Stephen C. Bannister and Hailey Brookins: It’s past time to talk about population and pandemics

(Rick Egan | Tribune file photo) New home construction in Saratoga Springs on Dec. 3. Utah’s population swelled by an estimated 52,820 people — equivalent to adding a city the size of Herriman — during the fiscal year that ended July 1, 2020, as a years-long economic boom ended and the pandemic and its recession began.