It’s been more than 12 years since Kathie Johnson served as a member of the South Jordan City Council–which she has rejoined after winning the election last November. And though the community has changed a lot, her love for the city has not. 

“I really enjoy being involved in the community,” she said. “It just seemed like a good time to try for the council again when the seat in District 2 came open. I’m very excited to be serving on the council again.”

She was a council member from January 2008 to December 2011. Before and after that term, she has been active on the city’s Planning Commission, the Architectural Review Committee, the Southwest Valley Chamber of Commerce, the Women’s Republican Club of Salt Lake City (where she was president for 2014-2015) and working with Justice Court Mediation.

The biggest difference from her first term to now is the city’s growth.

“Our family moved to South Jordan 33 years ago, and since then we have experienced many changes in our family and the community,” Johnson said. “Our children have grown up in South Jordan and now have their own families and careers. South Jordan has also grown during this time and has faced many challenges.” 

Johnson said South Jordan’s population went from just over 53,000 in 2011 to more than 86,000 today. Much of that growth has come from the creation and expansion of the Daybreak area.

“The challenge of keeping up with the increased demands for essential services of fire, police, roads, sewer, water and parks continues today,” she said. In that regard, she feels the two biggest issues for the city are traffic and economic growth.

“The largest concern in my district, and really the community as a whole, is traffic,” she said. “It’s flowing east to west and there are more cars than ever before. It would be great if we can get Mountain View completed and create a true corridor that would benefit all the cities on the west side of the valley. That has largely to do with decisions the state makes, so we need to continue working with them to get the road fully developed.”

Second on her list of priorities is economic growth, a key for the city to keep the impact of taxes lower on residents.

“We need to work with good commercial partners and help grow Daybreak into what we envisioned for it,” she said. “There is a lot of land west of Daybreak that has been annexed into the city. We need to monitor that so we can see how it’s developed. That can be done through the connections we make with businesses and builders.”

She said the state is under pressure to open up more stacked housing, which means more apartment buildings near single-family housing areas. That growth has been stymied, she said, by the stagnated national economy, something she hopes will change once the country gets back “on the right track and inflation decreases.”

Her campaign gave her a chance to meet with many of the constituents in her district.

“It took me two and a half months to go door to door. I gave out 3,400-plus copies of the Constitution of the United States and had the opportunity to find out their concerns about South Jordan. I have 32 maps covered with notes from these conversations. I am grateful to all who spoke with me. I am impressed with their insights and desire for our community to be a haven for all its residents. I am genuinely grateful for the time they spent speaking with me.”

During those weeks on the campaign, she said the kindness of the community “especially moved me; when the weather was hot, you offered me water to drink, and when it was cold, many offered gloves for my hands or to come into your home to get warm. I know South Jordan will continue to be a great place to live because of you.” λ