to all healthcare professionals. The turnkey training and certification system has been designed for owners and operators of Class 3 and Class 4 therapy lasers to meet the laser safety requirements of OSHA, ANSI (American National Standards Institute) and the FDA.
GOVERNMENT
• The Central Wasatch Commission has launched the 2023 “call for ideas” for new projects specific to the commission’s project area, which includes Millcreek Canyon, Big and Little Cottonwood canyons and the Wasatch Back. The Short-Term Projects grant program is focused on projects that protect the ecosystems or watershed originating in the project area, improve canyon transportation or transit, steward year-round recreation, and sustain the economic vitality of the Wasatch canyons. Selected applicants will be invited to submit a full project proposal to the commission for consideration to fund. Submissions will be accepted on a rolling basis, though priority will be given to ideas submitted before April 3. Details are available by contacting Lindsey Nielsen at (801) 706-1004 or lindsey@cwc.utah.gov.
INSURANCE
• PCF Insurance Services, a Lehi-based insurance brokerage firm, has appointed Peter Nettesheim to the newly created role of senior vice president of data and technology and Jeff Hutchins to senior vice president of human resources. Nettesheim’s more than 25 years of experience includes data warehouse architecture, analytics and software-as-a-service. Hutchins has been with PCF since 2021, serving as vice president of human resources prior to his promotion.
INVESTMENTS
• Consensus, a Lehi-based company offering a demo automation platform, has raised $100 million from Sumeru Equity Partners, based in California. Sumeru provides growth capital, scaling partnership and operating expertise to enterprise software companies. Sumeru’s Jason Babcoke, managing director; Randy Randleman, managing director and COO; and Nathan Stanley, vice president, will join the Consensus board of directors.
• Red Door Capital Partners LLC, a Salt Lake City-based private equity firm, has announced an investment, with support from its network of high-net-worth individuals and family offices, in DrnxMyth, a product and technology of In Spirit Group Inc. Red Door has also been appointed a seat on the company’s board of directors. DrnxMyth has developed fresh-bottling technology to mix fresh juices with alcohol. It is now focusing on manufacturing in the U.S. and scaling for its national retail distribution plan. The Series A round featured co-investments from Goat Rodeo Capital, 99 Proof, Doehler Ventures, Spiral Sun Ventures and Vamos Ventures. Red Door also welcomed a new group of family office investors through its relationship with Force Family Office.
NONPROFITS
• EAssist Dental Solutions, a Salt Lake City-based company offering a platform for dental billing and patient billing services for dental offices, has announced it is a founding industry partner of Women in DSO (WinDSO), a nonprofit organization supporting the empowerment and growth of women leaders in dental service organizations. Nina Lewis, regional leader and DSO industry group leader at eAssist, will represent the company on the Women in DSO Advisory Board. Lewis has 23 years of experience in the dental space, working chairside, managing offices, opening new locations, managing revenue teams, and helping to coach and build teams.
PHILANTHROPY
• The Security Service Charitable Foundation, the charitable arm of Security Service Federal Credit Union, has donated $2,500 to Family Promise Salt Lake. The donation will be used to provide diapers, wipes and formula for homeless children. Family Promise Salt Lake was founded in 1995 and was the first program of its kind in Utah. The organization has two congregations that take turns opening their doors to provide temporary shelter to four families at a time. Security Service is financial institution with locations in Texas, Colorado and Utah.
• Donations during a recent “Feed Utah” food drive is expected to provide food to the estimated 289,000 Utahns. The March 18 event involved faith-based congregations, organizations and residents throughout Utah collaborating with Utah Food Bank for the second statewide “Feed Utah” drive, after a hiatus in 2022 due to COVID-19. Residents across the state received door hangers during the days leading up to the food drive, and Utah Food Bank asked the public to help by placing a bag of non-perishable food outside their front door on March 18 for pickup. The drive is a partnership between Utah Food Bank and its partner agencies, Macey’s Grocery, JustServe and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
REAL ESTATE
• Construction has begun on Spark, a mixed-use, mixed-income, transit-oriented development at 1490 W. North Temple Blvd., Salt Lake City. The project is back by $15.5 million in Salt Lake City funds and is on a former North Temple motel site. Purchased by the Redevelopment Agency of Salt Lake City in 2017, the former Overniter Motel site will be home to 200 residential units, with 100 of the studio- to four-bedroom units available at rates affordable to families between 20 percent and 60 percent of the area median income and the other 100 affordable to those making 70 percent to 80 percent AMI. The two-acre property also will feature a 5,000-square-foot childcare center and outdoor play yard, commercial spaces and a public courtyard. The project’s developer is Brinshore Development. Estimated to cost $96 million to build, the Spark project received $14.5 million in RDA funds and an additional $1 million from the city’s Housing Stability Division. Other public financing came from the Utah Housing Corp., state and federal tax credits, the Olene Walker Housing Loan Fund and Salt Lake County funds. Private partners include Goldman Sachs and Citi Community Capital.
