Godfrey for Ogden mayor
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he thing about Junction City has always been this: Its boosters have tended to overdo the praise, and the critics have oversold the doom and gloom. Ogden was a rail town, abandoned by the railroad companies. It has languished during the intervening decades, casting about for another identity -- a hook to hang its Stetson on, so to speak.
We forget it now, but those wandering and wondering years were not without significant, lacerating controversy: Various factions of the community argued bitterly over building the Ogden Eccles Conference Center, Lindquist Field, restoration of Peery's Egyptian Theater, the sale of John Affleck Park and even the refurbishment of the Municipal Building.
But Mayor Matthew Godfrey's notion of making Ogden the hub of the ski, outdoor and high-adventure recreation industries has taken root and is achieving demonstrable economic results. For example, more snowsport manufacturers call Ogden home than any other city in the country. And now the city is beginning to add other outdoor sports companies and organizations to its roster. Godfrey and his economic development team are largely responsible for that.
Challenger Susan Van Hooser certainly doesn't want to apply the brakes to such success, but she says she decided to apply for a vacancy on the city council and run for mayor because she saw the community being "torn apart" over the proposed urban gondola, Malan's Basin resort and possible sale of Mount Ogden Golf Course and surrounding park lands.
We agree that the polarizing effect of the gondola debate has been a corrosive issue in Ogden. But Godfrey has since pledged not to sell the golf course or surrounding park lands and trails owned by the city, and that any urban gondola would have to be funded through private capital. The move showed that Godfrey does listen to his constituents and the issue has receded -- even though his constant critics have attempted, without much success, to keep it alive.
Godfrey's aggressive pursuit of economic development has achieved undeniable results. Where the moribund Ogden City Mall once stood, now there are movie theaters, the Salomon Center, office buildings under construction and being occupied, and condominiums on the rise. Thousands of Internal Revenue Service and other jobs are downtown in renovated space that was formerly home to pigeons and cobwebs.
Business Depot Ogden is an unqualified success, Historic 25th Street has continued to blossom and the long-gestating RiverFront Project is proceeding to revitalize sections of downtown along the Ogden River.
It's clear, too, that while economic development is the overriding issue in the mayoral race, other matters are important. With recent high-profile gang shootings, Ogden residents are on edge. Both Godfrey and Van Hooser agree that more police officers specializing in gang enforcement are necessary. Both, it appears, have massaged the city's crime statistics to favor their respective candidacies.
And both are taking a wait-and-see approach to an estimated $138 million in needed repairs to the city's decrepit water and sewer infrastructure. Godfrey says "growing" the economic pie via business development will increase city tax revenue to pay for the repairs, but that rate hikes will likely be necessary, as well. Van Hooser agrees that while rates may need to be raised, Godfrey hasn't "pushed" the issue along with the city council during his two terms in office.
When the Standard-Examiner's Editorial Board decided to resume recommending candidates after a 35-year hiatus, one of several reasons was our concern for the preservation of open government. Too many state and local officials behave cavalierly when it comes to open meetings and withholding public documents.
In Ogden's mayoral race, ironically, the candidates cancel out each other on the topic of open government -- they've both failed the test.
To obtain public information from Mayor Matthew Godfrey's administration, this newspaper has been forced to file open-record requests via the Government Records Access and Management Act.
And as for challenger Susan Van Hooser, appointed to the city council a year ago: Her first vote on the council was one to remove from public view information about herself and other applicants for council vacancies, which makes her criticism of Godfrey for hostility toward open government nothing short of two-faced.
In the final analysis, the editorial board recognizes that Godfrey has produced results for Ogden. Evidence of his success is everywhere to see, and his continued leadership is necessary to propel Junction City ahead.
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