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ARTS/ENTERTAINMENT
- Angel Studios, a Provo-based studio and production distributor, has announced the Dec. 1 theatrical release of its first Angel Original film, titled “The Shift.” The sci-fi thriller stars Neal McDonough, Sean Astin, Kristoffer Polaha, Liz Tabish, Paras Patel and Rose Reid. It was written and directed by Brock Heasley for producer Ken Carpenter’s Nook Lane Entertainment.
- “Open Streets” has returned to Salt Lake City, with the fall edition running through Oct. 28, every Friday and Saturday, noon-1 a.m. Envisioned as a pedestrian playground on Main Street, “Open Streets” has been in place since 2020. Main Street will be closed to automobile traffic from 400 South to South Temple to create a promenade with entertainment and activation on each block, and social establishments are invited to extend their premises onto the sidewalks. Open Streets is made possible by funding and staff support from Salt Lake City and is activated by the Downtown Alliance. This year, the Downtown Alliance and The Blocks will expand programming with a mini-golf course down Main Street; Disco Box (a silent disco in shipping containers); Basecamp, a pop-up park with yoga at Main Street and Gallivan; and free music. Details are at https://downtownslc.org/openstreets.
ASSOCIATIONS
- The Park City Chamber of Commerce/Convention & Visitors Bureau recently announced the Chamber Sponsored Employee Benefit Program. The initiative is a health insurance collaboration between chamber/bureau and the Heber Valley Chamber of Commerce as a way to ensure chamber members have access to quality health coverage options. Employers with as few as two employees are eligible for the benefits, transforming coverage for nearly 14,000 employees. Cost and carrier options will depend on individual organization’s needs, number of employees and more. Details are at visitparkcity.com/members/resources/.
BANKING
- Bank of Utah, Ogden, has hired Joel Bishop as assistant vice president and trust officer at its City Creek office in Salt Lake City and Chris Parker as vice president of commercial lending, at its St. George office. Bishop has over 30 years’ banking experiencing with expertise in commercial underwriting, loan approval, in-house examiner, loan documentation preparation and law. He practiced law in Texas for 10 years, specializing in business litigation and banking. Bishop’s education includes a bachelor’s degree from Brigham Young University. Parker has over 20 years of experience in banking with his career mostly in lending and management. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Weber State University.
CONTESTS
- RevRoad is accepting applications until Sept. 30 for the RevRoad Entrepreneur Competition. Participants will be able to showcase their business to a panel of Utah judges for a chance to win the $15,000 Central Bank grand prize. The fall 2023 competition will take place Oct. 14 at Utah Valley University. Details are at https://ecomp.revroad.com/?ref=newsroom.siliconslopes.com
- The Utah Manufacturers Association is accepting nominations through 5 p.m. Sept. 29 for its annual awards. Awards are divided into four categories based on company size. Awards include Manufacturer of the Year, Company Culture Award, Women in Manufacturing Award, Leader of the Year Award and Environmental Stewardship Award. Details are at https://manufacturingutah.com/uma-awards/.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
- Utah is ranked No. 20 on a list of “Best States for Young Professionals,” compiled by Scholaroo. It assessed influencing factors in young professionals’ well-being across six key categories, ranging from job market and work conditions to affordability and leisure. Utah is ranked No. 4 for workplace diversity, No. 14 for affordability, No. 17 for crime and safety, No. 25 for job market and work conditions, No. 27 for health and No. 35 for leisure. The top-ranked state is Massachusetts. The bottom-ranked state is West Virginia. Details are at https://scholaroo.com/report/best-states-for-young-professionals/.
- Salt Lake City is ranked No. 81 and West Valley City is No. 147 on a list of “Best Cities to Own a Vacation Rental,” compiled by LawnStarter. It compared over 180 of the biggest U.S. cities based on six categories, including legal restrictions on short-term rentals, occupancy rates, revenue potential, and operating expenses like housekeeping services and utilities. On breakout lists, West Valley City is No. 1 for lowest average daily short-term rental rate, tied for first for fewest attractions, and No. 2 for highest average housekeeping cost as a percentage of average revenue. The top-ranked city overall is Durham, North Carolina. The No. 182 city is Huntington Beach, California. Details are at https://www.lawnstarter.com/blog/studies/best-cities-to-own-vacation-home/#rankings.
