40 & Under

Utah’s A/E/C Industry Flush with Young Talent.  UC&Dcatches up with five still-rising stars in our annual feature of young, talented leaders
working in design and economic development.

Utah’s A/E/C industry continues to churn out dozens of young, talented professionals and it’s always a privilege for us at UC&D to publish an annual section spotlighting these rising stars. This year we’re profiling five individuals with diverse backgrounds, each of whom fills a significant role for their respective firms.


Our list includes:

— Theresa Foxley, President/CEO of EDCUtah, a Salt Lake-based organization dedicated to helping communities with economic growth and job expansion.

— Eric Dunn, Director of Business Development for West Valley City-based CMT Technical Services, a nearly 20-year-old firm renowned for its materials testing and special inspection services.

— Preston Croxford, Principal Architect for Archiplex Group, who took over the eight-person firm in May when company founder Ralph Stanislaw semi-retired. 

— Ryan Cathey, President/CEO of Salt Lake-based Talisman Civil Consultants, a full-service civil engineering and land surveying firm that was founded in 2016.

— Eman Siddiqui, an Architect with Salt Lake-based GSBS Architects and currently President and Founder of the Utah Chapter of the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA), which formed in July.


Theresa Foxley, 39

President/CEO

EDCUtah

Foxley Relishing Her Role at EDCU Utah 

A lawyer by trade, Theresa Foxley has carved out a significant role over the past five-plus years boosting Utah’s economy as President/CEO of the Economic Development Corporation of Utah (EDCUtah). It’s a job she feels tailor-made for, and she is thoroughly enjoying her position in the community. 

“This job is awesome!” she exclaimed. “Every day there is so much variety—we get to learn so much about so many different things, work with different communities and employers, and we feel like we make a difference. The impact we can have is what motivates our team.”

A Utah native and graduate of Highland High, Foxley, who turns 40 in November, earned a Bachelor of Political Economy from Utah State University in 2004 and a J.D. from the University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law in 2008. 
She practiced law for Ballard Spahr for six years before spending a year at the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development working with Spencer P. Eccles. 

“It turned out, I really loved that organization,” she said. “I loved the focus and attention on job creation and small business support. It was really eye-opening that there was an organization in the state that focused on cluster, sector, and developing the economy of the state. 

In March 2017 she was selected to lead EDCUtah, building a tight culture among the staff’s 16 employees, which are currently monitoring 130 projects ranging in degrees of interaction.

“I love the opportunity to work with this amazing team,” said Foxley. “We’re as busy as we’ve ever been in the five years I’ve been here. We have some projects we have a light touch on and other projects we’re carrying a lot of water for—our roles vary from project to project.”

Of the current project list, 70 of those projects—more than half—are tied to the industrial sector, a market she believes is still ripe for further growth, given a 2% vacancy rate. Many of those projects are for manufacturing companies, and they typically offer unique challenges. 

“These projects are more highly automated than they were two years ago,” she said. “We have a higher due diligence from our clients—the demands of these projects on our team are higher. We rely on our partners to help us with this project load.” 

Automation in some sectors of the country can be viewed as a threat to employment. In a bustling state like Utah where employment is under 3%, it helps alleviate the growing demand for labor.  

“Companies are designing automation into their facilities for a couple of reasons—productivity and labor,” she said. “In a growing market like ours, automation is less scary; we’re not reducing the net number of jobs.”

Automation also makes sense in more rural Utah communities not connected to the Wasatch Front. These communities “draw from an even smaller labor pool, so an automated facility is a great match,” said Foxley. “I think we will continue to see an emphasis on manufacturing, and we’ll see an uptick in other industry sectors that have been soft for us. She mentioned information technology and financial services markets as probable drivers of future construction and job growth throughout this decade. 

“We’re running a full slate of projects while sharpening our vision of success, and how we build a program to achieve it,” said Foxley. “We’re taking the opportunity to do some strategic planning for the organization and set a vision for the next 8–10 years—the 2030 horizon.”

While the general economic outlook for Utah in 2023 is positive for the A/E/C industry, Foxley said that recent significant hikes in inflation and interest rates (hovering at 7% end of October) could negatively impact overall building activity. 

“Economic uncertainty is back as part of our lexicon,” she said. “Covid introduced first fear, then uncertainty, and then we surged out of that. We’re keeping an eye on the state of global affairs and the domestic market and how that is impacting our pipeline.”

She believes local developers and investors will remain “bullish” in Utah’s real estate development market and will use this time "as a way to gain market share” despite rising interest rates. 

“That’s scary high for our generation,” she mused. “Those rates are making developers go back to their pro formas and look to get projects to pencil through value engineering.”

Foxley was also ecstatic over recent news of Morgan Stanley’s expansion of 800 jobs in Silicon Slopes. “They’re doubling down on their presence in this market,” said Foxley. “Those are good, high-paying jobs in a sector we’re trying to attract to our state.”

Eric Dunn, 38

Director of Business Development

CMT Technical Services

Dunn Blazing a New Trail 


After more than eight years helping grow his father’s structural engineering business, Salt Lake-based Dunn Associates, Eric Dunn pivoted at the beginning of 2022 into a new role as Director of Business Development for West Valley City-based CMT Technical Services. 


The firm, nearly 20 years old, boasts a presence in 17 cities spanning 5 states and is looking at continued future growth. CMT offers clients an array of civil-based services but is known primarily for its materials testing, QA/QC, and special inspection services. The company also provides geotech, environmental and civil engineering, and construction staking, among other services.


Dunn, 38, was brought aboard to oversee business development company-wide, a challenge he’s readily accepted despite the daunting workload. 


“I’m soaking it all in—it’s a firehose of information,” said Dunn. “What was really enticing coming here is that I didn’t burn a single name in my Rolodex; it didn’t disrupt relationships I have in the industry. There are some changes in relationships, but minor. I can now help the same clients—I like to call them my friends—in a dozen different ways. Instead of doing just one thing, on that same building, we can provide a handful of services. We are a multi-service firm covering the due diligence phase for an owner, construction staking for the contractor and the QA/QC again for the owner. We make sure [a project] is built the way they say it’s supposed to be built.”


Dunn has been around the A/E/C industry his entire life. Ron Dunn, Eric’s father, established Dunn Associates in 1995, and it has evolved into one of Utah’s top structural engineering firms. While three of Ron’s five boys pursued engineering degrees (and four of them currently work at Dunn Associates), Dunn took a different route and earned a Construction Management degree from Brigham Young University in 2008. He had initially enrolled at Westminster College (now University) in Salt Lake—he played on the golf team his freshman year—but quickly realized he wasn’t quite good enough to make a living on the links and switched gears. 


Upon graduation, he spent three years at SME Steel/Onyx Construction in West Jordan and three and a half years at Sandy-based Layton Construction as a Project Engineer and Assistant Project Manager. He decided to pursue the business development route and joined the family business in June 2013. This decision was key to his personal and career growth, as it gave him the opportunity to network with top executives throughout the industry. His family’s good name helped, but ultimately Dunn thrived because of his tenacity and gregarious personality. 


“It opened doors and afforded me an opportunity to earn a seat at the table. I had total support and freedom to pursue projects as I saw fit,” he said. “Having the last name Dunn got my phone calls answered—it carried a bit of weight. I secured some big jobs off cold calls.” 


