Maverik and its parent company, FJ Management, is a Utah-based gas and convenience store chain that (until recently) operated over 370 locations across Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. The company is one of the largest privately held companies in the United States, with revenues in the billions.
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In April of 2023, the company announced that it would acquire Kum & Go and Solar Transport from Krause Group. 6 months later, the sale has been finalized. Now, Maverik will own and operate over 800 stores in 20 states and employ approximately 14,000 individuals.
“We are excited to welcome Kum & Go and Solar Transport Team Members to Maverik,” said Chuck Maggelet, CEO of Maverik, in a statement. “Together, we’ll offer our customers an adventurous and differentiated convenience store experience across fuel, foodservice, and inside-store offerings. We look forward to using our combined resources to grow our business and further elevate our product offerings to provide the best service to our customers.”
Kum & Go is the 24th-largest convenience store chain in the country and was headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa. To express their support and gratitude for the people of Iowa, Maverik is donating $50,000 to The Des Moines Public Schools Foundation. Maverik’s donation will provide fresh fruits, vegetables, and toiletries at Des Moines Public Schools’ 53 food pantries in schools across the district.
The vista overlooking Utah Lake from Vineyard used to house the Geneva Steel Works. For years, it’s sat barren and empty. Now, 700 acres are being prepared to host Vineyard’s largest development to date: a project called Utah City.
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Developed as a collaboration between The Flagship Companies and Woodbury Corp, this master-planned mixed use community aims to be sustainable, walkable, and transit-focused. Utah City will surpass the Point of the Mountain Development (currently under way and stretching from Lehi to Sandy) by over 100 acres.
Nate Hutchinson, a managing partner of Utah City, emphasizes that this development is intended to cater to everyone – from affluent citizens to those in need of affordable housing. The project officially began with the groundbreaking of 450 multi-family units last week.
By next year, the Huntsman Cancer Institute will break ground, bringing innovation and progress to the heart of Vineyard. The city’s Mayor, Julie Fullmer, has expressed her excitement for the development, grateful for the collaborative efforts involving city leaders, councils, and stakeholders.
Utah City’s master plan was designed by Jeff Speck and the town planning firm DPZ. Utahns will be able to access the community from the 1600 North, 800 North, and Center Street exits along I-15. Utah City will also connect to the Vineyard FrontRunner station.
The project promises 17 million square feet of mixed-use space, 2 million square feet of restaurant space, 2 million square feet of retail space, and 50+ acres of parks and green spaces.
A satellite image of Hurricane Hilary. Photo courtesy of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
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By Charlie G. Patreus
Hurricane Hilary, labeled a Category 4 storm over the weekend, triggered a tropical storm watch in parts of southern California for the first time. California and Nevada anticipate heavy rain from the storm’s movement across the Southwest. Utah’s impact remains uncertain, but heavy rain and thunderstorms are expected. Thunderstorms have already begun to occur in Provo, Springville, and Spanish Fork.
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As moisture from Hilary heads north into the desert areas of the Southwest, flooding concerns are heightened. Hilary’s heavy rain is already flooding Mexico’s Baja California and bringing hurricane force winds to southern California. They’re starting to move northward.
Utah could face monsoon surges, primarily in southern Utah. Cedar City experienced flooding last Thursday evening. Heavy rain across the state is expected by Saturday. Intense rain might occur in central and eastern Utah. It remains to be seen how much water this storm will add to Utah Lake and the Great Salt Lake.
Stay away from small streams, slot canyons, burned forests, and other places prone to flooding. If your neighborhood does flood, remember: “turn around, don’t drown.” Merely 6 inches of water can move a car. A foot of water can consume a car entirely and push it into a current. In the worst scenarios, this could be fatal. In the best scenarios, it requires help from first responders. Be safe out there.
Much has been said about the issues facing Utah’s Great Salt Lake. The Great Salt Lake hit its lowest recorded water level ever in November 2022. Arsenic in the exposed lakebed threatens to poison the air. Scientists at Brigham Young University in Provo estimate that without policy changes, the lake will dry up in 2028, with local species killed off by overly salty water beforehand. Today’s exposed lakebed is currently strewn with the corpses of dead seagulls and swarms of brine flies.
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Even after recovering five feet of new water from this year’s massive snow runoff, the Utah Division of Forestry Fire and State Lands reported it’s not going to be enough to fix the problem. The entire lake still needs to rise another five to six feet – hopefully more. In the 1910s, the iconic Black Rock was completely surrounded by water.
Will we ever refill the Great Salt Lake? One group doesn’t just think it’s possible – they think it’s not a big enough goal.
View of Black Rock surrounded by the waters of Great Salt Lake in the 1910s. Photo courtesy of the Utah State Historical Society.
