MEDIA ADVISORY
 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                         
 
Salt Lake City – August is National Medicine Abuse Awareness Month. Utah has one of the highest prescription drug abuse rates in the nation. The Salt Lake City Mayor’s Coalition on Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs is committed to raising parental and community awareness of the dangers of prescription drug abuse and to provide proven ways to reduce it. Research shows that eliminating availability is the single most effective strategy for preventing youth from abusing prescription drugs.
 
 
Who:               Abbie Vianes, Coordinator, Salt Lake City Mayor’s Coalition on
                        Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs
                       
                        Leah Ann Lamb, Assistant Director, Utah Division of Water Quality
 
When:            10:30 a.m., Tuesday, August 26th
 
Where:           Foyer of Pioneer Precinct Police Department – 1040 West 700 South
 
What:             More than half of teens who report abusing prescription medications say
                        they got the drugs at home, from a parent or a relative, or from a friend.
                       Teens and their parents have a false sense of security, mistakenly believing    it is safer to abuse prescription medication than street drugs.   This issue demands the immediate action of parents both by learning the facts and safeguarding medications at home as well as talking with teens about this very real health threat. Adults are advised to inventory and monitor medications in their homes, keep drugs in a secure location, and
properly dispose of leftover or expired drugs.

Information will be given on how to properly dispose of prescription drugs.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
  
SALT LAKE CITY – Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker will join City Council Members Carlton Christensen and JT Martin to detail the proposed Carbon Footprint Reduction Joint Resolution at a press conference tomorrow.
 
During the press conference, City leaders will explain their plan to reduce the Capital City’s carbon emissions by 50 percent within the next 32 years.
 
 
WHO:             Mayor Ralph Becker
                        Councilman Carlton Christensen
                        Councilman JT Martin
 
WHAT:          Press Conference Announcing Carbon Footprint Reduction Joint Resolution
 
WHERE:       City Council Chamber
                        Salt Lake City & County Building
                        451 South State Street
                        Salt Lake City, Utah

WHEN:          Tuesday, August 12, 2008
                        10:00 a.m.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                            
 
SALT LAKE CITY – After a nationwide search, Mayor Ralph Becker announced today the appointment of award-winning professional planner Wilford Sommerkorn as the new Planning Director for Salt Lake City. Sommerkorn has served as the Director of the Davis County Department of Community & Economic Development since 1994, where he worked in various roles for more than 27 years.
 
Mayor Ralph Becker remarked, “Wilf Sommerkorn brings the expertise, experience, and well-deserved respect from planners in Utah and nationally. He completes a leadership team at our Department of Community and Economic Development that will provide superb guidance to achieve Salt Lake City’s potential as a great American City.”
 
“I’m looking forward to the new challenges and opportunities that will come with working in Utah’s Capital City,” said Sommerkorn “Throughout the interview process, I was very impressed with the high caliber of staff and the widespread enthusiasm throughout the City for improving the Salt Lake City Planning Division.”
 
Sommerkorn has had a long and distinguished career in urban planning which has included work for the Transportation Research Center at the University of Tennessee, Centerville City, the Wasatch Front Regional Council and the Davis County Council of Governments.

Sommerkorn, who was raised in Salt Lake City, earned a Master of Science Planning (MSP) from the Graduate School of Planning at the University of Tennessee Knoxville and an undergraduate degree in Physical Geography from the University of Utah.
 
He has been active in professional planning organizations including the American Planning Association, Urban Land Institute, Utah Economic Development Alliance and the Alliance for Regional Stewardship. 
 
Locally, Sommerkorn has also been active in Envision Utah, the Utah Quality Growth Commission, and the Davis COG Transportation Task Force.
 
Sommerkorn will assume his new position on August 25, 2008.    Photo available upon request.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 
SALT LAKE CITY – Following a nationwide search, Mayor Becker will announce today the appointment of Salt Lake City’s new Planning Director. The announcement will take place at a 10:00 a.m. press conference in the Buzz Center (Rm. 215) at the City and County Building.
 
The appointment of the City’s new Planning Director is has been a long anticipated move toward completing the reorganization of the Planning Division which began several months ago.
 
WHO:             Mayor Ralph Becker and Other Speakers
 
WHAT:          Press Conference Announcing New Planning Director
 
WHERE:       Buzz Center (Rm. 215)
                        Salt Lake City & County Building
                        451 South State Street
                        Salt Lake City, Utah

WHEN:          Monday, August 11, 2008
                        10:00 a.m.
 

MEDIA ADVISORY
 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                           

Session will Also Answer Questions about Upcoming Truth in Taxation Hearing
 
Salt Lake City – Salt Lake City Corporation is seeking to educate and inform residents of Salt Lake about City financing and what services they fund.  To accomplish this, City administrators are hosting an information session on Thursday, August 7, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. in the City & County Building. Members of the City’s budget team will be on hand to present and answer questions on the topic.
 
The objective of the session is to address municipal government and taxation issues proposed in the FY 2009 budget. As was widely reported, this year, Salt Lake City faced the largest budget gap in City history. Salt Lake City budget planners made the decision to receive the same amount of property taxes for Fiscal Year 2009 as it did in Fiscal Year 2008, which was greater than originally projected.
 
The information session, which will explain that decision in greater detail, precedes a Truth in Taxation hearing scheduled for August 12. The hearing is required by Utah law when a taxing entity proposes to collect more revenue than was budgeted for the previous year.
 
WHO:            Salt Lake City Budget Administrators 
 
WHAT:          Municipal Taxation Information Session
 
WHERE:       Salt Lake City & County Building
                        451 South State Street, Council Office Work Room
                                   
WHEN:         Thursday, August 7, 2008 7:00 p.m.
 
The public information session was rescheduled from Thursday, July 31 to Thursday, August 7, 2008 and will be held at the City & County Building rather than the Main City Library.