He credits Ron for teaching him “the power of networking and relationships.” 


He admits that his passion and prowess for golf have also played a prominent role in his ability to network and learn about new projects on the horizon. Golf, he said, is far superior to lunch or other networking events, in terms of getting to know people beyond superficial levels. 


When you go golfing with a current or prospective client, “you spend six hours hip-to-hip; you get to know them—their life, their family, vacation plans. It’s harder to build a relationship in a crowded restaurant.” 



“People is what I do,” said Dunn. “When all things are equal, relationships trump everything else. It’s almost cliché, but treat people well, be a decent human being, and you’re in good shape.”


Eman Siddiqui, 34

Architect, GSBS Architects

President and Founder, NOMA Utah

Standing Up and Standing Out


If you’re looking for the voice of equitable architecture, look no further than Eman Siddiqui. A powerhouse architect at GSBS Architects, she has put in the personal equity to go all-in on the profession.


Siddiqui was born in Karachi, Pakistan, and looked out to the Arabian Sea from the 12th largest city in the world, home to nearly 15 million people. When time came for university studies, she booted up the family computer and applied to study overseas at the University of Kansas, a location close to where some of her family was living already. A college visit later solidified it. “I fell in love with the town,” she said of the basketball-crazed Lawrence, Kansas. “I felt at home there.”


When she immigrated to the U.S. at 18, she didn’t know anyone at the university, but “I got involved in student affairs,” she said. Siddiqui worked as a leader in student orientations as she began her architectural studies, merging her love of design with her love of people. She felt it was a big benefit to her work in the university arena and as an architect.


“I worked with deans, parents, students, and chairs of programs across the university,” she recounted of her presentations, where she learned how to effectively communicate to groups as big as 100 people. “[Working in student affairs] was the most fun […] and those connections were very meaningful to me. […] They were excited to have me as an architectural student.”


From her home in Karachi to working in Kansas City, she has loved the energy in big groups of people. “I love being in a crowd,” she said. “I love presenting. […] I feel like I’m at my best and happiest in front of people.”


She spoke of one of her first projects, designing a football stadium for Colorado State University and then going to the first game after the project finished. 


“Seeing something I worked on full of thousands of people …” She paused. “It was a big deal for the school, for the community.”  And for her. 


“That architecture brings people together. As someone new to the profession, it got me so excited for what I was doing,” she said. “I’m designing these spaces for everyone. That’s the real meaning of what I do.”


She’s come up since those early days working in Kansas City after graduating with her Master of Architecture in 2014. She looks back fondly on the stadium project as well as others like designing suites at Churchill Downs, the site of the Kentucky Derby. Amidst all of these projects, the welcoming element of hospitality has stood out to her—specifically a hospitality to the end users of a project.


“There is a huge hospitality component because you are designing for the spectator’s or patron’s experience,” she said of projects like Teton Village in Wyoming and Big Sky in Montana that she has worked on since moving to the Beehive State in 2018. 


One specific project helped her to see how inclusive design is where true equity can take place. “For the Teton Village project, we worked with an accessibility consultant who helped us look beyond code minimums,” she began. “I traveled with my parents this summer and became very aware of how, even when we meet code, sometimes our designs still create hardships for older people, for example."


Even though there is a disconnect, Siddiqui said, it is a solvable one. In order to speak to clients from different realms and various walks of life, she encouraged architecture students to get involved on campus outside of architecture school. “This will polish your interpersonal skills and teach you to understand and connect with clients who come from all walks of life.” 


This attitude of welcoming and communicating with diversity has pushed Siddiqui into leadership roles within architecture, principally as the President of the Utah chapter of the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA)—an organization that seeks justice and equity in architecture. She is one of founders of the local chapter and was the driving force bringing the organization to the state.


This lack of diversity of not just race or gender in architecture, but perspective, is something that Siddiqui has seen since her university days in Kansas. “Our architecture history book had maybe two or three pages to showcase the architecture of Asia and Africa,” she said. “There were four women we learned about [in school]; two of them were almost exclusively talked about in conjunction with their male partners.”


Changing the status quo is a huge passion for Siddiqui. In a presentation during the September AIA Utah Conference, she and her NOMA colleagues outlined what helps minority architects to thrive. Ideas included paid parental leave, flexible days off to observe other holidays, increased pay transparency, and clear career trajectories and benchmarks for advancement. 


Siddiqui said that there needs to be “intentionality and consciousness” in both feelings and actions from leaders and companies to help architects like her to succeed in the Beehive State and beyond. It is a challenge, she said, but progress is being made. 


“Diversity is not just about having more black or brown people in the office,” said Siddiqui. She explained how healthy diversity that comes from people of different backgrounds, ages, abilities, cultural identities, and more helps to bring in the benefits of true diversity.


It can be a battle to belong in architecture, she explained, and sometimes that battle is internal. She remembered a time when she was nominated for a leadership award. “I remember telling them, ‘Maybe we wait until next year when I have more to show for it.’” As soon as those words left her mouth, she realized she didn’t need to wait until she had done “enough” to “merit” an award—she was worthy of that recognition now.


“I’ve worked so hard for this,” she stated. No need to listen to the messaging that many, especially minorities, tend to hear—it needs to be perfect. It may take time to build up the sense of belonging, that she and others from different backgrounds deserve to be at the table based on merit, but to Siddiqui, it’s worth the effort. Listening to her speak to the positive effects of diversity and the awesome benefits of architecture, Siddiqui is at the forefront, challenging the industry to reach its full potential.


Preston Croxford, 40

Principal Architect

Archiplex Group

Croxford Carrying on 

Legacy of Archiplex Group


“It’s kind of been a banner year for me,” said Preston Croxford when asked to sum up 2022 thus far. He was referring primarily to hitting the magic 40-years-old mark on April 23, and then a week later assuming the role of leader for now Bountiful-based Archiplex Group. He took over the reins of the nearly 19-year-old firm from company founder Ralph Stanislaw, who moved into a part-time role as a consultant.


He also admitted to being more than a little bit out of his comfort zone as he leads an eight-person architectural firm into 2023 as its lone licensed architect.


“It’s terrifying,” he laughed. “I’m really trying to learn on the fly, as it were. Ralph was a good mentor in terms of the architectural piece of it, so I feel confident in that. But he never really let me peek behind the curtain on how to run the business, so he’s been clueing me in on some things.”


Croxford was born in Kansas City, but his parents—Utah natives—moved back to the Beehive State when he was six months old, after his father finished a three-year residency as an anesthesiologist at a KC hospital. 


He grew up in Layton, attended Davis High and graduated in 2000, but wasn’t enamored with his experience in high school and didn’t know what he was going to do for work. He started dating his wife, Breck, after high school, and they tied the knot in 2002, prompting Croxford to get serious about figuring out a career.


“I didn’t want to go to college and floated around a couple of years. Like a lot of guys, we don’t [consider] the long game, we just play in the moment,” he said. “It takes somebody behind us to kick you in the butt, knock some sense into you. Thankfully my wife did that.”


