This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2008, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Posted: 1:16 PM- Call it the return of the urbanite.
A University of Utah researcher says that in the coming decades one-third of Wasatch Front residents will want to live in a downtown setting or in an area with public transit and other urban amenities.
Arthur C. Nelson, the university's new director or metropolitan research, predicts the Wasatch Front population will nearly double by 2040.
Many of those new residents won't be flocking to the suburbs but rather to urban areas.
Nelson says meeting that demand means beefing up residential development in urban areas between Logan and Provo.
He says planning will have to focus more on public transportation and making sure businesses, restaurants, churches and schools are within walking distance for residents.
