As I have pondered how to describe American Fork and what a lovely place it is to live, work and visit, I reflect on how easily one can maneuver through our city. You do not have to go far to find anything you desire.

More than 100 restaurants reside in American Fork, offering any cuisine that you may like, or you can buy a car of any make or model from our various dealerships, and if you want to stop for a quick sweet roll from a bakery along with a coffee on your way to work, or have a missionary leaving, we have what he or she needs.

The City of American Fork has a tradition of upholding a high quality of life for its citizens. In every department, we are committed to providing excellent services that enhance living in our City. We are proud of our accomplishments, and look forward to an ever-improving future. I would like to mention just a few of the great amenities we enjoy in the City of American Fork, and one way we are looking to improve our city in the coming years.

The American Fork Library is not just a place to get books — it’s also a place to bring the community together. As a gathering center, the library hosts numerous community events such as art shows, Christmas in the Rotunda, early voting and author visits. Our library offers programs to promote and encourage early literacy for toddlers and preschoolers, as well as ways for school-age children and teens to prevent summer learning loss. In addition, the library provides lifelong learning opportunities and resources for adults such as Now You Know @ Your Library, Adult Summer Reading Program and free internet access.

The Bryan McKay Eddington Learning Center is housed on the library’s lower level. It provides homework help, one-on-one reading, tutoring and tools to promote academic achievement. Since its inception, the Learning Center has experienced phenomenal growth and success measured by the increased number of students using the facility. Local teachers have commented on the improvement in the performance of their students who attend the Learning Center’s programs. The dedicated staff and volunteers of the Bryan McKay Eddington Learning Center genuinely care about the children they serve and helping them to realize their full potential.

American Fork City has long been a hub for arts in Utah Valley. Residents and visitors alike enjoy our vibrant arts culture. Our Arts Council, as part of the Timpanogos Arts Foundation (TAF), sponsors numerous arts events each year that contribute to our quality of life.

This summer, we sponsored our annual free concert series, which was held at the American Fork Amphitheater. Community arts groups also put on plays, including the play “Barnum,” a wildly fun production about the circus and “Seussical Junior.” The play had a cast of 50 children, involved more than 200 volunteer hours, and was attended by over 800 people.

Even with summer ending, American Fork has a lot going on. On November 14, 15, and 17 the American Fork Youth Theater will present their teen production of “Legally Blonde Junior.” Our Arts Council also offers visual arts classes for all ages, youth theater programs, ukulele classes at our historic City Hall and more. American Fork is also proud to have our own symphony, the Timpanogos Chorale, The Wasatch Winds and our own Children’s choir, each of which performs at least three times each year. The arts are an influential and wonderful part of the City of American Fork’s culture and heritage.

Each year, several thousand residents and visitors participate in City recreation programs. We have sports team leagues for all ages, more than 300 acres of parks, biking trails, a boat harbor, golf course, and a local fitness center. American Fork is also home to the regional Art Dye Park, where residents and visitors from all around the region come to play sports and spend time with their families.  

Excellence in education is a key component of American Fork City’s quality of life. This is one reason the City of American Fork is proud to be a part of the Alpine School District (ASD). ASD has great facilities, faculty, and students, and continues to improve. For the past 10 years, Alpine School District has seen a consistent positive trend in the percentage of children passing proficiency exams in math, science and English. In fact, Alpine schools are now well above state averages in all of these subjects. We are excited to see such excellence and continuous improvement in American Fork schools.

Residents also enjoy easy access to wonderful health care. American Fork Hospital has a commitment to providing high quality, affordable health care. In October, the hospital will open an 84,000-square-foot expansion of its emergency and surgical services.

The hospital’s commitment to improving the overall health of patients extends well beyond their walls with targeted health initiatives, such as the American Fork Canyon Half Marathon and 5K to benefit cancer patients and Girls’ Night Out with a focus on women’s health. As a community hospital, American Fork Hospital provides a broad range of services to meet a family’s needs, including emergency, surgery, critical care, imaging, labor and delivery, cancer, general medical and other outpatient and diagnostic services.

Residents of American Fork are provided the highest level of pre-hospital emergency medical services of anywhere in the State, as each crew of our first responders has paramedics who are qualified to the higher level of critical care.

Paramedics with this higher level of training not only assist residents in their time of need, they do so in support or our inter-facility patient transport partnership with American Fork Hospital.

In closing, with all that American Fork has to offer, you will understand why it’s a wonderful place to call home; but we are always looking for ways to improve. In November, our citizens will consider adding one-tenth of a percent to our sales tax to fund facility improvement projects for our Parks, Arts, Recreation and Culture (PARC) programs. This PARC Tax initiative will appear on the ballot this November for the citizens of American Fork to vote on.

Although we will not be the first to adopt a PARC tax, we are thrilled to see the success that our neighboring cities have had with the tax. Orem City has its own PARC tax and has seen tremendous success, as the tax has provided funds especially for its parks and arts facilities. In American Fork, we expect that a PARC tax would generate an estimated $600,000 per year to be used solely for Parks, Arts, Recreation and Culture, which would help fund some great projects.

To see what life is like in American Fork, check out the six minute video posted on our website (afcity.org). In it, you’ll see what it’s like to “Live, Work, and Play” in the City of American Fork.

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