
Introduction
Salt Lake City holds a special place in the hearts of millions of people for many different reasons. Some think of Salt Lake City as the guardian of the Greatest Snow on Earth. Two hundred and thirty four of the world's top winter athletes remember the gold, silver and bronze medals they earned here. Thousands of families each year celebrate the best winter vacations they've ever had.
Some look to it as the center of a growing and global religion. Others see the vast genealogical resource and genetics research that are nondenominational outgrowths of that Mormon faith. Still others see Salt Lake City as a base from which to explore magnificent national parks, or as a place to see the vast and still Great Salt Lake or incredible expanse of the Bingham Copper Mine.
Salt Lake is all of these things.
But to most of us - the million or so who call themselves Salt Lakers and the 180,000 who live in the city proper - Salt Lake is simply home. Salt Lake is our home because of the plentiful work opportunities that allow us to support our families and lead full lives. Home because of the four-season recreational activities that are close at hand. Home because of unique and varied arts and culture. Home because of top-notch research universities that are exploring the next frontiers of knowledge. And home because of great neighborhoods that are beautiful and welcoming, offering an enviable quality of life.
Keeping Salt Lake a special place takes awareness, thought, dedication and resources. Downtown Rising was created not just to keep Salt Lake City vibrant, but to guide Utah's capital to new heights. Through extraordinary participation by community members from all quarters over six months, this visioning process has resulted in a multitude of ideas - large and small, bold and restrained - for shaping downtown's future.
This vision, this blueprint for tomorrow, details those dreams of a "lifetime of expectation."