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AGRICULTURE
• Farmers Feeding Utah Inc. recently launched a Utah product-only subscription box that delivers new products to people’s doorsteps every month. Each month’s box will have new Utah-grown products included. The company partnered with Cogburn Wire Co., an Ogden-based software firm, to create the program. Those who subscribe will also receive exclusive access to an online marketplace where they can purchase their favorite items from the boxes. That feature will launch later in July, adding new products monthly. There is a food donation pledge to the Miracle of Agriculture Foundation’s “miracle projects” for every purchased subscription. Last year, Utah farmers created the foundation, administering “miracle projects” that have delivered more than 1.5 million pounds of food to more than 35,000 hungry Utah individuals and families. Details are at Box.FarmersFeedingUtah.com.
BANKING
• D.L. Evans Bank will have a grand opening at 11 a.m. Aug. 3 for its new branch at 101 S. Main St., Brigham City. The branch is a full-service location offering a range of banking products and services, mortgages and investments. The branch is led by Ken Doutre, who joined D.L. Evans Bank with 24 years of banking experience. The Brigham City branch is the bank’s fourth branch in Utah. The bank has 36 branch locations overall.
CORPORATE
• Podium, a Lehi-based communication and payments platform for businesses, and Recursion, a Salt Lake City-based clinical-stage biotechnology company, have opened child care centers in partnership with Bright Horizons, a provider of on-site child care for top employers. Podium’s on-site child care center is called Little Founders at the company’s headquarters. It serves up to 50 children, ages 6 weeks through 5 years old. It’s open to the children of benefit-eligible Podium employees and the children of other select companies based in the Lehi area. Recursion’s child care center is adjacent to its headquarters. Bright Horizons will provide child care for Recursion employees’ children from infancy through 5 years old. Bright Horizons operates approximately 1,000 child care centers in the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and India.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
• Utah is the best state in the nation for starting an online business, according to a study by Digital.com. It compared the 50 states based on nine metrics divided into four categories: taxes, regulations, financial resources and tech infrastructure. Utah is ranked second for both regulations and tech infrastructure, No. 8 for taxes and No. 10 for financial resources. The bottom-ranked state is Iowa. Details are at https://digital.com/best-states-to-start-an-online-business-in-2021/.
• Salt Lake City is ranked No. 13 on a list of “2021’s Best Cities for Hipsters,” compiled by LawnStarter. It compared the 150 biggest U.S. cities on 23 anti-mainstream factors, from the number of thrift stores, farmers markets and record stores to urban gardening- and biking-friendliness. The top-ranked city is San Francisco. Amarillo, Texas was No. 150. Details are at https://www.lawnstarter.com/blog/studies/most-hipster-cities/.
• Salt Lake City is ranked No. 43 for honesty, according to a study by vehicle digitization specialist company. It used data from 75 global cities to compare their level of honesty on an individual, governmental and societal level. For this purpose, the study takes into account individual behavior, lost-wallet return rates, transparency in government and society, crime levels and car dealer reviews. The top-ranked city is Zurich, Switzerland. Ten other U.S. cities were ranked ahead of Salt Lake City, led by No. 4 Phoenix. Details are at https://www.twinner.com/en/transparency-in-car-sales-honest-city-index/.
• Salt Lake City is ranked No. 88 for “2021’s Best Cities for WFH (work from home) Value,” a list compiled by LawnStarter. It ranked the 120 biggest U.S. housing markets to find out which provide the best value for remote workers. The criteria included home and yard sizes, sale- and rent-price fluctuations and suitability for remote work. It also considered whether each city will pay remote workers to move there. The top-ranked city is Rochester, New York. The No. 120 city is San Francisco. Details are at https://www.lawnstarter.com/blog/studies/best-cities-wfh-value/
EDUCATION/TRAINING
• Salt Lake Community College and the University of Utah have begun construction on a $57 million campus in Herriman. The Juniper Building at the 90-acre Herriman campus will provide thousands with academic and career opportunities through improved access to education and training. The building will open in 2023. Students will be able to earn an associate’s degree from SLCC and then attend the University of Utah to earn a bachelor’s degree, all at one location. The campus will serve more than 2,000 students in its first year and nearly 7,000 students by 2025. Funding for the building was appropriated by the Utah Legislature in 2021, with additional support from SLCC, the University of Utah, private donors, and infrastructure investments from Herriman City.