The ARCH-HIVE is a Utah-based art collective featuring “artists, musicians, writers, and thinkers exploring the unique perspectives & peculiarities of Utah, Mormonism, and the American West.” Art styles include folk, pop, esoteric, and psychedelic art. Known for their stylish design, tongue-in-cheek humor, and crowded art shows, the group frequently engages in quirky meet-ups. For instance: last October, the Mormon art group threw a Halloween gathering in Orem’s University Place Deseret Book – after it became a Spirit Halloween.
On August 12, 2023 they held a “Refill Lake Bonneville Protest” at the Black Rock Historic Site near the Great Salt Lake. The goal of the gathering was to not only save the lake, but to restore it to prehistoric levels. Lake Bonneville was a pluvial lake that covered most of the state during the Late Pleistocene, or Ice Age. The infographic below explains just how big these artists like to dream. And how much they value water over… pretty much all human life.
On the morning of the event, nearly two dozen attendees read poems, shouted protest chants, waved signs, and carried “Definitely Real and Definitely Not Cardboard Mitt Romney” to the shoreline before dumping “no more than 100 gallons” of water into the Great Salt Lake. According to the art collective, several attendees made a specific effort to ensure the water was sourced from outside the state of Utah. From what we observed, all water containers were recycled, and some participants removed existing trash and recyclables from the shore before heading home.
Hot dogs were consumed because the actual definitely-real-and-definitely-not-cardboard Mitt Romney’s “favorite meat is hot dog.” Many also gathered for frozen yogurt directly after the event.
Considering the fact that 2.5 billion gallons of water per day were flowing past the Willard Canal into the Great Salt Lake last May, “no more than 100 gallons” is statistically insignificant and will definitely not solve the environmental crisis. Despite this, The ARCH-HIVE insists that there is “definitely more water there than there was before” and “this is only the beginning.” Commenters on social media seemed to look forward to next year, when “dozens more gallons” would be added.
While certainly not the most effective means of delivering high volumes of water to our region’s iconic lake, if consistency turns this gathering into tradition, it could be a powerful and intriguing way to instill a love of environmental conservation in the hearts and minds of the average Utahn. Who knows?
President Joe Biden, the 46th president of the United States of America, is visiting Deseret territory after a tour of the Southwest. The White House announced the itinerary for his trip this past weekend.
The Deseret News reported that the president will arrive in Salt Lake City on Wednesday and visit the VA hospital in Salt Lake City on Thursday morning. He’ll then visit Park City, Utah for a fundraiser held by Kristi and John Cumming and Nancy and Mark Gilbert. Cumming is the founder of the ski resort company Powdr, and Gilbert is a former US ambassador.
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While First Lady Jill Biden visited a Salt Lake City elementary school two years ago, this is the first time President Biden has visited Utah since taking office. He is expected to discuss the Inflation Reduction Act.
Every president since Herbert Hoover has visited Utah while in office. The last time a sitting president visited Utah was Donald Trump in 2017. Trump has recently been indicted for a third time ahead of an expected presidential campaign in 2024.
Trump won Utah in the 2020 election with 58.13% of votes. Biden received 37.65% of the vote – the highest of any Democrat in Utah in over 50 years. The Libertarian Party – the only third party on the ballot in all 50 states – secured 2.5% of Utah’s vote with Jo Jorgensen and her VP Spike Cohen. Biden recently announced that he would seek reelection. Spike Cohen has become immensely popular on social media and network television, and many Libertarians are hoping for a presidential bid.
Spike Cohen speaking in Taylorsville, MS to raise awareness about the murder of Rasheem Carter.
Who stole your dream? And why did you let them steal it? These are just two of the poignant questions that the St. George Writers Conference plans to discuss on Friday, July 14 in southern Utah.
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“At the St. George Writers Conference, these questions will be addressed – and time will be given for you to answer them for yourself,” says event organizer and author Eileen Telford. “The speakers chosen for this conference all had dreams – and they made their dreams come true.”
Deanna Draper Buck had a dream – to find a book which told powerful scriptural stories in a way that preschoolers would understand. When she couldn’t find one, she wrote one. At the writer’s conference, she’ll share how she fought hard to make her dream come true and found an ally at Deseret Book.
In addition to buck, other speakers include writer Rebecca Lange, graphic novelist Tarl Telford, and event organizer Eileen Telford. Other topics covered include Sweet Romance, Christian Writing, Traditional vs. Indie Publishing, and Cover Design secrets.
The conference will be held at The Washington County Dance Hall in CottonTown Village Square. Breakfast, lunch, and dessert during a post-conference reception will be provided. Tickets can be purchased at StGeorgeWritersConference.com.
Provo Tribune: Local News for the Provo/Orem Area 