City of Marriott-Slaterville

January 30, 2025

City of Marriott-Slaterville

Where Rural Heritage Meets Smart Growth

 

Hospitable roots and innovative development are driving growth without losing its charm

Located in northern Utah, Marriott-Slaterville offers a distinctive blend of rural charm and strategic development. As Utah’s only designated open space city, it sits approximately 40 minutes north from downtown Salt Lake City and its international airport. “Marriott-Slaterville is primarily a rural community,” Mayor Scott Van Leeuwen explains. “We’re Utah’s only open space city, but we’re trying our best to blend the general population’s needs into our buildings and subdivisions. It’s difficult to marry those two together and keep that very rural atmosphere in our city.”

The city’s strategic location has influenced its development approach, particularly along the 12th Street corridor. City Administrator Bill Morris describes the area’s thoughtful design as follows: “What we’ve tried to do is capitalize on the beauty of the West here through our architecture and design standards for businesses. If you look at the buildings, they look like something out of the West with rock and wood architecture that really highlights the mountains and the beauty you see here in the Intermountain West and northern Utah.”

Vice President of the Marriott-Slaterville City Council, Erin Holley, emphasizes the natural splendor that defines the area. “We have a lot of agriculture, and it is beautiful to drive around and see fields of alfalfa and corn. We have a dark sky ordinance that allows us to actually go outside at night and see the stars without light pollution.” The city’s efforts extend to its waterways and wildlife habitats. “About a year ago, I was driving home from taking my daughter to high school and saw 14 eagles in the trees. We have some beautiful wildlife here,” Holley adds.

Smart Growth Meets Rural Heritage

The evolution of Marriott-Slaterville’s downtown corridor exemplifies how thoughtful urban planning can preserve rural character while fostering economic vitality. Morris outlines the city’s strategic vision for its Central Business District: “We’ve got the Best Western hotel, Jeremiah’s restaurant, and some other restaurants and gas stations. The new IFA Intermountain Farmers Centre is starting to build out and it looks great.” The area’s appeal extends beyond retail, with direct access to outdoor recreation. “You can hop on the trail down by the Weber River and it runs all the way up to Ogden Canyon, with access to the Bonneville Shoreline Trail System,” Morris adds.

The city’s forward-thinking approach to mixed-use development has garnered statewide recognition. “We’re looking at updating some of the plans to have mixed-use in the 12th Street corridor,” Morris explains. We’ve got an apartment complex that provides multifamily housing, and we’re exploring concepts with first-level commercial and second, third-level residential spaces.” This innovative planning earned Marriott-Slaterville the Governor’s Quality Growth award in the early 2000s for its general plan, business districts, and trail system.

Drawing inspiration from the urban planning book “Rural by Design,” the city has implemented cluster and conservation subdivisions and strategic development approaches. “We’ve been able to compact development onto a smaller footprint and cluster houses outside of areas like the river, floodplain, and high-value USDA farmland to preserve those areas,” Morris notes. The city council’s recent purchase of a 45-acre conservation easement, adding to similar easements and preservation areas, along the river corridor demonstrates this commitment to preservation.

The city’s innovative approach includes agriculture and sustainability. “We’ve received a $300,000 state grant for our agriculture program – we’re the only city in the county with one,” Morris explains. The program supplies fresh, locally grown produce, meats, and dairy products to seniors, homeless shelters, and domestic violence shelters. This initiative has earned Marriott-Slaterville the Healthy Utah Award and sparked interest from local restaurants looking to source ingredients locally, like successful models in Oregon and Colorado.

 

Community Spirit Drives Growth

While managing infrastructure expansion and economic development, Marriott-Slaterville focuses on building a connected community through innovative financing approaches and robust youth engagement. The arrival of Amazon’s facility prompted the city to implement creative financing solutions. “We split it into a CRA – Community Reinvestment Area – where we use tax increment financing or TIF funds from property tax to fund improving the infrastructure,” Morris explains.