- Madison, Wisconsin, in summers and St. George in winters is the No. 20 most ideal retirement combination for “snowbirds,” according to a survey by IRAInvesting.com. It surveyed retirees, asking them, hypothetically, what their ultimate retirement destinations combinations are. Other ranked combinations involving Utah destinations are No. 49 Ogden and Colorado Springs, Colorado; No. 50 Park City and Montauk, New York; No. 95 Moab and Branson, Missouri; No. 111 Provo and Reading, Pennsylvania; and No. 112 Salt Lake City and Rochester, Minnesota. The top-ranked combination overall is Fort Collins, Colorado, and Long Beach, California. Details are at https://www.irainvesting.com/the-top-snowbird-migration-routes-across-america/.
- Several Utah cities are on a list of the “Safest Cities from Natural Disasters,” compiled by Gutter Gnome. It compared the 500 biggest U.S. cities across five categories: hazards risk, vulnerable populations, vulnerable infrastructure, response and recovery, and mobility. Utah cities on the list are No. 117 Salt Lake City, No. 155 Ogden, No. 220 West Jordan, No. 255 Layton, No. 277 South Jordan, No. 285 St. George, No. 288 Lehi, No. 289 Sandy, No. 339 Provo, No. 373 Orem and No. 274 West Valley City. On a breakout list, St. George was tied for first for fewest hospitals per square mile. The top-ranked city overall is Richmond, Virginia. The No. 500 city is South Gate, California. Details are at https://myguttergnome.com/blog/studies/safest-cities-natural-disasters/#rankings.
EDUCATION
- The Utah State Board of Education has awarded a $3 million contract to Aegix Global, a Salt Lake City-based provider of safety and personal protection resources, technology, equipment and training, to distribute the ZeroEyes artificial intelligence gun detection and intelligent situational awareness platform to Utah school. Aegix is the exclusive ZeroEyes reseller for the state. The state board will present the ZeroEyes platform to all Utah school districts for consideration. Interested districts will acquire the software from Aegix, who will coordinate with ZeroEyes to provide full onboarding, training, installation and support.
HOSPITALITY
- Gravity Haus, a Colorado-based adventure-centric hotel and membership club, has added The Radcliffe Hotel in Moab to its portfolio. The hotel previously was a Gravity Haus partner property. Gravity Haus Moab is a 38-key boutique property that opened in 2021.
INVESTMENTS
- Parallel, a Lehi-based company focused a platform for headcount forecasting, has raised $1.85 million in pre-seed funding led by Penny Jar Capital, with participation from Convoi Ventures, Peak Capital, the Frazier group and other investors.
LOGISTICS
- Danny Stewart has been hired as associate vice president and Kaitlin Felsted has been hired as marketing communications director at the Utah Inland Port Authority. Stewart served as director of economic development for Cedar City and Iron County for the past nine years and was instrumental in recruiting several companies to Cedar City. Prior to his economic development role, Stewart worked as an entrepreneur partner in publishing, marketing, product development and distribution. He also served as bureau editor for The Spectrum newspaper in Cedar City. He is a graduate of Southern Utah University. Felsted’s communication experience includes most recently working as the communications director at the Utah Department of Corrections. Before that, she spent five years working in the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development, primarily supporting science, technology, engineering and math initiatives to equip Utah’s emerging workforce with the skills needed for prosperous, high-paying careers. She has a master’s degree in mass communications and a background in crisis communication, marketing and organizational communication.
MANUFACTURING
- FireFly Automatix Inc., a Salt Lake City-based company that manufactures autonomous, hybrid and electric equipment for the turfgrass sector, has appointed Liz Hocker to its board of directors. Hocker is a former Nasdaq managing director in the Southwest U.S. who has more than 25 years’ experience in business consulting, banking, HR and capital markets.
PARTNERSHIPS
- Strider Technologies Inc., Salt Lake City, and Japan-based Sumisho Aero-Systems Corp., a Sumitomo Corp. company, have agreed to a partnership that will bring and expand Strider’s technology solution in the Japanese market, together with Sumitomo Corp. and Sumitomo Corp. of America. Strider provides strategic intelligence for companies, governments, research institutions and universities. It said the partnership will enable it to deliver solutions to address economic security threats to talent, technologies and supply chains emanating from nation-state actors to the Japanese market.
- Carketa, a Lehi-based auto dealership decision intelligence system, has announced a partnership with Acertus, offering an automotive logistics-as-a-service platform, to make it easier for dealers of all sizes to quote, ship and receive vehicles through the Carketa platform. The integration allows Carketa’s automotive dealer customers to streamline their inventory acquisition and sales process with on-demand access to Acertus’ network of carriers to quote, book, ship and track their vehicles. Carketa dealers can seamlessly ship vehicles to and from an auction site, another dealership or direct to retail buyers.
