Growth in Bluffdale dominates election

• City Councilwoman Laurie Ann Maxfield, 39, said growth "with no or little commercial tax base" and "strong leadership" are Bluffdale's two major issues. The homemaker and small business partner is in her fourth year as a council member and wants to be mayor to build Bluffdale "in a way consistent with the goals and objectives set forth by our leaders, both past and present." She said the city must work with developers to "educate them to understand what it is we want our city to become."

• Michael Wayne Wardle, 61, a 31-year veteran of the Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office who has served on the city's planning and zoning commission, said Bluffdale residents are "seriously under-protected by law enforcement officers," adding that the average response time is 13 minutes. "I believe the citizens of Bluffdale deserve better than this." He also wants to see parks and playgrounds built in the city so kids don't have to play in the streets, and he believes the business of Bluffdale "must be conducted in the public eye."

City Council, two at-large seats

• Incumbent Morris Ruel Clark, 48, is ending his fourth year as a council member — four years during which, he said, "we have made tremendous progress." The city has updated its general plan, incorporated "new award-winning zones," protected open space and created policies to maintain "our rural and unique country lifestyle," he wrote. "We will continue to be prepared for developers wanting to cash in on what Bluffdale has to offer." He also said the city must prevent any attempts by residents who want to "disconnect" from Bluffdale. Clark has also been chairman of the city's Redevelopment Agency, a liaison to the planning and zoning commission and mayor pro tem.

• J. Lee Bertoch, 50, a self-employed former Wasatch Electric Company employee, listed as the city's major issues, "public safety, community responsibility, public and private." The first-time politician wrote, "I believe that property owners, developers and contractors need to be held accountable. Roads should be repaired and properly marked." He said the city needs more "proactive ordinance enforcement."