This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2007, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Correction: A graphic accompanying a report in Sunday's Tribune about Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson's final year in office combined two of his goals. It should have read: "Forbid motorists from using cell phones while driving. Develop a plan to reduce the city's greenhouse-gas emissions by 70 percent by 2040."
For a lame duck, Rocky Anderson sure is going to be one busy bird.
He has compiled a to-do list for this, his last year as Salt Lake City mayor, and it's classic Rocky.
It's ambitious (there are 108 goals). It covers the controversial (explore the elimination of private-club memberships), the grand (protect and preserve the water supply) and the minute (provide shuttle service for gallery strolls). And it's scattershot, with no prioritization.
With the clock starting today, the mayor must accomplish one goal roughly every three days.
"I wanted to make sure we all kept focused like a laser on these goals," Anderson said. "I don't want to be leaving office with the feeling that we let anything slip through that I wanted to accomplish. I'm certain we'll look back and say, 'I wish we could have had a little more time.' "
The mayor announced last summer he would not seek a third term. He put together a "goal team" in November comprising 19 top staffers, who must report on the status of the goals each month.
Highlights of Mayor Anderson's goals for 2007
Downtown
The Saturday Farmers' Market is wildly successful. So why not one on Sunday? Anderson wants a new market to highlight locally owned shops and services.
The Downtown Alliance hosts the Saturday market at Pioneer Park. Kimberley Angeli, event manager, said there probably wouldn't be enough farmers with enough produce to sell on Saturday and Sunday.
"It would have to be something that's different than the Farmers' Market so it's not a repeat event. I'd love to see it work."
The mayor has long loathed Utah's liquor laws. He has called them "asinine" and "bizarre." And he argues they hamper economic development. So, it's no surprise their demise has popped up on his final wish list.
He is calling for a citizen task force to seek liquor-law reform, including a push to wipe out private-club memberships.
While visitors can find ways around the rules, Bob Brown, owner of Cheers to You and president of the Utah Hospitality Association, agreed memberships need to go. They scare off tourists who - wrongly - believe it's tough to get a drink in Utah.
"It would be fantastic if they would get rid of that," Brown said. "It would help the overall economy. Good luck fighting the [LDS] Church on it."
Other goals:
* Provide Friday-night con- certs at Pioneer Park.
* Develop a strategic plan for a cultural block.
* Create a Celebrity Walk, with handprints, footprints and signatures of local figures.
* Win recognition as one of the top five arts destinations for midsized cities.
Public safety
Studies suggest that motorists who use cell phones may be as dangerous as those driving drunk. The city is exploring an ordinance forbidding cell phones or other electronic devices while driving.
Anderson is reprising his 2005 goal of persuading the Legislature to allow cities to employ PhotoCop, the photo-radar system that catches speeders and drivers who run red lights. And he wants to clamp down on public-nuisance cases such as drug houses, overgrown weeds and party homes.
Other goals:
* Mandate helmets for bicyclists and motorcyclists.
* Require yearly courtesy training for all police officers.
* Ramp up minority recruitment among the police and fire ranks.
Environment
Anderson will not be stopping his crusade to educate the masses and other mayors about the perils of global warming, with his plans ranging from sponsoring youth poetry contests to advocating a more aggressive federal policy on climate-change issues.
Some action items are internal: Develop five- and 10-year climate-protection and air-quality plans to reduce the city's greenhouse-gas emissions by 70 percent by 2040; craft a plan to convert all city vehicles to alternative-fuel or high-efficiency models; change light bulbs in all city buildings to fluorescent or LED.
There also are nuts-and-bolts ideas that will affect residents:
Seattle forbids residents from throwing away recyclables, and Anderson would like Salt Lake City to follow, since estimates show 75 percent of the garbage in America's landfills could have been recycled.
Vicki Bennett, the city's environmental-programs manager, plans to do her "darnedest" to achieve the goals.
"We've got one year with Rocky left in office. We're going to have a lot of challenges, but they're not ones we're not up to."
Other goals:
* Ban idling (except in traffic) for government vehicles and, possibly, all cars in the city.
* Add cans for green waste - on top of the current recycling and garbage bins - but the startup costs could top $3 million.
Mayor Anderson's initiatives
* A Sunday farmers market to highlight locally owned stores and services
* Liquor law reform to eliminate private-club memberships
* Forbid motorists from using cell phones while driving by 70 percent by 2040