He told Breck he wanted to be an architect despite being intimidated by the amount of schooling it required. He had taken drafting courses and worked in construction during high school, but said “it was evident I wasn’t cut out for the construction life. I was always into art, so architecture made total sense. Once I made a decision, it was a clear path.”


Croxford attended Salt Lake Community College and the University of Utah, ultimately earning a Master of Architecture from the U’s School of Architecture in 2009. He was hired by Stanislaw on a part-time basis in college, which turned into a full-time gig even though Utah was in the midst of the Great Recession. 


“He offered me a job, and I kept showing up,” said Croxford. “Other people came and went, so I was the obvious choice to be the heir because I stuck around long enough.”


He credits Stanislaw for his calm demeanor, his genuine passion for architecture, and his desire to put forth maximum effort in his designs. Croxford said that, while the firm has always been relatively small and doesn’t necessarily get to design the sexiest, highest profile projects, Stanislaw had a knack for pouring his soul into a project regardless of what it was. 


“Ralph’s a patient guy—he never seemed stressed out, never raised his voice, never got upset. He’s just level-headed,” he said. “He’s not a cheerleader type of guy, and that fits my personality. He’s not the guy to pat you on the back all the time, but I knew that he appreciated what I did because he gave me so many opportunities to learn and valued what I brought to the table.” 


He added, “what I continue to love about Ralph is he gives every project equal value. Even the simplest, most utilitarian project, you would think it’s the most high-profile, important project we have in the office” with the way he approached it. “He passed that trait to me.”


He gave an example of a recently designed Port of Entry project, essentially a weigh station for diesel trucks. “It’s not a glamorous project, but it’s a necessary piece of the built environment. I take pride in the fact that we’re doing projects like that. They are essential for the function of the community.” 


Stanislaw, 68, said he knew a long time ago that Croxford had the chops for carrying on the legacy of Archiplex Group. 

“He’s got an innate curiosity—you can’t teach that—so he’s always looking at things he reads or discovers and shares those with me,” said Stanislaw. “He’s got a lot of creative energy, and he’s a people person and gets along with everyone.”


Beyond being a “terrific person,” Stanislaw said Croxford is also an excellent architect who will no doubt learn the business side of architecture in time. “He’s certainly got the intelligence to pick that up. Certain people have an interest in learning things—he’s got that. That’s important in architecture because it’s always a developing art. It’s evolving all the time. An important part to being a good architect is having that interest.”


Besides Croxford, Archiplex Group includes a business manager, three part-time drafters, an architect who is tracking for licensure, and his “right-hand man,” Rob Childs, a veteran architect with 30+ years of experience who is his main go-to guy for advice, particularly with code-related questions. 



Croxford has also enjoyed the diverse projects that Archiplex Group has designed in its history. He takes extreme pride in two projects the firm designed for the Associated General Contractors of Utah—its $3.7-million, 9,000-SF corporate headquarters in West Valley City (opened November 2009), and its new $5-million, 16,000-SF training center (opened November 2021).


Ryan Cathey, 40

President

Talisman Civil Consultants

Civil Leader, Civil Talisman


There was always an expectation for Ryan Cathey to enter the world of architecture, engineering, and construction, even if the end result is different from the trajectory he was on after graduating from high school.


“I left high school thinking I was going to be an architect, especially since my frontal lobe was fully developed,” he joked. He hails from Montana and considers himself a bit of a traitor for attending Montana State University in Bozeman even though he was born in Missoula, home of the University of Montana. After being accepted into architecture school at Montana State and interning at a local firm, “I hated every minute of it.”


But it was a good experience that has helped him move into his current role as President of Salt Lake-based Talisman Civil Consultants, the civil engineering firm he helped found in 2016.


“Looking back, I was probably at the wrong firm,” he said of his time in architecture. “And I’m not the artist I would need to be to succeed as an architect.” What stood out during that time was that “the people making all the decisions were engineers.”


After switching to civil engineering, he completed an internship with Nolte and Associates before earning a Bachelor of Civil Engineering from Montana State in 2006. Bachelor’s degree in hand, Cathey drove a Uhaul from Bozeman down south to the Beehive State, not to be hindered by a winter snow storm intent on making him reconsider, “January 2, 2007, I started my career,” he said of his professional return to Nolte and Associates. 


Things initially looked good at the firm, but the forces of the Great Recession inevitably bore down, forcing massive layoffs that took the employee count from around 70 to 10 which coincided with a buyout and rebrand.


“It was like Survivor,” he said. “People were getting voted off the island left and right.”


As one of the few who kept his job, he used his “opportunistic” nature to try and step up to lead. “I told them I wanted to lead the office, even if I didn’t have the experience,” he said. “But it became clear early on that goals didn’t match up.”


What wasn’t lining up was “culture, priorities, kind of work, purpose of work—all of the above,” said Cathey. He wanted something better, a company where they would invest in themselves, in technology, and in clientele to build an organization that embraced the future.


So he and some of his teammates from the previous firm left in December 2016 and formed Talisman Civil Consultants. With Cathey at the helm, the company has looked to be a leader in the civil engineering field and embrace that future with emerging technologies, a flexible work environment, and an enviable work culture.


The word “talisman,” Cathey said, means a closely held symbol. He referenced the Christian cross as one example, which symbolizes everything important and valued in the religion to those who wear it. Talisman is looking to have the same effect on the A/E/C industry and the civil engineering field.


The idea for the name partly came from Cathey’s time running a billiards hall in Bozeman. 


“Talisman was a brand of pool cue tips that we used. […] It just stuck with me,” he said. "It was one of the best brands.”


He said that the word has been ever-present, a reminder to “be the talisman for civil engineering,” he said. Cathey wants the company to be a symbol of quality, teamwork, enrichment, integrity—the leader in the industry that exemplifies these traits.


“These ideals are used throughout my life to help me make decisions, provide direction, and provide leadership,” he said.


For Cathey, the last six years have been filled with excitement—both the good and stressful kind. He’s watched employees excel to new heights, he’s seen how mentorship has paid off, and he’s seeing the success of something he helped build. 


“We have people who started as interns who earned their PE and are now running projects,” Cathey said. “It’s so cool to be a part of that growth.”


Even as founder and president, “I didn’t want it to be about me,” he said. Coming from his previous company as the only PE, he had to wear every hat and be the funnel that all work went through. “It’s the reason we are called Talisman and not Ryan Cathey Engineers.”


Regardless of the company name, he’s more worried about leading it. He remains passionate about helping his team move forward in their lives and empowering them to disengage from any stereotype about engineering—to embrace the genuine. “I hope my staff realize how much I care about them individually,” he said. “I foster an environment where people can say what’s real and be authentic.”


It is a driving force of Talisman company culture, he said, where people show up authentically, “where a balanced life comes above all, and the office is a place where kids, dogs, and extended family are welcome,” he said. That environment perfectly dovetails with challenging civil engineering projects and a search for the best solutions in civil engineering.


But that search for the best solutions in a culture of authenticity means egos need to be checked at the door. “The space to be wrong is so important in this industry. To throw out a suggestion and be wrong, to recognize that something needs changing,” Cathey said. “It’s critical.”