FOODS
• Tyson Foods’ new case-ready facility at 3817 N. Tyson Parkway, Eagle Mountain, is set to open in mid-August and will employ more than 1,200 people. The company is hosting a job fair July 31, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. The new facility will convert large cuts of beef and pork into steaks, chops, roasts and ground meat that are placed in retail trays, weighed and labeled, and then shipped to retailers to be sold through the grocery meat case. Tyson Foods, based in Springdale, Arkansas, has 139,000 employees.
GOVERNMENT
• The Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity has named Dane Ishihara as director of the newly formed Utah Office of Regulatory Relief. The office, the nation’s first of its kind, was recreated in the 2021 legislative session. As director, Ishihara will create a framework for analyzing risk levels to Utah consumers related to health, safety and financial well-being. The framework will consider permanently removing or temporarily waiving laws and regulations inhibiting the creation or success of new and existing companies or industries. Ishihara has more than 15 years of experience working for the state of Utah. He previously worked at the Utah Department of Commerce, including managing the Utah Residence Lien Recovery program that balances mechanic lien enforcement between homeowners and lien claimants. Additionally, he coordinated with physicians and pharmacists to ensure patients had quicker access to naloxone to prevent opioid overdoses. Ishihara completed his undergraduate degree in economics and a master’s degree in community leadership at Westminster College.
• The Utah Department of Workforce Services has selected Capt. Jean Philippe “Phil” Martial as the department’s new chief of veteran services. In his 19-year career in the U.S. Army, Martial has served as medical logistician, human resources officer and currently as a company commander for the 76th Operational Base Command. As part of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Martial logistically managed the mobilization of 165 soldiers throughout multiple major cities in the western United States. Martial’s education includes a bachelor’s degree in social work from the University of Utah.
HEALTHCARE
• BioUtah has been awarded a grant to implement and oversee Utah’s Rare Disease Advisory Council, and the Utah Department of Health is accepting applications for council members through Aug. 15. Under state law establishing the council, members of the council must include a representative from the Utah Department of Health; researchers and physicians who specialize in rare diseases, including at least one representative from the University of Utah; two individuals who have a rare disease or are the parent or caregiver of an individual with a rare disease; and two representatives from one or more rare disease patient organization that operates in the state. Interested people may email (including a resume and/or CV) to kimhart@utah.gov.
• US Med-Equip, a Houston-based medical equipment rentals company, has opened an office in Salt Lake City. The company partners with hospitals across the nation for the rental, sales, service and asset management of movable medical equipment. The regional support center in Salt Lake City will help hospitals in the Rocky Mountain region. US Med-Equip has more than 40 locations across the country. The Utah regional support center is part of the company’s $30 million investment in the western U.S. with new offices also opening this quarter in Las Vegas and Denver.
• Recursion, a Salt Lake City-based clinical-stage biotechnology company, has announced the formation of a Therapeutics Advisory Board (TAB). The board will guide Recursion’s executive team and board of directors on the challenge of developing medicines at scale from its tech-enabled drug discovery pipeline and bringing them to the patients who need them the most. The board will be chaired by Dr. Joseph Miletich, who most recently was Merck Research Laboratories’ senior vice president of research sciences and is currently senior scientific advisor to Merck’s CEO. Prior to his past six-plus years at Merck, Miletich served as senior vice president of research and development at Amgen.
• Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc., Park City, has appointed Dr. Douglas J. Manion as executive vice president of research and development. Manion has more than 20 years of pharmaceutical industry experience spanning three large companies, including work in all of Arena's therapeutic areas. He joins Arena after serving as CEO of Kleo Phamaceuticals, a private biotechnology company focused on innovative small molecule immunotherapeutics, from 2017 until its acquisition by Biohaven Holdings in January 2021. Prior to that, Manion was senior vice president, head of specialty development and head of R&D Japan and China at Bristol-Myers Squibb. Manion’s previous biopharmaceutical experience includes progressive leadership roles at GlaxoSmithKline, DuPont Pharmaceuticals, and DuPont Merck Pharmaceuticals.
