Herriman's share of the county recreation bond is $13.13 million, led by two fields of the Southwest Athletic Complex

HERRIMAN — Salt Lake County voters will decide on Nov. 3 whether the county may issue general obligation bonds in an amount not to exceed $128,000,000, maturing in no more than eleven years, for repairing, completing, acquiring, constructing or renovating open space, natural habitat, parks, community trails and recreation facilities 2. Three of the bond's 30 projects are in Herriman, listed at a combined $13,130,000, and $10,000,000 of that is assigned to the first phase of the Southwest Athletic Complex 3.

The city's notice, published Oct. 20, describes the proposal as 30 projects across 25 locations in three categories — Repair, Complete and Build — and states that the Build category would fund two recreation centers, additional trails and an athletic field complex in Herriman 1. The county divides the $128 million into $35.8 million for Repair, $21.1 million for Complete, $62.3 million for Build and $8.8 million for project contingency 2. Among the five cities this paper covers, Herriman is the only one with projects on the list 3.

The Southwest Athletic Complex is listed at $10,000,000 for Phase 1A: two athletic fields, lighting, a restroom facility, paved parking with drop-off zones, 20-foot landscape buffers along Teton Ranch Drive, storm drainage infrastructure and a pedestrian trail connection under Mustang Way 3. The county's conceptual master plan for the site draws 14 fields of 330 by 210 feet or 360 by 210 feet, 962 parking stalls, a maintenance building with restrooms, a sports complex operations pavilion, a bridge crossing of Midas Creek, realignment of an existing trail, and a parcel labeled "future Jackson Park" 4. The Deseret News reported on Aug. 19 that the city's communications manager, Jonathan LaFollette, described the complex as planned west of Mountain View Corridor between 11800 South and 12600 South, and Phase 1A as the first two fields with parking, restrooms and concession areas able to host small tournaments 6.

Butterfield Trailhead Regional Park is listed at $3,000,000 to construct Phase 2: natural-surface multi-use trails extending into Butterfield Canyon, new trail connections, drainage management, trailhead signage and environmental measures aligned with the Southwest Canyons Master Plan 3. The park opened on Aug. 31, 2023 with more than 13 miles of multi-use trail in the Southwest Canyon Trails Network, a partnership of Salt Lake County Parks and Recreation, Kennecott Rio Tinto and the Bureau of Land Management, and the county states that use of the park is specific to trails 11. The county's trailhead master plan drawing, dated July 2025, shows day-use parking, a maintenance building with a storage yard and public restrooms, a plaza with a sign kiosk, equestrian parking, a viewpoint with benches and a connection to the Bonneville Shoreline Trail 12.

The third Herriman item is $130,000 at the J.L. Sorenson Recreation Center: evaluating the pool's fabric duct system, preparing construction documents and installing structural bracing for existing pool piping 3. The center is operated by Salt Lake County Parks and Recreation 15.

The city states that the land for the athletic complex is secured but that the complex itself remains a proposal, "not currently funded or guaranteed," and that Herriman cannot commit to constructing it without additional funding 7. The city acquired a contiguous 56-acre site by trading city-owned land to a developer; under the trade the 29-acre Creek Ridge parcel, across the future extension of 6400 West from the complex site, changes from a regional park to 136 single-family homes 7.

Herriman engaged Victus Advisors and Think Architecture in October 2022 for a feasibility study and market survey, delivered Sept. 1, 2023 9. That report estimated current demand for up to 16 to 18 rectangular fields for weekday and weekend tournament use, rising to 20 to 22 fields within five to 10 years, and found that the 43-acre Phase 1 site could hold up to six full-sized fields; Construction Control Corporation estimated Phase 1 at $35.9 million, Phase 2 at $40.5 million and Phase 3 at $44.6 million toward a 22-field master plan 9.

On Oct. 22, 2025 the city council awarded planning, design and construction management services to Consor Engineers, LLC for $470,190 including a design contingency, voting 5-0 8. City Engineer Bryce Terry told the council the city had invited five firms and received four proposals, and that Consor scored highest with a cost proposal of about $400,000 against a range up to $2.3 million; the minutes describe a 57-acre property intended to accommodate approximately 14 to 15 athletic fields 8. At a July 8, 2026 work meeting, staff reported on design work and recent Salt Lake County grant applications for early project phases 14. On Aug. 26, 2026, the mayor told the council that the county council had approved parameters for the recreation bond, which she said includes $10 million for the complex 13.

On the county side, the council approved a $100 million bond on Aug. 4, 2026 and raised it to $128 million on Aug. 18, adding a recreation center at Ron Wood Regional Park in West Jordan and a Salt Lake City project; the amended resolution passed 7-1, with Councilman Carlos Moreno voting in opposition and citing "big concerns about the process," as reported by KSL in the Deseret News 6. The bond's projects were proposed through a municipal application process and prioritized by a 16-member Recreation Bond Advisory Board before council approval, and the county's guidelines state that funding is secure only if the bond passes and the council approves the full budget in December 105.

On cost, the ballot language states an annual property tax for the new bonds estimated at $16.39 a year on a primary residence at the county average value of $658,000, and $29.80 on a business or secondary residence of the same value, with a net increase of $0 per year because outstanding bonds are being repaid 2. The same language states the figures are estimates and not a limit on the taxes the governing body may be required to levy 2. It also states that average annual combined net operating and maintenance costs for the facilities during their first ten years are projected to require additional annual expenditures of $4,710,200, and that the county will determine during its next budget cycle whether that requires budget cuts or a tax increase 2. The county's release states that the bonds are planned to replace debt from bonds authorized in 2016 that will be paid off soon 5. LaFollette told KSL the city projects the finished complex would raise nearly $600,000 in annual tax revenue for the county 6.

Under the county's published schedule, election results are certified at the Board of Canvassers meeting on Nov. 18, 2026, projects are officially approved after the bond passes and the council approves the full budget in December, and contracts are delivered to recipients by the end of March 10. The county states the bonds would be issued as two smaller issues totaling approximately $128 million over the next five years, each maturing approximately 10 years from issuance 2. The county also states that every city was asked to submit project ideas and that a community board reviewed the submissions to spread projects across the county 2. The city directs residents to the county's bond page to review the project list, funding breakdown, estimated financial impacts and ballot information before Nov. 3 1.