Utah Gov. Spencer Cox pushes local leaders for help with his starter home goal
During Gov. Spencer Cox's 'Built Here' housing summit Thursday, local officials were pressed to do more to help make his goal of building 35,000 starter homes in Utah by the end of 2028 a reality.
But after the two-hour private discussion held in the stately Governor's Mansion, Cox said at a news conference that his message to the 48 mostly Wasatch Front area municipalities represented wasn't about taking them to task.
'It was a collaboration moment more than anything else. It really was about sharing the good ideas. I mean, we've had lots of 'woodshed' moments. It was about going over the numbers,' the governor said.
'I said at the end, 'All I'm asking is that you are all as passionate about this as I am, understanding that the very future of our state hangs in the balance here,'' Cox said, warning all of Utah's top rankings nationally 'go away if we don't solve this in the next five years.'
So far, just over 5,000 starter homes have been built since his 'Utah First Homes' goal was announced in December 2023. Efforts are underway to allow 'starter condo' projects to tap into the $300 million in public funds set aside for loans to builders.
A new statewide housing dashboard launched Thursday by the governor shows the percentage of Utahns who can't afford a median-priced home by county as well as how many new units have been permitted since January 2024 and other data, although some is not yet available.
'It is rough to talk housing. It is rough to look at a situation that you know is a problem and know needs to be addressed, and figure out a way to solve it,' Clearfield Mayor Mark Shepherd told reporters at the news conference.
'It can't just be solved overnight. This problem didn't just all of a sudden pop up,' Shepherd said, adding he did not believe any of the dozen or so mayors standing beside him disagreed with the need for more homes priced for first-time buyers. 'We recognize that we have a problem.'
He said cities are making 'massive efforts' already to 'bring that housing to those that need it.' The mayor said that even though he'd been told that Clearfield was built out, in the last five years there have been more than 4,000 housing units either built or set to be soon.
It takes time and can be costly, requiring local flexibility and technical assistance from the state, Shepherd said, adding many more housing units are expected in the reinvestment zones around transit stops created by state lawmakers several years ago.
'We've got cities doing everything they can to try to make this happen,' the mayor said, although some need to do more. 'We need them to stick shovels in the ground and really make an effort. But the vast majority of cities in this state are making huge strides in housing.'
Spanish Fork Mayor Mike Mendenhall told reporters mayors across the state do share the governor's passion on the issue 'and if we can find a way for this problem not to be political but to be practical, I'm confident that we can solve' the home ownership dilemma.
Part of the discussion Thursday was about how other states have mandated that local governments accept restrictions on their power to control issues like density, something that has failed to gain traction in the Utah Legislature.
Cox, who served in local government himself, said he understood the political consequences for local leaders who support sometimes unpopular housing projects. Everyone wants more affordable housing, he said, but only where it can't be seen.
'There is always a tension between the state and local government,' the governor said, adding he has 'tremendous amount of respect, a tremendous amount of empathy for what they're going through' and that he 'pushed on them, and they pushed on me.'
Cox's senior adviser for housing, Steve Waldrip, said the new dashboard tracking state housing data 'may be a carrot-shaped stick' to motivate local officials. He said when they were asked at the summit whether nothing needs to be done, 'not a single hand went up.'
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