With 30 team members including seven professional engineers, Cathey has found that giving more people a piece of the responsibility pie, with room to expand their skills, allows them to excel. Work for the team is wrapped up in resort projects at Canyons, Powder Mountain, and Snowbasin, right of way and infrastructure projects at the University of Utah, housing at SLCC’s Taylorsville campus, and more. 


Amidst all of this work, managing the growth is the big push for him over the next five years. “We need to [grow] in a way that preserves, engrains, and showcases our culture from day one,” he said. “We want to grow to keep up with our clients and provide new opportunities for our people.”

Latest Shifts in Structural Engineering

By By B. Garn • May 2, 2025
The continued spread of and improvements to BIM, new fuse plate technology, and the rise of mass timber are a few of the topics shaking up structural engineering in the Beehive State. Utah Construction + Design reached out to some Utah’s leading structural engineering firms to find out about current trends, technologies, and with five years of reflection, how are owners and designers looking at and learning from the 5.7 magnitude earthquake that shook the Wasatch Front in spring 2020. Jerod Johnson, Senior Principal at Reaveley Engineers, wrote a detailed retrospective of the event in 2023 and says researchers and engineers learned a few things from the quake from how different building types responded to insights into the geology of our region. “Research has revealed that the shape of the Wasatch Fault is different from what was previously believed. The Magna earthquake, initially thought to have occurred on a fault in the western part of the Salt Lake Valley, actually took place on the Wasatch Fault. The fault extends into the valley at a much shallower angle than expected, rather than descending steeply from the toe of the mountain. This new understanding of the fault's geometry has significant implications for seismic design and building codes. We anticipate changes to the spectral acceleration maps used in structural design. The lateral shaking observed during the 5.7 magnitude earthquake was much higher than expected,” says Johnson. “It highlighted the need for updated design practices that account for this amplification. These findings will influence future building codes and practices in Utah, ensuring that structures are better equipped to withstand such events.” But Chris Hofheins, a Senior Principal at BHB Structural, is concerned the wider public may not have learned enough from the event. “Most structural engineers thought the earthquake would be a wakeup call but to a large degree I think it had the opposite effect,” said Hofheins. “People looked around and felt like it wasn’t so bad and we’ll be alright if something bigger hits. We’ve seen a few owners who decided to increase the seismic safety of their buildings but we’re also seeing the opposite where I think some people are overconfident.” Blowing a Fuse Structural resilience, designing buildings that not only protect those inside during a seismic event but can be quickly reoccupied, continues to be of great interest to structural engineers. Replaceable fuses, or structural sections that can be sacrificed dissipating energy during a seismic event and then replaced, have continued to gain popularity with designers and improve the resilience of buildings. “This innovation represents a significant shift from traditional methods of enhancing ductility in earthquake design. Instead of merely adapting existing practices, replaceable fuses offer a new paradigm for building resilience,” said Dorian Adams, Senior principal and President with Reaveley Engineers. Adams said fuse technology like buckling restrained braces (BRBs) have been available and widely adopted for several decades. Newer proprietary systems like Durafuse, among others, for moment frames have been gaining popularity. “New technologies are emerging that offer exciting possibilities. One such innovation is the SpeedCore steel shear wall with a concrete core, which is included in the new AISC seismic provisions, the 2022 edition. This technology represents a significant advancement in seismic design,” said Adams. Replaceable fuse technology is also being employed with mass timber construction as interest in and use of the material around the world continues to grow. Jordan Terry, Principal at KPFF Consulting Engineers has designed structural systems for several mass timber and mass timber hybrid projects such as the ICCU Arena at the University of Idaho in Moscow and the recently completed Portland International Airport Terminal Core Redevelopment with its 400,000 sq ft mass Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) roof. He said there have been important advances recently in seismic systems for mass timber structures. “Typically, when you get a mass timber building over five stories you have to look at the seismic reinforcing and that is where you introduce something other than just timber. You might have a concrete core with the elevator shafts or use BRBs,” Terry said. “We had a client in Portland that absolutely wanted to use as much timber as possible. We helped develop a new system called a rocking CLT core wall. The base of the shear wall panels isn’t connected to the ground and it can rock back and forth but there are energy-dissipating sections or fuses, between the panels. They are very ductile. You swap them out and it’s as good as new.” David Dunn, CEO and principal at Dunn Associates, said the firm had utilized a rocking CLT shear panel in their design for a new all mass timber building currently under construction for the Zion National Park Discovery Center at the national park’s east entrance. Terry also said the firm was assisting researchers at the University of California San Diego in developing more all-timber lateral systems but noted like all materials, it should be used for its strengths. “CLT is really strong and stiff so you’d think it would be great for seismic reinforcement, but it is not very ductile,” he said. “We have a project in Spokane [Washington] where we used BRBs. We are letting the wood be stiff and strong like it wants to be and letting the BRBs deal with dissipation.” Hofheins noted mass timber research is going on here at the University of Utah as well. Dr. Chris Pantelides and the U of U’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering are developing a BRB encased in timber. Adams noted Dr. Pantelides’s project is not the only fuse research underway locally. “One such project involved a device placed in the middle of an X brace, with elastic braces and a fuse at the intersection of the diagonal braces. This device would compress and stretch, cycling through combined flexure and shear,” he said. “A University of Utah PhD candidate recently further enhanced this concept in his dissertation, adding curved plates of steel that cross one another and engage in tension only after reaching a certain threshold of displacement. This supplemental strength activates only when needed, providing a dual-level design solution that accommodates different magnitudes of earthquakes. The idea of replaceable fuses holds significant potential for the future of structural design. These innovations will become an integral part of performance-based seismic design, offering tailored solutions for varying seismic events. Simpson's Yield-Link connection is another example of this technology, although it is currently more suited for smaller applications.” Dunn said making buildings resilient and potentially reusable quickly after a seismic event not only has implications for safety but for sustainability as well. “Designing resilient structures is really an environmental consideration that is undervalued in my view,” said Dunn. “Code-based buildings will undergo massive deformations and damage after an earthquake. Sometimes small, incremental increases in first-costs can make huge differences in anticipated building performance, salvaging buildings that would otherwise be landfilled. That is a huge environmental impact, but not as buzzy as bike racks, low-water urinals, solar panels, etc.”