• C.W. Urban, a Centerville-based home builder, has broken ground for the development of TheYard on an 8.57-acre Opportunity Zone site at 125 S. Navajo St., Salt Lake City. Th 157-unit single-family, build-to-rent community will feature a mix of two-and three-bedroom, three-story townhomes. C.W. Urban has partnered with Argosy Real Estate Partners on the equity for the project.
RECOGNITIONS
• Marathon Health, an advanced primary care solutions provider for employers and which operates a Network Health Center for businesses/organizations in Salt Lake City, including CHG, has been ranked the No. 1 employer-sponsored healthcare service by KLAS. They are the first vendor in their category to become a three-time winner of “Best in KLAS.” To arrive at the rankings, KLAS validated experiences with more than 100 employers. Marathon Health achieved a score of 91.2 against a category average of 86.8 and earned the highest marks for loyalty, product, value and relationship.
• Pluralsight, a Draper-based technology workforce development company, has been named a “Leader” in the “IDC MarketScape: U.S. IT Training Services 2023 Vendor Assessment” for the second time. Among Pluralsight’s strengths recognized in the report are authoritative content, a myriad of training courses on partner technologies, excellent instructor quality and a strong content refresh process.
RETAIL
• Rockler Woodworking and Hardware, based in Minnesota, will open its first store in Utah this month at 5584 S. Redwood Road, Taylorsville. Rockler offers hands-on woodworking classes as well as hardware, tools, supplies and products used to build furniture, cabinets and other woodworking projects. The store will feature a Hardwood Lumber Outlet, a specialty space designed to make shopping for hardwood lumber more consumer-friendly. The 11,957-square-foot retail location is the company’s 44th store in the U.S.
TECHNOLOGY
• Lucid Software, a South Jordan-based provider of visual collaboration software, has announced 15 new integrations with software providers across the Lucid Visual Collaboration Suite. The integrations can be found at Lucid’s newly launched marketplace.
TRAVEL & TOURISM
• Maupin Travel and Hess Corporate Travel have unveiled a new brand: Sequel Travel, focused on business and vacation planning. Sequel Travel is led by Trevor and Jordan Smith of Maupin Travel alongside Mike Davidson of Hess Corporate Travel, who serves as president and COO. The two Tzell Travel Group branches, North Carolina-based Maupin Travel, founded in 1979, and Utah-based Hess Corporate Travel, founded in 1985, merged in 2022.
• New technology, the next generation of Credential Authentication Technology, is being used by the Transportation Security Administration at Salt Lake City International Airport to verify the identity of travelers. The first-generation CAT units are designed to scan a traveler’s photo identification, confirm the traveler’s identity and their flight details. The new CAT units have the same capabilities but are also equipped with a camera that captures a real-time photo of the traveler. They compare the traveler’s photo on the identification credential against an in-person, real-time photo. Once the CAT-2 confirms the match, a TSA officer will verify and the traveler can proceed to security screening, without ever exchanging a boarding pass. TSA officers can perform additional passenger verification if needed. As an added convenience, the new units are equipped with readers that allow TSA PreCheck-eligible travelers to use mobile driver licenses or photo IDs for TSA identity verification purposes. State residents can download the GET Mobile ID app on an Android or iOS device and obtain a mobile version of their Utah driver license or photo identification card. The GET Mobile ID app can be used anywhere mobile driver license credentials are accepted, including the airport security checkpoint. Residents should continue to carry their physical driver license or photo ID.