May 2023 | Vol. 20 Iss. 05
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MIDVALE MAYOR OPTIMISTIC FOR THE CITY’S FUTURE By Peri Kinder | peri.k@thecityjournals.com
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hether he’s greeting musician Post Malone at Raising Cane’s, skateboarding at Copperview Skatepark or painting a wall during the mural festival, Midvale Mayor Marcus Stevenson brings a youthful energy to the 114-year-old city. It’s been a little more than a year since Stevenson was sworn-in as the 22nd mayor of Midvale. At 27, he was the youngest mayor the city had ever elected. Stevenson has learned some hard lessons during his first year in office, but he’s also made big strides and he’s excited to move forward. “I think that as a community we’re in a really interesting place where we have so many exciting things going on,” he said. “There’s so much good happening here but we also have some pretty intense struggles and challenges, like homelessness and poverty.” Stevenson has promoted open communication since he took over as mayor. He wants residents to be engaged in city issues and values the feedback he’s received. The Engage Midvale platform, launched a year ago, encourages residents to take surveys about things like transpor-
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tation, Main Street development and planning for the three TRAX stations. It’s a tool to help residents be actively involved in decision making. As he’s learned the intricacies of government leadership, he feels better prepared for the challenges ahead. One big problem Stevenson faces is how the city will reorganize the police department once the Unified Police Department is dissolved in 2025. The city also deals with high levels of youth violence. “Midvale has one of the highest rates of youth violence in the county. We have been doing a lot of work to provide more opportunities for the youth in our community,” he said. “We’ve got incredible community partners trying to make sure we’re bringing in more youth programming.” Good things happening in Midvale include the revitalization of Main Street. The city’s first mural festival was held last year that encouraged businesses along the historic street to allow artists to paint murals on the outside walls. The festival was
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Marcus Stevenson just completed his first year as the mayor of Midvale City. At 27, Stevenson was the youngest mayor the city has ever elected. (Photo courtesy of Midvale City)
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