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Lindon mayor to retire after two decades of service

By Laura Giles - Herald Correspondent | Dec 6, 2021
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Lindon Mayor Jeff Acerson speaks during a ceremony of the grand opening of the new headquarters Tuesday, April 4, 2017, at the new Aquatherm North America headquarters in Lindon.
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LaMont Wright invites Jeff Acerson, Mayor of Lindon, to play his organ during a Meals on Wheels route Thursday, March 23, 2017 in his home in Pleasant Grove.

Longtime Lindon city leader Jeff Acerson will be handing over the mayoral reigns soon as he concentrates on other duties in the county. Acerson has served as the mayor and on the city council for a total of 21 years in public service.

“It’s hard to step away, but I will continue to find ways to serve. I love the people,” Acerson said. “Lindon has grown in a great way. We have been very blessed — great retail, wonderful residential. We’re not a big city, but we have been very blessed.”

Acerson and his wife, Karen, moved to Lindon in 1991. That year, they were asked to head up the Lindon Days celebration.

“That was our first initial experience in community service,” he said. Next, he was asked to head up the moving of a historic home from State Street to Pioneer Park.

“We made the decision to move it brick by brick. We brought the community together and we literally moved it bit by bit and it has been reestablished in the park,” he said. Acerson’s involvement in the community goes back to teachings on the topic from religious leaders.

“I’m a member of the LDS Church. I heard President (Gordon B.) Hinckley encourage individual citizens of communities to become involved. I thought, ‘I live here. I should step forward and at least offer myself to be a servant,'” he said.

That is when he first decided to run for public office. “I got elected, served and was mentored by many great individuals. I’ve enjoyed every bit of it.”

Acerson served on Lindon’s city council from 1998-2005 and again from 2012-2014. He served as mayor from 2005-2007 and then again from 2014-2021. Since Lindon City’s incorporation in 1924, he has served in the office of mayor longer than anyone else, according to city administrator Adam Cowie. Just after his first term as mayor, from 2007 until 2010, Acerson and his wife served a mission for their church in Italy.

“One of my guiding principles when I first became mayor years ago was that I wanted to get the people together, talking things through. I felt very strongly about that. I felt like, to resolve conflict, the number one thing you need to do as a civic leader is to ensure that everyone has a voice in an environment where they don’t feel threatened. I’ve always tried to set that tone,” Acerson said.

For example, there are not time limits when citizens are addressing the council. While Acerson realizes that there may be a need for that at times, he believes it is important that citizens feel empowered and that they have a voice. Acerson said that Lindon has always prided itself as being a little bit country — but there is still growth.

“Part of the challenges with all of the growth that is coming is to plan for that growth without losing the culture of the city. There are some real pressures to try to solve the housing crisis, affordability and also transportation issues. It’s an ongoing challenge. You can have smart growth or you can have growth,” he said. “I prefer to let everyone’s voice be heard and plan well.”

“Mayor Acerson has been a humble leader and a stalwart example of service to the community. He and his wife Karen are pillars of giving,” Cowie said. “After a successful career in the software development industry, Jeff dedicated a significant portion of his life to community and ecclesiastical service. I think most people who know Mayor Acerson would agree that he lives his life by the motto, ‘Because I have been given much, I too must give.'”

Cowie said that the Acersons hosted the city’s Mayor’s Thanksgiving Dinner event for eight years, doing much of the preparation work and obtaining donations themselves. “The event has fed several thousands of patrons over the years,” he said.

Additionally, Acerson spent time every fall helping out by picking up of bags of leaves after residents set them at their curbs. “He has collected thousands of leaf bags during his time as mayor. He has mentioned that he enjoys meeting people in the community and providing service to them,” Cowie said.

“Mayor Acerson’s most lasting impact on the community may be his desire for a temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to be located within Lindon City. I believe that through his efforts, several Lindon City area properties came to the attention of church representatives. He was joyful and humbled that a temple site was selected in Lindon,” Cowie said.

Acerson will continue his service to community as he works as a one of three full-time trustees of the Utah Transit Authority board representing Utah County.

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