School district disbanding, memorable election and a fallen officer mark the year in Utah County
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- A hearse carrying fallen Santaquin police officer Sgt. Bill Hooser follows a funeral procession Monday, May 13, 2024.
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- Sgt. Bill Hooser of the Santaquin Police Department was killed by a semitruck driver on Sunday, May 5, 2024.
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- Actor Kevin Bacon stands between a student and volunteer while packing essential resource kits at Payson High School on Saturday, April 20, 2024.
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- The outside of the Alpine School District Board of Education office in American Fork is shown Monday, Dec 30, 2024.
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- An American Airlines aircraft sits at a gate at the Provo Airport as passengers prepare to board a flight to Dallas/Fort Worth on Monday, Oct. 7, 2024.
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- Master Officer Joseph Shinners
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- U.S. Rep. John Curtis greets supporters during a election night party Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, in Provo.
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- Voters stand in line outside of the Lehi public safety building on election day, Nov. 5, 2024.
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- The Orem Utah Temple is pictured Sunday, Jan. 21, 2024, the day it was dedicated.
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- The Provo Utah Temple, with its statue of the angel Moroni removed, is pictured Friday, April 19, 2024, amid construction cones as renovation work is underway.
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- Utah County Commissioner Tom Sakievich speaks during a meeting at the Utah County Administration Building in Provo on Wednesday, March 29, 2023.
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- This undated photo shows Mark Ott, the founding dean for Brigham Young University’s new medical school.
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- This September 2023 photo shows the exterior of the new Primary Children’s Hospital Larry H. and Gail Miller Family Campus in Lehi.
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- People celebrate while watching a live feed from Paris at the moment the International Olympic Committee awarded Salt Lake City the 2034 Winter Olympics on Wednesday, July 24, 2024, in Salt Lake City.
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- A duplex is engulfed in flames after an explosion on Wednesday, March 20, 2024, in American Fork.
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- Main Street in Payson, pictured Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, is closed and under construction.
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- A couple swing dances during the Roaring ’20s Throwback party at the Wadley Farms Castle in Lindon on Saturday, Feb. 3, 2024, as part of festivities celebrating the 100th anniversary of the city’s incorporation.
History was made and milestones were marked in Utah County last year.
While students at one local high school achieved what some deemed the impossible by persuading a major movie star to return to their campus, voters chose to split up the state’s largest school district.
Meanwhile, problems sprouted at various polling locations on election night, while concerns were raised about ballot tracking by the county clerk.
From the announcement of a new college-level medical school to a life lost in the line of duty, the year sparked a wave of emotion, excitement and anticipation among residents and elected officials.
Here are some of the top stories from 2024:
Santaquin police officer killed on duty
The city of Santaquin was left devastated after the loss of Sgt. Bill Hooser, who was killed while performing a traffic stop on the morning of May 5.
According to authorities’ description of events, the 50-year-old Santaquin officer died after he was intentionally hit by a semitruck driver, later identified as 42-year-old Michael Aaron Jayne, who allegedly was evading a traffic stop on Interstate 15 near the Santaquin Main Street exit.
According to police, Jayne reportedly fled the scene on foot before stealing multiple other vehicles and driving over 100 miles east to Vernal, where he eventually was arrested.
Multiple processions were held in honor of Hooser, transporting the fallen officer from the medical examiner’s office back to his hometown, where police, first responders, community members and others gathered to pay their respects to the police officer.
Funeral services were held the following week at the UCCU Center on the campus of Utah Valley University in Orem.
The Utah County Attorney’s Office announced nine charges against Jayne, and in October the office announced it would seek the death penalty against Jayne.
A preliminary hearing in the case is set to begin May 12.
Bacon sizzles at Payson High
What started as an idea that spread virally on social media turned into reality for students at Payson High School when actor Kevin Bacon showed up to campus on the day of their prom in April.
In early 2023, students set out on an ambitious mission to somehow persuade Bacon to come back to Payson, the city and school where portions of the 1984 classic film “Footloose,” starring Bacon, was shot.
The catalyst was based on getting the actor to return to Payson one last time before the school is torn down later this year.
First, they had to get Bacon’s attention. But thanks to social media and the hashtag #BaconToPayson, the actor got wind of the students’ efforts.
