This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Don't forget to register today for the 2018 Governor's Cup Tennis Tournament/Heroin Cleanup in Pioneer Park!
All players will be tested for performance enhancing and performance diminishing drugs. A needle exchange program is available for both.
Being able to play tennis in Pioneer Park was one of the odd metrics Gov. Gary Herbert cited as an indicator for success in the effort to deal with the out-of-control situation in Pioneer Park and the Rio Grande district.
"I look forward to someday — a year from now — to playing tennis on that tennis court there in Pioneer Park," Herbert said Thursday during his monthly KUED news conference.
Let's ignore, for the moment, that if the governor, who has round-the-clock security from the Utah Highway Patrol, can't get the used needles and human feces cleaned off the court so he can smack some balls around, the problems downtown may be worse than we realize. I mean, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie got an entire beach to himself. But I digress.
The governor, House Speaker Greg Hughes, Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski and other elected leaders and officials all came out of a closed-door confab Wednesday and promised the solution to the homelessness crisis is at hand.
"Now we've engaged," Herbert said.
Which raises the obvious question: Why wasn't the state fully engaged before?
This is not a problem that popped up overnight. It's a storm that has been gathering for years, but now, after years of trying to find a solution, the state government has come to the table and we have found the secret sauce: Collaboration!
"Really there's not any big silver bullet in my view of what's going to take place out there. There's going to be more and better coordination," Herbert said. "I think the fact we've kind of been in our silos, we've been doing things, but I think we'll be able to do more and better with a collaborative effort."
The governor disputes my characterization of the state being late to the game. He points out, correctly, that it was a focal point of his State of the State speech last year, that the state has ponied up money to help relocate shelters and get treatment for those in need, and that the Department of Workforce Services has been involved in delivering services and helping people get back on their feet.
All of those are good things.
And I'll give these leaders some credit. There is talk about stepping up law enforcement sweeps and jurisdictional cooperation to try to drive the drug dealers out of the area.
The governor spoke Thursday about finding funding for 300 new jail beds, including 100 for mental health treatment, and the possibility of re-opening the Oxbow Jail in Salt Lake County to accommodate the stepped up enforcement downtown.
If the federal government approves the state's Medicaid waiver request, as Herbert predicts they will within a few months, it will bring in millions of new dollars for mental health and substance abuse treatment.
And the appointment of Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox as the point man for the Herbert administration provides an opportunity for a "Buck Stops Here" approach that can either produce results or give us someone who will have to answer questions when it doesn't.
Have fun with that, Spencer.
I believe the motives of everyone involved are good. I think they want to help people get back on their feet and clean up the wasteland that whole blocks of downtown has become.
But this should have happened years ago. The state should have been involved and parties should have been cooperating before things got out of hand. I'm hopeful that — finally — everyone might put aside turf considerations and start working together. And it's a positive sign that now we have a deadline, one year from today, when the governor will be playing tennis in Pioneer Park.
So sign up, get your vaccinations, and start practicing for the Governor's Cup. I'll see you there.
Twitter: @RobertGehrke