Corroon: Days of scandal in Salt Lake County are over

Salt Lake County is back.

Years of scandal and back-room deals are over, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon said Tuesday in his annual State of the County speech.

"When I came to this office, there was a great need to restore Salt Lake County's morale and reputation," Corroon said at Tuesday's annual State of the County speech. "Today, I'm proud to say that we did what we said we'd do."

Now he wants another four years in office to keep going. The Democrat is up for re-election in November.

As for 2008 — the last year in Corroon's term — the mayor's priorities mirror those of his past: quality government, economic development, environmental stewardship, quality of life, public safety. This year the mayor added one other priority: education.

The county does not manage a school district or university, but "we do play a vital role in education," Corroon said. The county sponsors an after-school program, which will expand this year.

"The opportunities we carve out for children buttress our entire economy," he said.

Corroon will continue pushing his environmental agenda in 2008. The year will see an expansion in curbside recycling, a push to place solar panels in homes, businesses and government buildings, and a continued effort to plant one million trees in the next 10 years.

"Protecting our environment is practical, good stewardship, life-sustaining and life- enhancing," Corroon said. "It is the most important investment we can make."

Work on a criminal justice master plan will start in the coming months, a move Corroon dubbed a "more comprehensive approach," to figure out how to both keep people from committing crime, as well as keep them from returning to jail once they've been released.

Corroon, a former business owner, said the county will also work to help local businesses expand in 2008.

The mayor also touted county leader's collaboration to "hold the line on property taxes" in a year where property taxes are climbing across the state.

"Our needs continue to grow, while our revenues are fairly fixed," Corroon said. "Swiftness and steadiness are always required, but these days our judgments and decisions have to be right on, right now. The opportunities we have today might not come again, but the consequences will be with us for decades.

"Planning with the future in mind is not an option, it is a reality. It is what good government is all about."

---

E-mail: ldethman@desnews.com