No Waterway? No Problem for the Utah Inland Port Authority

By Taylor Larsen • May 2, 2025
Ports? In landlocked Utah? Sure, the traditional idea of a port in Utah, with cargo ships, cruise liners, container cranes, dockworkers, barges—not to mention coastal water—is farfetched. But the Utah Inland Port Authority (UIPA) has broadened the meaning of a port since its formation in 2018. Even without a coast, UIPA has worked to strengthen rail, air, and road cargo infrastructure to turn Utah into a 21st century logistics hub and changing the economic trajectory of the Beehive State in the process. It’s been seven years of increased industrial development that has been a boon for the A/E/C community, but more importantly the logistics and manufacturing network to build for an ever-growing consumer demand. There have been plenty of detractors to UIPA, especially as it relates to ecological conservation. Ben Hart, Executive Director of UIPA, has heard it loud and clear as he sets the organization on a path to aid in development goals that benefit the entire state and the values Utahns hold dear. Origin Story + Coordinated Efforts UIPA was created to pioneer and implement strategic and sustainable logistics-backed economic solutions that enhance the lives of Utahns and establish Utah as a global industry connector. While UIPA began its journey overseeing 16,000 acres in the northwest portion of Salt Lake County, the Northwest Quadrant, it has grown in area and emphases since 2018. Today, UIPA is associated with 110,000 acres in 12 project areas across the state. Most importantly for the organization, Hart said, is how developments within UIPA project areas create high-paying jobs to strengthen Utah communities. Where regional logistics infrastructure does not exist, UIPA can make strategic investments to unlock regional economic growth. “Part of the [UIPA] charter is developing projects that provide economic strength for their entire region. Regional projects need regional infrastructure, which most importantly includes transportation infrastructure,” said Hart, detailing UIPA tools to build out transportation infrastructure intended “to help grow the entire regional economy. Hart said that UIPA has grown its overall area scope to help meet statewide initiatives from current Governor Spencer Cox and regional initiatives from municipal leaders around the Beehive State. Speaking specifically of many of Utah’s rural counties, “There is more commerce going on in those areas than what people recognize,” Hart said, “and you still have a really good workforce in those areas as well.” Municipalities and counties of all levels (see project area map) have been willing to go through a four-step process to access UIPA capabilities in route to industrial development and the high-wage jobs that come with it.

Steely Resolve

By Taylor Larsen • May 1, 2025
Tariff talk is loud. But don’t let that be the only thing that garners attention in steel fabrication trends. Leaders in this field said that they continue to innovate and build up their spot within the industry to ensure steel continues to be utilized in projects across the Beehive State. Tariffs Add Volatility On March 12th, 2025 the Trump administration announced 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports. With over 25% of steel imported, according to the US Dept. of Commerce, steel procurement is set to get even pricier. Matt Blaser, President of Price-based Intermark Steel, sees plenty of similarities with tariff policy and the pandemic effects on the supply chain. Much as supply chains needed reconfiguring during the pandemic, “The overarching goal [of tariffs] is to bring manufacturing back into the United States,” said Blaser. “Where we’re not dependent on a global supply chain.” It’s worked as intended before, when 2018 tariffs (25% on steel imports) helped increase domestic steel production by 6 million tons from 2017-2019. For Richard Wood, President of West Jordan-based Rightway Steel, the expected increase in domestic steel production, “It’s just getting started. Many new companies have plans to build steel producing plants in the US.” These incoming ‘minimills’ are bringing faster throughput in a smaller area via a much more efficient steelmaking process. According to a 2020 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency report, over half of the national steel output was produced in minimills. These mills use an electric arc furnace (EAF) to melt and refine steel scrap by passing an electric current from the electrodes through the materials to melt it at a scorching 3,000 degrees. It’s making blast furnaces and “rust belt” technology a thing of the past. But on-shoring production has still been a tough pill to swallow for fabricators as steel prices surge. “As of April 1st, steel material prices have increased upwards of 25%,” said Wood. “We’re unsure if or when the tariffs will be reduced.” Even as tariffs escalate, fabricators like Rightway Steel have sought a way forward even as Wood has seen demand and project starts slow down. Rightway has pivoted with new pricing, reduced quote hold times, and internal efficiencies to stay competitive. As developments in EAF take a greater share of steel production market toward stability—and hopefully lower prices—those internal efficiencies Wood mentioned will shape the future of steel fabrication. Innovating Internally “In any steel fabrication, or any type of production, there is a four letter word that makes all the difference: flow,” said Tyler Oliver, President of Centerville-based Fineline Steel Fabrication. Limiting the amount of movement required from the fabrication team in the shop is one internal efficiency keeping costs low. Inside Fineline’s shop, TV screens and tablets keep the team in the shop fully aware of what’s going on—and keep everyone in flow. Touring through the firm’s Centerville shop, one quickly notices how long the building is. Think arena football field, but five of them end to end to reach 1,000 feet long. If Fineline could have a facility twice as long and half as wide, Oliver said, it would help that flow even better. Oliver claimed that Fineline;s facility houses “One of the most state-of-the-art fabricators in the world.” Fineline’s Voortman Steel Fabricator has been a key part of the firm’s innovative flair. The fully-automated welding system starts with the VACAM system to determine the feasibility of assemblies, production times, etc—particularly helpful when determining the amount of automation required in the welding process. From there the magnetic handling robot grabs the steel pieces fed by the Fineline team, rotates the steel, and welds steel members in the right place. Rightway Steel has looked for similar internal efficiencies, with Wood saying the firm is improving year over year with new equipment and processes to improve quality, speed, and safety. “There’s always room for improvement,” he said before mentioning how it will be incumbent on fabricators to find or train workers capable of learning the ropes as the company invests in more robotic welding, improved machinery, and emerging technologies like wearable exoskeletons to keep production humming. Technological Infusion With lead times getting shorter for many of these projects, Oliver said, “[Owners] need their parts and members bigger, better, and faster. This is why we have innovated and are constantly working on adding automation.” Technological innovation reigns supreme. Construction software Stalwarts like Procore and Building Connected are combining with emerging technologies that incorporate in-field scanning from team members to improve accuracy. “We have also seen improvements in modeling and steel shop and erection drawings through Advanced Steel and Tekla,” said Wood. As modeling has improved, so has the final product created by fabricators. Blaser echoed Oliver’s comments on speed to delivery and Wood’s thoughts on digital collaboration, saying that the ability to fabricate from a digital file has been catalytic in today’s high-speed construction market. Blaser also reiterated points from the other fabricators regarding internal systems. Having a CNC machine isn’t enough—it’s the bare minimum. Instead, working in a “Henry Ford-esque” assembly line makes all the difference today, especially when combined with digital innovations and steel detailing software. But the future is one where those systems are bolstered by AI. “Larger companies will have machines interconnected via AI,” said Blaser. With enough capital to invest in interconnected machinery that needs less human help, AI adaptation within steel fabrication will “Consolidate the market and probably push smaller shops to the wayside.” For Oliver, “AI is the top of our list as it is with everyone else,” namely allowing the team to spend their time processing material for fabrication. “There are some major advancements with AI and how we can final QC some of our members.” While AI grows in importance on the shop floor, Wood said his teams have utilized AI as much as possible in the office for great efficiency in take-offs, proposals, RFI support, and meeting information.

