PROVO — Google Fiber Small Business, a dog park coming to Bicentennial Park, renewable energy choices, feasibility study for a beach at Utah Lake — these were just some of the announcements and achievements made by Provo Mayor John Curtis on Tuesday during his annual State of the City speech.
Google Fiber Small Biz
Google Fiber changed Provo, Curtis said. When installation is complete throughout the city, he thinks Provo residents will have access to the most consistent and highest speed Internet of any city in the country.
“That’s no small thing,” he said. But Google Fiber Small Business is even bigger.
“This will have more impact on us as a city” than Google Fiber residential, Curtis said. Google will be making announcements on availability in the coming weeks. The service is open for early access in Austin and Kansas City — the other Google Fiber cities — for up to 1,000 Mbps for $100 per month, according to the Google Fiber website.
Renewable energy
Provo residents will soon be able to choose how much of their power comes from renewable sources, like wind and solar. The Provo Municipal Council will vote on the program called Renew Choice at its meeting next week.
Residents will be able to choose whether zero percent up to 100 percent of their power comes from non-coal sources.
Parks
Dog owners around the city have been waiting years for a place to take their pooches to (legally) run free. Curtis announced that beginning in the spring the city will start construction on its first dog park — possibly the first in Utah County — at Bicentennial Park. He didn’t give an end construction date.
Curtis also announced that the city will build a stairway at Lions Park, which was washed out during a rainstorm last year. The city’s Parks and Recreation Department carefully planned so that money was available for the stairs at the city park, which was mainly built by residents of the surrounding neighborhoods.
But the city has many parks planned and land purchased but no money to build, Curtis said. The time might be right for a RAP (recreation, arts and parks) tax in Provo, like other cities, including Orem, have passed.
Another big deal for Provo — the city’s working with the state to figure out if a beach is feasible at Utah Lake State Park.
More progress
Curtis also spent time talking about successes of Provo with national rankings, tech startups and giving residents value for their taxes. The city council’s No. 1 priority this year is a sustainable budget, meaning it wants to make sure tax dollars in the city are spent carefully. All road maintenance is now done in Provo without debt or bonding.
Sustainability also means the council is looking ahead at how the city will fund critical infrastructure in the future, including how to hire more police officers and pay for a new public safety facility. The current facility is 40 years old and wasn’t built to survive an earthquake.
“Our public safety officials are dealing with the same staffing levels as we had decades ago,” Curtis said.
The mayor also commended city employees. Provo has fewer employees now than it did in 2008, but the demand for city services hasn’t gone down.
There is technically a dog park already in Utah County – Willow Dog Park in Lehi – built as an Eagle Scout project. But my understanding is that the fence is only 4′ tall and therefore not a safe dog park, since so many dogs could easily jump a 4′ fence.