INVESTMENTS
• MMV, a Salt Lake City-based seed-stage venture capital firm, has launched its second healthcare fund, MMVII. The fund will be managed by Dr. Branden Rosenhan and Dr. Saumitra Thakur, managing partners, and Katelin Roberts, general partner and COO. Nearly all of first fund investors have joined for MMVII. The initial investments include those for Options MD and Ceresti Health. Options MD is an AI-powered platform that connects patients with treatment-resistant depression to clinics that can offer advanced therapies. Ceresti Health identifies patients with dementia most at risk for adverse outcomes and improves their caregivers’ skills to prevent hospitalizations.
LAW
• Parsons Behle & Latimer has hired Joseph D. Watkins for its Litigation, Trials & Appeals practice in its Salt Lake City office. He focuses his practice on defending corporate and individual clients in securities enforcement, regulatory, defense litigation, white-collar crime, government and independent investigation matters. Watkins most recently worked at Salt Lake City law firm Clyde Snow. His education includes graduation from the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University.
NATURAL RESOURCES
• Compass Minerals, a Kansas-based provider of essential minerals, has announced that it has identified a lithium brine resource of approximately 2.4 million metric tons lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) at its active Ogden solar evaporation site, including an indicated lithium resource within the ambient brine of the Great Salt Lake. For over 50 years, the Ogden facility has leveraged the high mineral concentrations within the ambient lake brine from the North Arm of the Great Salt Lake to produce sulfate of potash (SOP), salt and magnesium chloride products. The Ogden facility is the largest operation of its kind in the Western Hemisphere. Compass Minerals is currently undertaking a strategic evaluation to assess development options available to service growing U.S. domestic lithium market demand while maximizing the long-term value of its lithium resource. The company is targeting an annual production capacity of 20,000 to 25,000 metric tons LCE of battery-grade lithium, with up to 65 percent of the future production derived from brine that has already been extracted from the lake and in varying stages of concentration within the company’s existing ponds. Compass Minerals is in the late stages of selecting a DLE technology partner. Jointly serving as strategic advisors in the company’s assessment of how best to optimize its lithium resource value are J.P. Morgan and Perella Weinberg Partners. RK Equity Advisors has advised Compass Minerals on the development of the lithium resource. In addition, the company is actively engaged in third-party testing of conversion options to battery-grade lithium hydroxide. The company manages 160,000 acres of leasehold on the bed of the Great Salt Lake, together with held water rights, 55,000 acres of existing ponds and active mineral extraction permissions.
REAL ESTATE
• Crescent Communities and financial partner MAA have broken ground on Novel Daybreak by Crescent Communities, a multifamily community in the Daybreak community in South Jordan. Novel Daybreak, at 5502 South Jordan Parkway, will feature 400 apartment residences and an integrated Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee and Social House. Crescent Communities and MAA purchased the land from Larry H. Miller Real Estate in April. Preleasing will begin in August 2022, with first residences slated to be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2022. Design and construction partners include Craine Architecture and Kier Construction. Construction financing will be provided by MAA.
• Broadmoor Village, a 348-unit apartment property in West Jordan, has been sold by Wasatch Property Group to Bridge Investment Group. Financial terms were not disclosed. Broadmoor Village was developed in 1986 on 16 acres. The open-concept floorplans include one-, two- and three-bedroom units. The average apartment size is 867 square feet. The sale was announced by Institutional Property Advisors (IPA), a division of Marcus & Millichap. Danny Shin, IPA senior director, and Brock Zylstra, IPA first vice president, represented Wasatch Property Group and procured the buyer.