Designing a Sustainable Future

By Taylor Larsen • May 1, 2025
“Our thinking needs to be challenged in our culture.” The words from Bill Reed came during his keynote address at the Intermountain Sustainability Summit held at Weber State University in late March. And the strength of his advocacy for a sea change in how our culture thinks about everything—especially sustainability—only continued. “There is no such thing as a sustainable building,” said Reed, Principal of Regenesis, a regenerative design and education organization based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Reed spoke from experience. He is a founding board member of the US Green Building Council (USGBC) and Co-Founder of the LEED Green Building Rating System. For him and many others, LEED won’t be the answer to the problems posed by the built environment. “LEED came along to tell us we could do things better,” he said. “But sustainability is a slower way to die.” “Places are living organisms,” he said. Everyone involved in development must realize, “Your project is not ‘The Project,’ but is part of a living system,” where the development in question is part of an expansive web of community priorities. “We have to make common ground in these communities,” he said, where alignment results in a project that fits within multiple contexts. Reed’s words were strong, and he challenged sustainability experts to find ways to create a regenerative built environment and all of its positive outcomes. UC+D looked to continue those thoughts and reached out to multiple design experts to see how to challenge our collective thinking and steer us to a sustainable future for the built environment. Value Alignment from the Start When Garth Shaw approaches a project, he starts with a fundamental question: "What does our client want and need, and what sustainable design strategies will help them get there?" Shaw, Principal and Director of Sustainability at Salt Lake-based GSBS Architects, said the goal is a high-performance, sustainable design that promotes, rather than dictates, client objectives. Efficient, resilient, and healthy buildings emerge from this process. “There is so much momentum in the industry to move faster and cheaper,” Shaw explained. Everyone in the A/E/C industry values efficiency, and private developers and owners are no exception. However, they also prioritize predictability. Even when a project starts with ambitious sustainability goals, compressed schedules and cost pressures can lead teams back to old methods. "It worked last time!” becomes the enemy of progress. Shaw argued that the industry must create space for innovation. "We need time to drive deep value into buildings that precisely meet client needs while protecting—and even enhancing—environmental performance." Overcoming this challenge begins with aligning values. “If you can tie people’s values into a practical approach to sustainability, that’s the magic,” Shaw said. He encourages his team to lead sustainability conversations without defaulting to LEED certification. Instead, successful sustainability strategies require tools tailored to each project. This kind of value-driven approach has broad appeal, transcending political divides. Shaw noted that leaders across the political spectrum recognize the importance of sustainability through air quality and water conservation efforts. Depoliticizing environmental stewardship is key—it’s not just a policy issue but a human issue that affects everyone. Government incentives, like the Inflation Reduction Act, have helped make sustainability more attractive to owners. The IRA provides substantial discounts for projects implementing energy-efficient systems, such as Utah’s on-site ground-source thermal exchange systems, which can now receive up to a 50% discount. When cost savings are clear and measurable, sustainability becomes an easier sell. Beyond energy systems, sustainable construction also hinges on material choices. "Manufacturers and contractors aren’t used to tracking carbon impacts," Shaw noted, but forward-thinking industry leaders continue pushing for better transparency. Tools from organizations like the Carbon Leadership Forum help architects, builders, and owners visualize the carbon footprint of materials, empowering them to make informed decisions. For the A/E/C industry, staying ahead requires continuous learning—keeping up with evolving grants, materials, supply chains, and building systems. Shaw concluded, “Change is required, and that change will ultimately benefit our clients. It may take more time, but the result is a high-value project—for people and the environment.”

Something New

By Doug Fox • May 1, 2025
The recently completed Duchesne High School (DHS) renovation is a textbook case of the old wedding adage: “Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.” Fittingly, the project resulted in an elegant marriage of design, construction, and community spirit. The old and new are carefully blended, with brand-new buildings and modernized spaces standing alongside preserved sections of renovations past. And to tie it all together? The commons area, a brand-new roof, and other key highlights are bathed in Duchesne’s signature blue color. Naturally, like any good marriage, this $62.9 million rebuild required commitment, collaboration, and a little bit of patience. Architects, builders, and school district officials worked hand in hand to ensure that the old and new came together in harmony—honoring the school’s legacy while preparing it for the future. “We strived to make a space that brings pride to the students, staff, and the community,” said Wes Christensen, Principal Architect at KMA Architects, the Spanish Fork firm that designed the rebuild. “Our approach and design philosophy were heavily influenced by the desire to create a cohesive and efficient addition that would seamlessly blend with the existing portions to remain. We feel that we were able to accomplish this successfully, working together as a design team, including our consulting engineers, the school district, school administration, and Westland Construction.” Save the Date The Duchesne High School rebuild has been on the drawing board for nearly seven years and in the construction phase for 33 months. KMA started the design process in 2018, but the project was put on hold by the Duchesne County School District due to COVID and faced additional delays because of supply chain issues and long lead times for equipment. Westland Construction of Orem eventually earned the CM/GC bid and broke ground in June 2022. The high school remained open during the course of construction, creating the need for innovative and meticulous planning to ensure safety while working around normal school activity. “The new addition at the school was built where there was a field, parking lot, old basketball gym, and shop classrooms,” said Aaron Kirkham, Project Manager at Westland Construction. “The remodel and construction in the existing school areas were done during the school summer breaks.” When school was in session, temporary construction fencing and gates around active working areas served to keep students safe, Kirkham said. Construction delineation kept workers and equipment separated from students and staff. According to Michael Weldon, Building and Grounds Supervisor with the Duchesne County School District (DCSD), the detached gym and locker rooms were built in 1965, the auditorium and shops built in 1974, and a newer building added to campus in 2005. “The parts of the school that were demolished did not meet current building codes,” Weldon said. “The original auditorium was extremely small and the shops were also small. You had to go outside and through a parking lot to get to the second gym. The new build project incorporated the shops, an auditorium, and gym attached to the 2005 building so that they feel and look like they were built at the same time.” Bridging the old and new construction is always a unique factor that is different for any remodel and addition project, Christensen said. “These previous additions were designed by another architect, so that also creates a challenge to overcome in blending styles and design choices.” One of the most significant hurdles revolved around the central placement of the auditorium within the new school structure. While beneficial in creating a focal point for the building, the new auditorium posed myriad logistical challenges during construction. According to Kirkham, a 28,000-pound steel beam needed to be placed to support the structure’s masonry walls, which were 35 feet tall. The beam placement required a 550-ton crane, which had to be strategically positioned where the future gym would be constructed. “As a result, we had to delay the construction of the masonry walls in the new gymnasium until the beam was in place,” Kirkham said. “This sequencing created a very compressed and demanding schedule to ensure the new basketball gym was completed in time for the start of the school year in August 2024.” Despite those constraints, Kirkham said, construction on the gym’s masonry walls and concrete slab began in January of 2024 and was completed within seven months.