In February, Bacon appeared on national television to personally deliver the news live on air before an auditorium of students, saying he’d come back to the school.
On April 20, the day finally arrived when Bacon once again sat on the campus of Payson High.
Multiple organizations were involved in turning this dream into a reality, including the Utah Film Commission, Promise to Live and Encircle Utah, who partnered Bacon’s own nonprofit, Six Degrees. Students participated in building 5,000 resource kits to support families and youth in Utah and nearby states during a charity event before prom that evening.
Voters take ax to Alpine School District
November’s general election resulted in a historic move, when voters approved two separate measures to split up Utah’s largest school district.
In April, city councils in 10 municipalities within the district voted to initiate the process of creating interlocal agreements. One such agreement was to form a new district to serve students in the north-central area of the district, while the other was concentrated on the northwest part of the county.
Those cities decided to explore going off on their own after reviewing results of a feasibility study conducted by Florida-based MGT Education.
However, four remaining cities in the district opted against entering into any agreements.
In August, following a 45-day comment period, 10 cities voted unanimously to put the decision in voters’ hands.
The two ballot measures, propositions 11 and 14, both garnered significant support to create new districts, tentatively called the Central School District and the Lake Mountain School District.
By default, a third district will be created encompassing schools in Lindon, Pleasant Grove, Orem and Vineyard.
By the fall of 2027, the Alpine School District will fall into dissolution, subsequently ending its more than 100 years of education.
American Airlines takes flight
Momentum continued to soar at the Provo Airport with the addition of service by American Airlines.
In April, the airline initially announced it would begin service from Provo with two daily routes to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and one daily flight to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
Ahead of the October launch, American Airlines added a third daily flight to Texas from Provo.
On Oct. 7, inaugural flights on American Airlines landed at and took off from Provo.
The launch of American Airlines furthers the Provo Airport’s desires to offer international travel options.
Shinners’ killer put away
The trial for the man accused of killing Provo police officer Joseph Shinners in 2019 came to a close this year.
In a March jury trial, Matt Hoover was found guilty of murdering Shinners. In July, Hoover received his sentence: life without parole.
Provo District Judge Kraig Powell issued the verdict and called Hoover’s criminal history “serious, extensive and cruel.” The Provo Police Department commended Powell for the verdict and said, “Justice is accountability.”
Shinners died Jan 5. 2019, when he was shot in the passenger side of a pickup truck while attempting to arrest Hoover outside an Orem shopping center.
Dramatic election cycle
An eventful election in 2024 saw several Utah County-based politicians run for office at the national and state level.
John Curtis, the former Provo mayor and representative of Utah’s 3rd Congressional District, is taking Mitt Romney’s seat in the U.S. Senate after Romney chose not to run for a second term. Curtis defeated Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs in the Republican primary, then Democrat challenger Caroline Gleich of Park City to reach office.
The dominos continued to fall from there.
Winning the congressional race to replace Curtis was another Utah County resident, state Sen. Mike Kennedy of Alpine. After Kennedy resigned from his position in the Utah Legislature in anticipation of becoming a congressman, Pleasant Grove’s Brady Brammer won a special election to take Kennedy’s spot.
Meanwhile, one Utah County elected official made waves leading up to and during the election. Prior to the general election, Utah County Clerk Aaron Davidson admitted he had kept track of the method by which some public officials voted, publicly targeting state Sen. Mike McKell for not putting a stamp on his ballot.
In response, Utah County Commissioner Amelia Powers Gardner called for Davidson to rescue himself from overseeing the election, though Davidson refused.
On Election Day, printing issues combined with a high in-person turnout resulted in long delays at Utah County locations and elsewhere around the state. Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson responded by saying Davidson got caught “flat-footed” in his election preparation.
New temples on the way
On Jan. 21, leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints dedicated the Orem Utah Temple, which became Utah County’s sixth operating temple.
In February, the Provo Utah Temple, which sat on the city’s east bench, officially closed for renovations as part of an extensive redesign. Days before the temple’s closure, the church’s First Presidency officially announced that the temple will be renamed the Provo Utah Rock Canyon Temple.
The Provo Utah Temple was demolished in May.