• DB Capital Management, a California-based real estate investment group, has acquired Spring Hollow, an 88-unit apartment complex in Millcreek. Financial terms were not disclosed. DB Capital plans an extensive renovation of the entire community, which has largely remained untouched since it was constructed in 1973. The property was 98 percent occupied at the time of closing and DB Capital expects the renovation timeline to take approximately 16 months to complete. Jason Wadsworth of Wadsworth Multifamily represented both buyer and seller in the transaction. Additionally, Arbor Realty Trust provided the first trust deed, which was arranged by Marc Belsky of Marc Belsky Ltd. The acquisition of Spring Hollow caps approximately $100 million of transaction activity for DB Capital in Salt Lake City over the past 12 months. It is its third acquisition during that period. The firm also exited five investments, some of which date back to when the firm entered the market in 2018.
• C.W. Urban, a real estate developer, has announced a new affordable housing project called The Village, located in Silver Creek, a master-planned development in Park City. The project consists of 38 condominiums, of which 24 will be sold as workforce housing to households earning 55 percent to 80 percent of the Summit County area median income. The remaining 14 units will be sold at market prices. The company expected to have all units completed within 18 months. The Village at Park City is part of Silver Creek, a 250-acre fully entitled master-planned community started in October 2016. C.W. Urban will serve as general contractor and architecture and design firm. Capital was provided by Taylor Derrick Capital (TDC), a Salt Lake City-based private real estate lender.
• Colliers, a commercial real estate services firm, has expanded its brokerage services lines in Southern Utah and announced plans for a new regional headquarters in St. George. The company will add advisory professionals to the area over the coming months. Colliers also announced that Cody Felts joined the new St. George operation. He will expand the company’s tenant representation, landlord representation and investment sales offerings. Industry veteran Dan Simons, who has over 30 years of commercial real estate experience in Salt Lake and Washington counties, will join Felts in leading service line expansion throughout the region. Colliers has more than 200 employees in offices throughout Utah.
RECOGNITIONS
• The Utah Bankers Association recently presented Douglas L. DeFries with the Distinguished Banker Award. DeFries is president and CEO of Bank of Utah, based in Ogden. Every few years, the association recognizes an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to their community, their bank and the banking industry. Since the award was introduced, only 25 individuals have been given this honor. Since joining Bank of Utah in 1986, DeFries has led the bank through various economic cycles impacting the state and the country. In addition to overseeing the bank’s operations, DeFries has strived to incorporate ways for Bank of Utah to help those in need in the community. He has served for many years on the board of directors and as chairman for the Ogden/Weber Chamber, and has served on numerous boards in the area. He also has served on the Utah Bankers Association board, including as chairman. On a national level, he continues to serve on banking committees, including the Community Bank Council of the American Bankers Association.
• The Utah Restaurant Association (URA) recently presented awards at its annual Restaurant Industry Awards Gala in Salt Lake City. The event recognized the achievements of professionals in the restaurant industry, food community and allies of the Utah restaurant industry. Among the awards are the “URA Heart of the Industry” Award. The URA posthumously honored Mary Malouf with its Excellence in Food Journalism Award for her contributions to encouraging the food community to be the best they could be. The late Tony Caputo was honored with the URA Legacy Award, presented to those who leave a lasting legacy on Utah’s culinary landscape and community. Other winners include Chef of the Year, Phelix Gardener of Pago; Concept of the Year, Wood.Ash.Rye, Nomad East, Ginger Street and Crown Burger; Restaurateur of the Year (Golden Spoon Award), Scott Evans; Heart of The Industry Front of House Award, Cherie Bartleson from SLC Eatery; and Heart of the Industry MVP Award, Justin Shifflett, executive chef at Stoneground Kitchen, and Francis Fecteau of Libations Inc. More than 55 Taste Utah awards were presented, recognizing restaurants all over Utah as dining destinations that have been featured on the television series “Taste Utah.” Also honored were Salt Lake City Corp. and the Downtown Alliance, who partnered with the URA to facilitate the “Tip Your Server” Program at the beginning of the COVID pandemic. Ty Burrell was recognized for his contributions to the program with the President’s Award. The association board of directors presented Melva Sine, the association’s president and CEO, with a necklace called “The North Star.” The awards ceremony also highlighted the accomplishments of the URA’s ProStart Program students and teachers. Provo High School was recognized as the state champions for the culinary competition and Carbon High School as the state champions for management.
