Group sees Jordan River's potential as 'jewel'

MURRAY — Adriaan Boogaard is the kind of river fiend who's more comfortable finding his way through the marshes and reeds of the Jordan River than the neighborhoods growing around it.

Some of the developments that have appeared since Boogaard's childhood don't belong on the river, he says. And some cities are better than others at respecting the resource in their backyard. That's why Boogaard has joined the Blueprint Jordan River project with the hopes that, one day, everyone along the river will be on the same page.

"I know my way around those bushes better than I do the subdivision on this side," Boogaard says as he navigates one of the many riverside developments on his way to the water's edge. He spent hours here every week as a child, but he's here as often as he can be as an adult, too.

Boogaard can point out the native trees and fish of the river's habitat, but the Blueprint Jordan River project isn't just for experts and city leaders.

The project, spurred by Salt Lake County and facilitated by Envision Utah, is a collaborative planning effort between 15 municipalities and three counties along the river. Salt Lake County funded a majority of the $200,000 project with the goal of creating a universal vision for the river, which will be shaped by the input of the general public.

Six initial public workshops have been planned to gather information and create a plan for the river. The results of the workshops will be compiled and presented at additional meetings in September.

"Public input is critical to the success of this," said Kevin Fayles, a spokesman for Envision Utah. "Ultimately, we'll develop principles that the municipalities can use according to how they see fit. Our goal is to get everybody going in the same direction."

The 58-mile-long Jordan River connects Utah Lake with the Great Salt Lake and receives a substantial amount of runoff from the Wasatch Front range. In the past, the river has been known to flood, but low water levels in recent years have tempted some developers to creep ever closer to its banks.

That encroachment has contributed to the river's pollution and a disappearing habitat that prompted Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon to want to restore the corridor and kick off the blueprint project.