In April, during the faith’s 194th general conference, President Russell M. Nelson announced that 15 new temples will be built around the world, including in Lehi. The new 85,000-square-foot, multistory temple will be built near the intersection of 3950 North and Center Street, just north of Timpanogos Highway, a press release issued in April said.
Details regarding the Lehi temple’s groundbreaking or a timeline for construction have not been revealed.
County commissioner resigns
There was a major shake-up in the three-person Utah County Commission when Commissioner Tom Sakievich resigned for health reasons in September.
Sakievich was diagnosed with brain cancer in December 2023. After the diagnosis, he said he did not have plans to seek reelection after his term ended in 2024, but he intended on seeing his term through.
But in March, Chair Brandon Gordon called for Sakievich to step down, saying his extended absence was impacting the commission.
Sakievich resigned six months later, concluding four years of service in his role. He released a letter that said, “I need to focus my energy on my family, my health, and my recovery.”
Delegates for the Utah County Republican Party selected Lehi resident Skyler Beltran to fill in for Sakievich on the commission in September. Beltran then won the general election in November to fill the seat for the next term.
BYU medical school announced
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints made a big move in the education realm in July by announcing its plans to bring a medical school to Brigham Young University.
When completed, the program will be the fourth medical school in the state and the first owned by the church.
Little information was released this year on the timeline to open the school, though the university said it will construct an on-campus building to provide classroom instruction and administrative needs, while clinical work will be conducted at off-site hospitals. BYU is discussing a clinical relationship with Intermountain Health.
The church said a major focus of the new school will be on international health issues affecting members of the faith.
Dr. Mark Ott, a former surgeon with Intermountain Health who held a number of prior appointments at prestigious medical schools around the county, was named the medical school’s dean.
Primary Children’s Hospital opens in Lehi
Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital opened a second location in Lehi in February, giving pediatric care in Utah County a major boost.
The new campus includes a 486,000-square-foot children’s hospital, an outpatient center, a trauma center and a medical office building.
Intermountain Health said the new campus was part of its plan to build the nation’s “model health system for children.” The initiative requires a minimum investment of $600 million, the health care company said, and some of the highest-profile families in the state donated to the cause.
Chairwoman of the Larry H. Miller Co. Gail Miller donated $50 million, while Vivint Smart Home Inc. co-founder and former CEO Todd Pedersen gave $35 million.
Among the many features in the hospital is the state’s first walk-in pediatric behavioral health crisis center, a 119-bay emergency department, trauma services and an inpatient behavioral health unit.
Honorable mentions
Olympics returning to Utah
The International Olympic Committee announced in July that the Winter Olympics will return to Salt Lake City in 2034, 32 years after Utah first hosted the games in 2002.
Provo played a role in hosting the games the first time around, as the Peaks Ice Arena was built and hosted men’s and women’s ice hockey competitions. Plans indicate the venue will repeat in 2034.
An economic impact of the return of the games could be north of $6 billion, according to the University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute.
Deadly home explosion
On March 20, an American Fork neighborhood was rattled after an early morning home explosion that left a 78-year-old woman dead.
A report released last month, nearly nine months after the fact, revealed the likely cause as an increase in natural gas due to a valve being left open the day prior to the explosion.
According to the fire department’s investigation, the furnace ignition mechanism was found to be the source that ignited the explosion after natural gas reached flammable levels.
The findings ultimately deemed the incident was accidental but could have been prevented with proper awareness.
Payson Main Street revitalized
Payson’s Main Street received a bit of a facelift in 2024.
A number of infrastructure updates were made to the road through its historic district, closing it from January to October.
Water, sewer and storm drains were updated, and landscaping improvements were made, including a water feature and colored concrete.
The project placed a burden on businesses along the road during construction, but there’s optimism the updated area will help bring more people downtown.
A centennial celebration
In 2024, Lindon celebrated its 100th anniversary.
The city hosted events each month highlighting the history and progress of Lindon.
Thousands gathered during the city’s annual Lindon Days celebration in August. The weeklong event served as a callback to the city’s pioneer days.
Last month, a newly remodeled Historic Museum was unveiled inside the Community Center, as well as a centennial mosaic featuring Lindon people, places and landmarks over the years.
