Erin Mendenhall’s combination of engagement, civility and dedication has earned my support for her re-election as Salt Lake City’s mayor. The city will be better off if she can continue to make progress on the many issues and opportunities facing Salt Lake City.
I have had the pleasure of knowing and working with both of the top mayoral candidates, as well as the experience of serving in that role myself. Salt Lake City government has benefitted from good leadership and a superb workforce dedicated to the betterment of our community, including Mayors Anderson and Mendenhall. Both of them are dedicated public servants.
But on the question of who is best able to lead and serve Salt Lake City for the next four years, Mayor Mendenhall is the clear choice.
Her temperament, judgment and ability to build relationships are important characteristics. While Anderson was a leader for his time — 20 years ago — and advanced Salt Lake City in many positive ways, his combative relationships with state leaders, city employees and the city council too often held Salt Lake City back.
I served in the state legislature during the Anderson administration and frequently had to defend Salt Lake City and try to advance its needs. When asked, my advice to Mayor Anderson was simple: Don’t come to the Hill, and please tone it down during the legislative session. The strength and passion of his advocacy were admirable, but his perceived insults frequently sent legislators looking for ways to punish Salt Lake City.
Mendenhall has nurtured a cordial, professional and constructive relationship with the state’s Republican leaders while standing up for the interests of Salt Lake City. Her approach tempers some of the disdain for Salt Lake City’s different political makeup. The unanimous endorsement of the City Council also speaks to her positive working relationships here at home.
Mendenhall faced a daunting trifecta during her first year in office: the pandemic, an earthquake, a destructive windstorm and heavy protests, including Black Lives Matter. Salt Lake City’s economy also took a hit, though a relatively short-lived one compared to other U.S. communities. She dealt with all those events with compassion and intelligence. Salt Lake City has emerged stronger and is moving forward with the strongest recovering downtown in the nation.
Homelessness and its many adverse consequences for the unsheltered, neighboring businesses and residents is painful in Salt Lake City. Like every other city across America, effective solutions are elusive, but Anderson’s grandstanding on the issue and certitude in his answer seem disingenuous.
Throughout my eight years as mayor, I devoted considerable time and effort to addressing homelessness and its ramifications. We thought we were making progress, but we didn’t anticipate the changing circumstances ushered in by the Great Recession, embedded cartel drug dealing, increasing poverty and soaring housing costs.
In my last year in office, a working group of public and private sector leaders reached consensus on an approach that unfortunately was never implemented. Recently, with Mendenhall in a lead position and an earnest new partner in the state’s homelessness coordinator, Wayne Niederhauser, a new consensus approach has materialized.
A well-conceived plan is now in place, and a change in leadership could result in yet another reversal of a positive direction. Homelessness will only be addressed through the combined effort of a wide range of private and public participants. I’m hopeful that with Mendenhall in office, the time- and energy-consuming effort to address homelessness will progress, and our city will become a national model of success.
Some of the greatest challenges facing Salt Lake City today are inherently regional and too big for Salt Lake City to resolve on its own. We need partners, and Mayor Mendenhall is the right choice for building and maintaining those critical relationships. Her combination of skills, demeanor and determination give Salt Lake City the best chance for achieving a bright future.
Ralph Becker
Ralph Becker served as mayor of Salt Lake City from 2008 to 2016.