Conditions have worsened in the Rio Grande area of Salt Lake City in the past few months. Officials have ensured us change is coming soon. Utah Speaker of the House Greg Hughes set up a “war room” within view of the downtown mess. Salt Lake City Chief Mike Brown has tripled police patrols in the area in an effort to curb illegal drug trafficking.
Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams, a lawyer by training, wanted to do his due diligence. Personally. With nothing but a bag of clothes, his iPhone and a tarp, last March McAdams walked from his county office to the downtown homeless district to experience what it was like to be homeless in Salt Lake City.