PHILANTHROPY
- Enso Rings, a Lehi-based company offering silicone jewelry, has sold out a special promotion in collaboration with "Maui Strong," with proceeds going to relief efforts for those impacted by Maui’s catastrophic wildfires. The campaign raised over $100,000 for the Maui Strong Fund supporting fire victims. Enso Rings offered six coastal-inspired rings, with all proceeds from the sales pledged to benefit the Maui Strong Fund of the Hawai’i Community Foundation.
- Big O Tires recently donated $50,000 to sponsor Shriners Children’s “Walk for Love” at Hogle Zoo. Big O has nearly 400 independently owned and operated locations in 19 states.
- Ken Garff employees recently did landscaping, weeding, planting plants, laying bark and beautifying YWCA grounds in Salt Lake City. Ken Garff also paid to have YWCA’s sprinkler system repaired. It was part of Ken Garff’s “We’re ‘Hear’ for You” initiative that started as a way to give back to the community when the COVID pandemic started.
RECOGNITIONS
- The Davis Chamber of Commerce has announced that its 2023 Legacy Award recipient is Gary Petersen and the 2023 Chamber Choice Award recipient is Cindee Jessop. They and the winners of its Business Awards will be honored at an awards banquet Sept. 28, 6:30-9 p.m., at the Davis Conference Center in Layton. Petersen is a founding partner and managing partner at Adams & Petersen CPAs in the Clearfield/Layton area. He has been in public accounting for 34 years and has been involved in the Davis chamber since its inception in 2001, including serving on the executive board for many years and has had the role of chairman of the board twice. He also is a council member in West Point City, where he serves as the mayor pro-tem. He also serves on the North Davis Fire District Board, serves as the treasurer on the board of Associated Builders and Contractors of Utah and teaches continuing education and licensing courses, and participates on the Pioneer Adult and Rehabilitation Center board and is the vice chairman of its national affiliate, Service Source. Jessop chairs the chamber’s Business Alliance group, is a member of the Women in Business Executive Committee, and volunteers on the Golf Tournament Committee, among other things.
TECHNOLOGY
- MX Technologies Inc., a Lehi-based company focused on open finance, has named Michael Whitacre as chief commercial officer. He will oversee the company’s sales, revenue and customer success organizations. Whitacre has more than 30 years of experience leading revenue and sales organizations focused on helping financial institutions, digital banks and fintechs drive business and customer outcomes. Most recently, Whitacre served as a senior vice president and head of sales for core banking in North America at FIS. Before that, he was FIS senior vice president of the Global Financial Institutions Group. Prior to joining FIS, Whitacre spent 12 years at Acxiom in a variety of sales and leadership roles. He also has also held sales roles at Alltel Information Services and ABB Switzerland.
- Instructure, a Salt Lake City-based education technology company, has named Melissa Loble as chief academic officer. Loble has been an educator at both K-12 and higher education institutions. At Instructure, she has held executive leadership positions for over nine years in roles overseeing support, client success, services, community, partnerships and platform. She has also taught throughout her career, starting as a high school social science teacher and now teaching higher education courses that focus on managing technology for educational change and crafting innovative learning environments. Loble also serves as chair of the board of directors of 1EdTech, a nonprofit collaboration dedicated to powering learner potential by fostering an open, trusted and innovative edtech ecosystem. She also holds several advisory roles at organizations such as Internet2, Terracotta and Utah Valley University.
- Avetta, a Lehi-based company offering supply chain risk management software, has established an Avetta Product Experience Board. Supplier and contractor leaders have joined Avetta’s leadership and product team to drive guidance around its solution, product roadmap and processes. The Supplier APEX Board’s recommendations are presented to Avetta leadership and considered for improving the company’s efforts to mitigate risk. Board members are Stephanie Brewer, director of telecommunications safety and compliance at USA Telecom Insurance Services/Insurance Office of America and who serves on the Avetta APEX Client Board; James Cobb, corporate director of health and safety at Regenesis; Jennifer Feeler, safety, health and environmental support program manager at Sunbelt Rentals; Elise Gilbert, global commercial support services senior director at Iron Mountain; Jordan Gittens, service business operations administrator for Daikin Applied Americas Inc.; Kerry Kaminski, a safety manager with Aegion Corp. (including Insituform Technologies and Corrpro Cos.); Mary Ann Roden, operations project manager at O’Brien Equipment; Michelle Skelly, health and safety database manager for Arcadis U.S. Inc.; Sally Tipton, health and safety manager for the Smith Cameron Group; Jeff Ward, corporate manager of program compliance for the Health and Safety Department at Clean Harbors; and Destiny Welch, HSE customer interface lead at Baker Hughes.