Salt Lake planning director to resign amid big plans

Salt Lake City is on the verge of a number of large growth and development projects — and it's about to lose its chief planner.

Planning director Alex Ikefuna said this week that he will resign effective Oct. 30, after 15 months with the city. He cited family reasons.

Shortly after moving to Salt Lake from Atlanta last year, Ikefuna's wife gave birth to a daughter who suffered from pulmonary hypertension and later underwent heart surgery.

"It's been an uphill battle," Ikefuna said. "The doctors gave her 30 days to live. She is now a year and one month. It got to a point I really didn't get to spend much time with her."

Ikefuna said he is not leaving because of discontent with the job or the city.

"I don't have any complaints. The mayor has been very supportive, a good guy to work for," he said.

Ikefuna leaves at a time when the city is about to see a number of projects get under way. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints earlier this month unveiled its plans for a major overhaul of two downtown malls to make way for a new mixed-use development.

Master-planning work is about to begin for the city's northwest quadrant, the large undeveloped area west of the Salt Lake International Airport. A new office tower is being built at 222 S. Main, and the Utah Transit Authority is preparing to expand its light-rail system to a new intermodal hub at 200 South and 600 West.

"It's a challenging time, but we'll get through it," Mayor Rocky Anderson said.

On top of Ikefuna's leaving, the planning department is already understaffed, as a number of planners have recently left for other jobs within the city or for personal reasons. Anderson said Ikefuna will be missed.

"Alex brought very significant experience to this job," the mayor said. "My heart goes out to him for the personal challenges he and his family have been facing. I'm sorry to lose him as planner, but even more importantly, I hope that he and his family are able to find some relief from the challenges they've been facing."

Anderson said the search for a new planning director will begin immediately. Meanwhile, community development director Louis Zunguze, who oversees a number of departments, including planning, will serve as temporary planning director. Zunguze previously worked as a Salt Lake City planner.

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E-mail: dsmeath@desnews.com