This approach helps maintain the city’s efforts to keep costs low for residents. “We have offset that tax responsibility onto residents because we can use the tax income and financing generated through these projects to help fund them rather than having to raise taxes,” Morris notes. The strategy allows for sustainable growth while preserving the city’s distinction as one of Utah’s only municipalities that does not impose a municipal property tax.

Beyond infrastructure, the city takes pride in its comprehensive youth programs. “We’ve got the biggest youth program in the state despite being one of the smaller cities,” Morris proudly states. These initiatives have created a vibrant community atmosphere that residents cherish. Holley, who works closely with young people in the community, shares her enthusiasm: “I love working with the youth, and they provide great events for the community.”

The youth program’s impact is discernible during major community celebrations. “Our city has a big 4th of July celebration, and the youth provide games for the kids – they do a great job,” Holley explains. Perhaps most notably, the youth council initiated a veterans appreciation dinner that has grown significantly. “When we first started the youth council, we asked them what kind of ways we could serve our community. They came up with the idea to honor our veterans,” Holley recalls. “The event has grown so much that our venue has had to change to an extensive area where we can provide dinner and a program, and they have created a beautiful, touching video tribute.”

Balancing Growth with Green Space

As Utah grapples with a statewide housing crisis, Marriott-Slaterville faces the challenge of addressing residential needs while preserving its unique character as its only open-space city. Mayor Van Leeuwen addresses the delicate balance the city must maintain: “We have a couple of pretty big developments on the horizon. We’re doing as much as we can to make the legislature happy and take care of some of the housing problems, yet still maintain our identity as Utah’s only open space city. Not a day goes by that somebody doesn’t stop me and say, ‘I sure enjoy living in your city.'”

One significant development in progress encompasses approximately 100 acres along the Weber River and 12th Street corridor, just west of the business district. “About 25 acres are going to go into housing with approximately 200 units that are conceptually approved,” Morris explains. While the project is undergoing redesign with a new developer, the focus remains on affordability. “There’ll be some townhomes and single-family homes that will be affordable for people dealing with the housing crisis,” he adds.

This mixed-use development reserves 30 acres for commercial development, attracting interest from various sectors. “There’s some healthcare providers looking to maybe go there, a grocery store, and some other concepts,” Morris notes. However, the city’s focus on environmental stewardship remains paramount – approximately 30 to 40 acres of floodplain will be preserved as open space. “The city will run it as a nature area. We can preserve the natural habitat there. When the flood years come, it’ll take the pressure off the river so we don’t flood, and it will be a beautiful old growth forest forever in perpetuity,” Morris emphasizes.

Regional Collaboration and Historical Legacy

In the complex landscape of municipal governance, Marriott-Slaterville has cultivated strong partnerships with neighboring communities to address shared challenges and opportunities. The development of the northern business park exemplifies this cooperative approach. “We’re working with our neighboring city, Farr West,” Morris explains. “Part of that development is in Farr West, part of it’s in our city, so we’re coordinating on how we’re going to divide the funds from that project.”

Mayor Van Leeuwen’s leadership style emphasizes regional cooperation. “He works well with the other mayors, coordinates with them, and handles all of those affairs,” Morris notes. This collaborative spirit encompasses partnerships with larger neighbors, including coordination with Ogden’s 100,000-plus population on east border issues and exploring cost-saving initiatives and a trail system with West Haven City on the south border.

The shared trail system with West Haven City reflects the cities’ intertwined geography and history. “The river’s the border, and we’ve got the confluence of the Ogden and Weber rivers in Marriott-Slaterville,” Morris notes. “That’s where a lot of history took place back in the early pioneer days – the frontier’s month, the trappers’ rendezvous, the native Shoshone. We like to capitalize on that history, preserve it, and build it into our central business district and tourism concept.”

This historical significance shapes modern development plans. “People can go down there and ride their bikes, enjoy those trails not far from the hotels, and have walks along the river,” Morris explains. However, the area presents unique challenges, including addressing the needs of transient populations who come through on the railroad, adding to the city’s affordable housing considerations.

