(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Erin Mendenhall is joined by her husband, Kyle LaMalfa, as she is administered the oath of office as Salt Lake City mayor by City Recorder Cindi Mansell, at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Erin Mendenhall makes remarks on the steps of Salt Lake City Hall after being sworn in as the city's new Mayor on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Erin Mendenhall embraces Salt Lake City council members Amy Fowler prior to Mendenhall being sworn in as Mayor at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Erin Mendenhall addresses the crowd after being sworn in as Salt Lake City Mayor during inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Jon Huntsman joined by his wife Mary Kaye, join the inauguration ceremonies of Mayor Erin Mendenhall at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Salt Lake City Police Motor Squad present the flag ceremony during the inauguration on Erin Mendenhall as Mayor and three council members at Salt Lake City hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Council member James Rogers takes a selfie during the swearing of Mayor Erin Mendenhall as part of inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Erin Mendenhall smiles at her husband Kyle LaMalfa after being sworn in as Salt Lake City Mayor during inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Erin Mendenhall kisses her husband Kyle LaMalfa after being sworn in as Salt Lake City Mayor during inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Erin Mendenhall is embraced by her son Cash, 13, prior to her swearing in as Salt Lake City Mayor during inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Daniel E. Dugan, joined by his wife Sarah, is sworn in as District 6 Councilman by City Recorder Cindi Mansell at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Daniel E. Dugan, delivers his opening remarks after being sworn in as District 6 Councilman at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Daniel E. Dugan, receives a pin that looks like the key to the city by his wife Sarah, after being sworn in as District 6 Councilman at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Daniel E. Dugan, left, is welcomed into the Salt Lake City Council family as District 6 Councilman at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020, during inauguration ceremonies that included Erin Mendenhall, right, being sworn in as Mayor.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Nonantzin Grupo Folklorico De La Gente Latina performs during inauguration ceremonies outside Salt Lake City Hall where Erin Mendenhall was sworn in as mayor on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Outgoing Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski attends the Salt Lake City Inauguration of newly elected Mayor Erin Mendenhall and three council members at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Andrew Johnston, makes remarks after being sworn in as District 2 Councilman during inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Ana Valdemoros delivers her opening remarks in Spanish after being sworn in as District 4 Councilwoman at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Daniel E. Dugan, delivers his opening remarks after being sworn in as District 6 Councilman at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Erin Mendenhall addresses the crowd after being sworn in as Salt Lake City Mayor during inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Erin Mendenhall addresses the crowd after being sworn in as Salt Lake City Mayor during inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Council member Ana Valdemoros, left, and soon to be sworn in as Mayor of Salt Lake City, Erin Mendenhall, embrace prior to inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Erin Mendenhall, left, covers her heart during the National Anthem prior to being sworn in as Salt Lake City's new Mayor on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020. At right is outgoing Mayor Jackie Biskupski.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Outgoing Mayor Jackie Biskupski, left, joins newly sworn in Mayor Erin Mendenhall during inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Outgoing Mayor Jackie Biskupski, center, embraced newly sworn in Mayor Erin Mendenhall during inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Nonantzin Grupo Folklorico De La Gente Latina performs during inauguration ceremonies outside Salt Lake City Hall where Erin Mendenhall was sworn in as mayor on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Andrew Johnston, joined by his wife Clarisa, is sworn in as District 2 Councilman by City Recorder Cinci Mansell during inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The transition from council member to Mayor is complete as Erin Mendenhall leaves her marked chair to make her remarks after taking the oath of office as Mayor on the steps of Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020, during inauguration ceremonies.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Ana Valdemoros is sworn in as District 4 Councilwoman by her husband Regan R. Duckworth at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Newly elected Salt Lake City council members Andrew Johnston, Ana Valdemoros and Daniel E. Dugan pose for a photograph following inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Newly sworn in Mayor of Salt Lake City, Erin Mendenhall, right, joins council members at the conclusion of inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020. From left are council members Andrew Johnston, Chris Wharton, Ana Valdemoros, Daniel E. Dugan and Amy Fowler.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Outgoing Salt Lake City councilman Charlie Luke, below center, is given a standing ovation as Daniel E, Dugan takes his place on the council during inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) New Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall, center, poses for a photograph with council members James Rogers, Andrew Johnston, Chris Wharton, Ana Valdemoros, Daniel E. Dugan and Amy Fowler, from left, following inauguration ceremonies at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Nonantzin Grupo Folklorico De La Gente Latina performs during inauguration ceremonies outside Salt Lake City Hall where Erin Mendenhall was sworn in as mayor on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Deb Blake expresses her concern for the homeless as she joins inauguration ceremonies of newly sworn in Mayor Erin Mendenhall at Salt Lake City Hall on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Erin Mendenhall enters Salt Lake City Hall for the first time as Mayor of the city following inauguration ceremonies on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Erin Mendenhall enters Salt Lake City Hall for the first time as Mayor of the city following inauguration ceremonies on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020.