The New SLC Rolls On

By Milton Harrison • May 1, 2025
The historic Salt Lake City Airport Redevelopment (the New SLC) project continues to roll on into its fourth—and final—phase, with a targeted finish in October 2026 and final delivery of 16 new gates in Concourse B that will allow it to serve 34 million passengers annually. At a whopping $5.135 billion, the New SLC marks the single largest project in Utah's history, with the Phase I grand opening in September 2020 the first of many project milestones. The New SLC also sports the distinction of being the first new hub airport in the U.S. built in the 21st century, making it one of the most modern, technologically advanced, and aesthetically pleasing airports in the world. Last October, the $458 million Phase III was delivered by the Holder/Big-D Construction Joint Venture (HDJV) team, highlighted by the dynamic new 1,175-foot Central Tunnel—dubbed the "River Tunnel" for its mesmerizing blue ceiling art installation that depicts a flowing river—along with the Concourse B Plaza. The new plaza features an extension of the popular canyon motif with new art installations and the remarkable preservation of the former airport’s iconic "World Map" terrazzo floor section originally installed in 1960. Mike Williams, Program Director for the New SLC, expressed his excitement at the completion of Phase III, saying it's the most significant project milestone since Phase I opened in 2020. "This is really what I call the second transformation of the airport. The first was when we opened Phase I in the fall of 2020," said Williams, the veritable maestro of this Herculean, once-in-a-lifetime project. “[Phase III] is the one that ties it all together and makes it function as one cohesive airport." Williams said it's been remarkable to see how this project has morphed since it was announced more than a dozen years ago. At that time, the scope called for constructing just a new Concourse A and landside facilities. When the pandemic hit in March 2020, a mere six months before the scheduled grand opening of Phase I, SLC Airport officials pivoted with the original program and called for Concourse B to be built as well, essentially adding Phase III and Phase IV and nearly doubling the program budget to exceed $5 billion. Having the same general contractor team (HDJV) and design team, led by San Francisco-based HOK, on all four phases allowed a more seamless expansion since the goal of building Concourse B was to have it look and function virtually the same as Concourse A. Bill Wyatt, Executive Director of Airports for Salt Lake City, has been involved since 2017 and praised all parties involved for the successful completion of three major phases thus far, and for continually trying to improve the construction process from phase to phase. "During Phase I, we had this constant barrage of issues," said Wyatt. "I'd go on these construction walks with Mike [Williams], and someone from [HDJV], and it was a constant series of decisions that had to be made. We fixed all of those little things so that almost none of those issues were in Phase III and Phase IV. It's kind of like rinse and repeat—they're going on 10 years of building gates, and they have it pretty well down by now." Wyatt agreed with Williams that Phase III is the essential functional piece tying the entire project together, with the Central Tunnel being a vital connector between the two new concourses. The Central Tunnel makes a strong statement with its unique aesthetics and general stress-free vibe—highlighted by a carefully curated music playlist designed to help visitors decompress from the stresses of traveling on their journey to Concourse B. "In some ways, other than the [Phase I] grand opening itself in 2020, the opening of Phase III is the most significant," said Wyatt. "It makes the airport flow and function so much more effectively. Prior to this, people had a hard time understanding how it was going to come together—the Central Tunnel and Plaza of Concourse B really bring that together. We're very happy with the end result, the art [...] everything about it is terrific." "There has been a ton of excitement seeing the public's reaction to the Central Tunnel opening," added Jordan Cammack, Construction Director for the past two years for HDJV, and a former Project Manager and Senior Project Manager who has been on the job since construction began in July 2014. He praised the cohesiveness of the design and construction teams over the past 11 years and the ability to make changes without disrupting the schedule or budget. "It's been impressive to see how the architect and design teams came together and worked with us throughout the project," Cammack added. "It's been a great job—it's been like a family out here with all our team members, owner reps, and architects. We've seen families grow up. It's a pleasure to come to work with such great people for an extended period of time."

New Life for the 200 South Transit Corridor

By Taylor Larsen • May 1, 2025
“What does this corridor want to be when it grows up?” The question posed by Kyle Cook was the impetus for the 200 South Reconstruction project. It helped usher in a new era for Salt Lake City’s bus corridor with the tagline: “200 South—A Place of Motion” Cook, PE and Transportation Engineer for Salt Lake City, said 200 South was discussed years before design and construction commenced, namely from the capital city’s 2017 Transit Master Plan. After evaluating 15 corridors, 200 South was deemed the most important. “A strategic corridor,” said Cook of the area from Salt Lake Central Station to the University of Utah. Working in tandem with UTA and multiple Salt Lake City departments, the design would condense the five lanes of the old street into three passenger vehicle lanes, two dedicated bus lanes, and two bike lanes. It would create a street that matches the urban character of the area, one that is much safer and better equipped to handle the multimodal traffic on 200 South. Building for Community Needs As the Salt Lake City team went from master plan to design in the early days of the pandemic, they turned to online workshops, surveys, and virtual town halls on Facebook Live to get feedback on what folks hoped to see from a reconstructed 200 South along an area between 900 East and 400 West. “At the time, that was pretty novel for us,” Cook said of that public involvement work from the city and AECOM consultants, who served as project prime. “But I think we got very good at it.” They took in nearly 1,000 survey responses plus online event insights to determine the street needed to accommodate not just buses and passenger vehicles, but pedestrians, cyclists, and the array of businesses housed along the corridor. Reconstruction of 200 South was a two-phase project, where Phase 1 would cover 900 East to 200 East, and Phase 2 would reconstruct the far busier part of the project between 200 East and 400 West. Working with the Business Community Road construction is the bane of many and grows more challenging for a project team attempting to accommodate businesses and travelers while building in an urban environment. “It’s as downtown as it gets,” said Brett Kearns of the project scope. “The amount of vehicular or foot traffic passing through, and knowing you have to re-do the entire street, remove curb, gutter, and flatwork—it’s a huge concern.” Kearns, Project Manager/Estimator for Acme Construction, said they worked hand in hand with Salt Lake City and the public engagement team at Avenue Consultants to address business needs as construction continued between each phase. “In order for 200 South to succeed, we have to have good contact within our team and good contact with businesses,” said Kearns. “The first thing we did was canvas on the corridor,” said Stacee Adams, Public Involvement Manager from Avenue Consultants, who managed public involvement from the end of design through project completion. Adams said the team “went business to business” to show them what would go in place, infrastructure amenities, and what to expect in construction. Beyond the initial meet-and-greet, the team hosted workshops at Gallivan Plaza, took daily phone calls, and met with businesses monthly to keep them in the know. They also provided information to event attendees at places like the Greek Fest (300 West) and the Salt Palace (West Temple - 200 West) to keep visitors aware of construction impacts. Working Around the Barriers Acme’s experience on other Salt Lake City projects, notably the successful 900 South Corridor reconstruction, gave the city confidence that the Acme team would build community trust in each phase. That proved especially critical with the Capitol Theatre (50 West). Uneven grades surrounding the building posed one challenge while accommodating Capitol Theatre’s busy schedule posed another. Beyond venue patrons, “[Capitol Theatre] has load-in for their stage equipment, performers and costuming coming in, plus students coming in on school days for plays,” said Adams of the complicated logistics plan required. “We found out the best time for them was for construction to work from the beginning of July to August 15th,” said Kearns, who noted the atypical nature of the project required a level of dedication matched by the construction team across both phases. Kearns especially praised Acme Superintendent Herman Sword, who coordinated across the project’s two phases and ongoing construction projects nearby to ensure good outcomes for everyone. The Acme team installed plenty of asphalt and concrete to give the road and sidewalk new life around a bevy of ongoing work. Enbridge Gas installed their pipeline along the same corridor, Royal Wood Plaza (230 West) underwent demolition, and construction progressed on Zephyr Lofts (370 West) and Astra Tower (State Street).

40 Years of Aiming High

By Brad Fullmer • April 30, 2025
Steel Encounters' Executive Leadership team consists of (Left to right): Brad Hardy, President; Brian Tlustosch, Executive VP: Tom Jackson, Chairman/CEO; Michael Rudge, CFO.