Leadership Through Community Connection

The success of Marriott-Slaterville’s balanced approach to development stems from its leadership’s deep personal connections to the community and its collaborative problem-solving. For Morris, the foundation of public service was laid early in life. “I grew up here in the city, and our family had instilled in us the value of community service through local congregations, religious organizations, and different programs,” he reflects. “As a Boy Scout and Eagle Scout, the people who influenced me were my neighbors and the leaders in the community at the time.”

The art of collaboration requires a delicate touch, particularly when navigating complex municipal relationships. Holley emphasizes the human element in these interactions: “Sometimes that’s not easy and emotions can run high, but relationships are the most important part about collaboration. The way to keep a level head is to try to understand where those you are collaborating with are coming from and what the greater needs are.” She points to Mayor Van Leeuwen’s approach as an example: “He respects them and they respect him, and that’s really important.”

Mayor Van Leeuwen brings a unique perspective shaped by witnessing the evolution of small-town life. “I was born in a smaller town in Marriott-Slaterville, and it was a lot more rural. As I grew up, I saw that town change, and when I moved to Marriott-Slaterville, I thought there ought to be something I can do to kind of mesh the old and the new together and not lose our identity,” he shares. This vision drives his leadership style: “It’s been so rewarding and so much fun to kind of be the father of this community. I’ve learned to listen, to see and understand the other guy’s position and be able to tell them what my position is.” This overall leadership demonstrates why Marriott-Slaterville is considered one of the best, well-managed cities in Utah, population under 10,000.

 

Future Vision Rooted in Heritage

Marriott-Slaterville’s ambitious 18-month roadmap weaves agricultural innovation, infrastructure enhancement, and historical preservation together. These initiatives build upon the city’s agricultural foundation while creating modern amenities that serve residents and visitors, all while maintaining strong ties to its founding families.

“Expanding our agricultural projects is one of our biggest priorities because we are an agricultural city,” Holley explains. “We are working with Anne Dunaway who helps us run our Farm-to-Table and related agriculture programs. She uses part of the city’s open space to run this garden and has elementary schools come for field trips to learn about agriculture. She works with restaurants in Ogden City so our farmers can share their locally grown produce.”

A cornerstone of this agricultural renaissance involves transforming a piece of local history. “We got an old dairy building from the Rose Lawn dairy that operated in the early 1900s,” Morris shares. “We’re applying for a grant to renovate that building and turn it into a year-round farmers market plus we’re going to have a commercial kitchen where we can have classes about how to make food, can food, preserve food, or dehydrate – all sorts of interesting, fun things we can do in that venue.”

Infrastructure improvements complement these cultural initiatives. “We’ve got two road projects providing better linkage, pedestrian traffic, curb gutter sidewalk, and trail systems,” Morris details. “You’re looking at $8 million for 1200 West and $5 million for 17th Street, plus upgrades to sewer and secondary water. We’re also applying for a CDBG grant to put in park restrooms and park facilities along the trail system on 17th Street near the Ogden River.”

The Marriott family’s ongoing involvement adds a unique dimension to the city’s development. For instance, the city’s oral history project, supported by the Marriott family, captures the voices of longtime residents. “Russ Marriott would conduct interviews with residents aged 80 or older,” Morris explains. “Those interviews are sent to Weber State University for their Western Digital Library oral history project.” The family’s involvement extends to practical support: “They’ve invested funds to help sustain our senior center and given our senior library a computer lab over the years.”

Mayor Van Leeuwen sees these various initiatives as part of a larger pattern of steady progress. “We’re working on a lot of these different projects to make a big improvement to our city, but all of them are little steps,” he reflects. “Just to be able to continue to work with these guys is a big plus for me. To watch the improvements in our city is pretty fulfilling.” In Marriott-Slaterville, these small steps are creating giant strides toward a future that honors its past while embracing innovation – a rare blend that keeps residents and the city’s founding family coming back home.

AT A GLANCE

City of Marriott-Slaterville

What: A unique municipality that combines agricultural preservation, strategic development, and historical heritage while maintaining its status as Utah’s only open-space city

Where: Weber County, Utah

Website: www.marriott-slaterville.org

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Marriott-Slaterville – www.marriott-slaterville.org

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January 2025

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