As she took the oath of office Monday on the steps of City Hall, Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall outlined her vision for a strong and inclusive city and pledged to bring community members together to secure that future.
Four years from now, Mendenhall said, she wants to see a city with cleaner air, thriving businesses and residents who have access to expanded public transit and affordable housing.
“We are about to embark on an ambitious work of love for this city — an effort guided by our fundamental desire to make Salt Lake City a better place for everyone who lives here: housed and unhoused, young and old, immigrant and native, families of all sizes, races and cultures," she said, looking out over a crowd of around 500 people. "We need each other. None of us can do this work alone. Not a citizen, not a council member, and not a mayor.”
Mendenhall has a background in air quality work and plans on her first day in office to take “immediate steps” on that issue. On Monday, she announced that all city decisions will now be made with environmental impacts in mind and said she will direct all departments to submit suggestions within the next 30 days of how their departments and divisions could reduce their environmental impact.
“There are so many ways we can improve,” she told reporters in an interview after the ceremony.
Among the swearing-in ceremony attendees were Gov. Gary Herbert and former Gov. Jon Huntsman.
The inauguration was held with a heavy police presence, likely in response to a demonstration at Washington Square over the weekend that led to the arrests of more than a dozen people calling on the city to do more to address homelessness.
But there was little sign of the campers who often set up tents in the Library Square area or of protesters at the inauguration, save for one woman with a sign that read, “Shelter for all, Mendenhall!”
Amid ongoing concerns about capacity within the Salt Lake City area’s new homeless resource centers, which replaced The Road Home, Mendenhall told The Salt Lake Tribune on Friday that she plans to take immediate steps to address gaps within the system, including exploring options for a temporary low-barrier emergency shelter available in the cold winter months.
During the election, Mendenhall promoted her City Council experience as a boon to a City Hall that has been led in recent years by former state legislators — a sentiment she reiterated during her remarks Monday while pledging to improve the experience for residents who interact with City Hall.
“I’ve seen what works and I’ve seen what isn’t working,” she said. “We need to listen to the civil servants who work day in and day out to take steps to tear down walls and silos where they exist and prevent us from working at our best. Residents don’t look to City Hall and see dozens of departments and divisions. They see one government starting today.”
Valdemoros, an immigrant from Argentina who is the first minority candidate elected to the council since it changed forms of government in the 1970s, received cheers from the audience when she began her speech in Spanish — possibly the first remarks shared at a Salt Lake City oath-of-office ceremony in a language other than English, she said.
The councilwoman pledged to continue to represent the city’s ethnically diverse populations and to “work hard for all residents of our city.”
“Because of this great city, I have been given so many opportunities to succeed despite my accent, my skin color or my gender,” she said. “I’m truly honored and grateful for all the opportunities this amazing country has afforded me. The American dream is still alive."
Editor’s note • Jon Huntsman is a brother of Paul Huntsman, Tribune publisher and owner.