Economists Remain Optimistic about Utah

By Milt Harrison • February 28, 2025
Despite some minor economic headwinds, Utah is poised for another solid, if semi-unspectacular, year of construction and real estate development, according to top economists locally and nationally. Indeed, 2025 is shaping up to be much like 2024, a year where firms across the A/E/C spectrum completed dozens of life-enhancing, community-uplifting projects across every major building sector—in other words, a lot of projects were built outside of the still churning multi-family market. These firms thrived for the most part, posting positive revenue growth and maintaining momentum in the face of the usual challenges of shallow labor pools and volatile material costs. Utah continues to rank among the top states nationally on key economic drivers such as population growth, construction employment, a pro-business climate, and a legislative body that continues to be bullish on funding higher education and transportation projects. Prospects are good with a can-do mentality among developers, municipalities, and the firms designing and building the jobs. "Utah will continue to have above average growth and is in great position to continue its great track record with a growing population, and a strong economy and construction market," said Ken Simonson, Chief Economist for the Associated General Contractors of America (AGCA) in Washington, D.C. "Utah has been on a steady, strong upward path with 27% growth in construction employment—three times the national average of 9%—since 2020." Simonson said Utah's construction employment growth doubled last year, up 6%, which is twice the U.S. average. Growth would be even stronger, he added, if contractors could find workers, particularly skilled tradesmen. Simonson said a survey of 1,500 firms nationally stated 94% had openings for craft workers. "It's hard to fill (skilled) positions, more difficult than last year," he added. Utah's consistent population growth—the Beehive State ranked fourth according to the U.S. Census from 2023-24 with 1.8% growth (3.44 million to 3.50 million)—is a driver of demand for so many types of construction, as well as a course of construction labor. Simonson said the state has been more welcoming of immigrants, an important source of labor for contractors across the board. Utahns also have a reputation for being well-educated coupled with a strong work ethic and drive to succeed, making the state an attractive place for new businesses looking to expand. Developers Waiting Out Interest Rates; Hope for a Drop in '25 The Fed kept interest rates where they are in January—a decision not popular with many real estate developers simply itching to invest capital and have projects waiting to cut loose the minute rates become more favorable. That pent-up demand could heat up the market if rates drop by even half a point, particularly in the multi-family arena. Simonson said multi-family was down nationally 8% from September 2023-24, with Utah seeing an equivalent slowdown, despite a huge amount of inventory that hit the market in 2024, including attractive high-end downtown properties like Camber, The Worthington, and Astra Tower, and many others along the greater Wasatch Front. "Reductions in the [Fed]’s short-term interest rate target will make financing a bit less expensive but developers still can't get loans or want to proceed if rents aren't high enough to cover the financing and construction costs, including time to complete if there are extended delivery times for electrical equipment such as transformers and switchgear," Simonson added. "Utah isn't immune from these challenges, but if the underlying population growth will be supportive of rent increases, that may bring back multi-family construction sooner than in areas that aren't growing as fast, or at all." Spendlove Keynote at 2025 NAIOP Symposium Senior Economist for Zions Bank, Robert Spendlove, said Utah is well-positioned to maintain solid economic activity, with factors of low unemployment (hovering around 4%), solid wage growth (3.9% in December), and more than a quarter million jobs added at the end of last year. "Utah had unexpected, continued strength in the labor market," said Spendlove at NAIOP Utah's 2025 Symposium in January. "If we could pause the economy and stay where we're at now, we'd be in a perfect position." Consumer inflation, he said, remains sticky at nearly 3%, with the Fed targeting 2% before they can lower interest rates. "Until it's at 2%, they can't claim victory," he said. Overall, consumer prices are up a whopping 22% since 2020. "It's a struggle for people—those prices are never going back down. Inflation is just adding to those price increases. [Fed Chair Jerome] Powell said they will not make the same mistake as the 70s; they will not cut rates until inflation is down." In addition to strong 1.65% [WHAT TYPE OF] growth and 1.8% employment growth, Utah rebounded quickly from the pandemic. "That shows the strength of Utah's economy and labor market," said Spendlove. He added that Utah's GDP was up 4.6%, indicating the strongest economic growth in the U.S., with consumer sentiment improving and greater small business optimism. Utah Maintains Steady Growth, Says Eskic The Beehive State's remarkably consistent and steady growth remains a major reason why its economic outlook remains rosy, said Dejan Eskic, Senior Research Fellow at the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah. "Utah's population growth has never dropped below zero since 1950—we're still increasing with net migration," said Eskic at an event hosted by the Intermountain Chapter of the American Concrete Institute in January, with growth slowing by only .08 to 1.65% "There is so much demand in our economy that even in a down year for housing, construction employment is up 6.2%," he said. "The American household, on average, has never looked better on paper when looking at financial stability," with 70% of household debt tied to mortgages. Living in Utah is still expensive, even though the state is now listed as the 10th most expensive state to live in, down from 8th. "It doesn't mean Utah is more affordable, other states are just more expensive." The housing crisis will remain among the biggest challenges, both with affordable housing and overall number of units that need to be built. Governor Spencer Cox has made his intentions known that communities need to prioritize ways to address all housing issues, with a desire to see tens of thousands of single family homes built in the next decade. Way easier said than done, simply because developers cannot be expected to be altruistic when market conditions are competitive and profit margins potentially volatile and risky. He expects rents to increase once absorption is reached. Other items of note: —Consumer Price Index dipped to 2.6%, where it is expected to stay. —Expect growth in wages and employment. —Commercial construction will be primarily flat, similar to the last two years. —Office is flat, medical and industrial markets will continue to grow; industrial may be dictated by international trade. —Utah expects to add 500,000 people in the next decade, and will need a jaw-dropping 275,000 more housing units in that time, primarily along the Wasatch Front. "We need to change the dialogue if we're going to solve the housing crisis," said Eskic. "Currently, 92% of renters are priced out of the market. Construction must be optimized."

Waterworks in the Wilderness

By Taylor Larsen • February 28, 2025
July 23rd, 1847 was a pivotal day for the pioneers. Records from the time detailed how the advance party trekking into the Salt Lake Valley built a dam to convey water from City Creek to freshly plowed land. Years later, the city hired civil and hydraulic engineer Herman Schussler to design a system to bring water through laminated wood pipes to 20,000 Salt Lake City residents while preparing for future growth. Schussler said, in a presentation to Brigham Young in 1872, “I propose to construct the pipe system of the City of such dimensions as to be capable of supplying five million gallons per diem.” While those original pipes couldn’t make it to year two, the design was in place for cast iron pipes to go in their place in 1876. The 37 carloads of cast iron pipe, plumbing tools, water gates, and more came from multiple suppliers from eastern US industrial hubs of St. Louis, Boston, and Louisville, KY. Those collaborative efforts brought modern waterworks “in our lovely Deseret,” collecting water from 19.2 square miles of watershed that feeds the 14.5-mile-long City Creek stream. Modernity Fast forward nearly 150 years, past chlorination that arrived in the 1920s, past the first water treatment facility constructed in Utah, the City Creek Water Treatment Plant in 1953, past filter installation in 1966, and past the canyon reopening for recreational use in 1975—Salt Lake City needed a new treatment facility to keep clean water flowing. The Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities (SLCDPU) partnered with engineering firm Brown and Caldwell in design in 2018 to envision and engineer something new to ensure resiliency and reliable water service to its customers. While the plant escaped any critical damage in the March 2020 earthquake, it was a reminder of the urgent need to create a new facility. Design and construction would work around a coterie of barriers and challenges—keeping operations ongoing while building on a challenging site three miles into the wilderness—to produce the future of water treatment for Salt Lake City.
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