• Salt Lake County is a recipient of the 2021 U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) Leadership Award for the eight-state Mountain Region. The award is presented to organizations that demonstrate exemplary leadership in the creation of sustainable, healthy, equitable and resilient buildings, cities and communities. Salt Lake County was the only county to receive the award this year. It has 17 LEED-certified buildings in its Facilities Management portfolio. All new Salt Lake County buildings must achieve a minimum of LEED gold.
• Utah State University Extension’s Rural Online Initiative (ROI) program received the Creative Excellence Award from the National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals (NACDEP) at its 2021 annual conference in May. ROI team members who received the award include Paul Hill, Russell Goodrich, Emy Swadley, Amanda Ali, Jordan Leonard, Trenton Willson, Mike Sarles, Dolores Heaton, Kaylee Hanks and Abbey Bean. The Creative Excellence Award, sponsored by the Joint Council of Extension Professionals (JCEP), creates a platform for community development work to be showcased in a professional setting beyond the state level and creates a pathway toward national distinction. USU Extension’s ROI program began in 2018 and has been strategically focused on rural economic development in Utah. As rural Utahns have experienced high levels of unemployment, the ROI program created the Master Remote Work Professional certificate course, a specialized training that equips rural residents with the skills needed for remote employment.
RETAIL
• Duluth Trading Co., a Wisconsin-based apparel and accessories retailer, has opened a distribution satellite center at 6162 W. Beagley Road, West Valley City. The 228,000-square-foot center will begin operating in August and will work in partnership with Duluth’s main distribution center in Belleville, Wisconsin, to add year-round capacity to the company’s e-commerce distribution network and 65 retail stores nationwide, as well as provide support during busy peak seasons. Open positions include 300 full- and part-time staff as well as 100-plus seasonal, part-time employees to support peak season operations.
SERVICES
• Fragomen, a New York-based provider of immigration services, has opened an office in Salt Lake City, to be led by Rebecca van Uitert, a Fragomen partner. Her experience includes more than a decade as an immigration lawyer, managerial experience and lifelong ties to the Salt Lake City region. Most recently, van Uitert was vice president of human resources at AgReserves. Previously, she served as dean of career services at the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University. She worked for 11 years as a senior associate in Frogmen’s Chicago and New York City offices. The new Salt Lake City office will be established in concert with SimpleCitizen, a subsidiary of Fragomen Technologies and a provider of immigration technology solutions. Fragomen has more than 4,500 immigration professionals and support staff in more than 50 offices across the Americas, EMEA and Asia Pacific. It offers immigration support in more than 170 countries.
TECHNOLOGY/LIFE SCIENCES
• Vivint Smart Home Inc., a Provo-based smart home company, has appointed Barbara Comstock to its board of directors. Comstock will serve as a Class II director. Comstock has been a politician, business leader, lawyer, and women’s advocate. Following her time in Congress, she has served in a number of roles. She has been a senior advisor at Baker Donelson in Washington, D.C., where she works with clients on public policy and communications issues involving both federal and state matters. Since 2019, Comstock has also served as a board member for Trustar Bank, VIEWPac and Winning4Women. Prior to her time in Congress, Comstock was a member of the Virginia General Assembly from 2010 to 2015. In addition to her public service, she has been active in helping young women with their educational and career goals. Prior to her time as an elected official, she was a senior partner at Blank Rome LLP and Blank Rome Government Relations, where she handled government relations and legal business matters.
• Fortem Technologies, a Pleasant Grove-based airspace security and defense company focused on detecting and defeating dangerous drones, has hired Mike Mostow as chief revenue officer. He will be responsible for leading and connecting business development, sales, solutions, engineering, program management and customer success teams. Mostow has over 23 years of industry experience. He began his career at Johnson Controls and has since held vice president and executive leadership roles at companies including Stanley Security Solutions, AMAG Technology and Leidos. Prior to joining Fortem, Mostow spent five years as the general manager for the Americas at CNL Software. When the company was acquired by Everbridge, Mostow held the role of vice president of federal business, where he managed the company’s federal market sales and business development, partner and customer success teams.