Council ratifies Petro as 2024 chair, adopts airport board code changes and defers landscaping vote
January 9, 2024, 7:00 p.m.
The council ratified Victoria Petro as 2024 chair and Chris Wharton as vice chair 7-0, adopted revisions to the Airport Board code 6-0, and closed the public hearing on the Landscaping and Buffers amendment while deferring action. Dozens of residents used public comment to ask the council to support a cease-fire in Gaza.
From the approved minutes. Updated October 14, 2026.
Decisions at a glance
| Item | Result |
|---|---|
| Landscaping and Buffers chapter text amendment (public hearing) | Tabled · 7-0 |
| Ratify 2024 council chair and vice chair | Approved · 7-0 |
| Airport Board code revisions | Approved · 6-0 |
| Consent: set Feb. 6 hearing on Library budget amendment and board appointments | Approved · 7-0 |
Agenda, item by item
Item B1 · City code
Landscaping and Buffers chapter text amendment (public hearing)
Tabled · 7-0
After staff gave a brief introduction, four speakers addressed the proposed Title 21A changes. One speaker urged stronger water conservation leadership and said the rules could cause water waste; another asked to keep the artificial turf ban and not count tree canopy as landscaping cover; a third described being cited by the city for a water-saving yard; a fourth asked that artificial turf not be allowed on city-owned property, including park strips. The council closed the hearing and deferred action to a future meeting.
Item E1 · Other
Ratify 2024 council chair and vice chair
Approved · 7-0
The council ratified the election of Council Member Victoria Petro as chair and Council Member Chris Wharton as vice chair for 2024.
Item F1 · City code
Airport Board code revisions
Approved · 6-0
The council adopted Ordinance 1 of 2024, amending Salt Lake City Code section 2.14 (Airport Board) and 2.07.020. Six votes are recorded in favor; no vote is recorded for Council Member Eva Lopez Chavez.
Item G1-G6 · Appointment
Consent: set Feb. 6 hearing on Library budget amendment and board appointments
Approved · 7-0
On consent, the council set a Feb. 6, 2024 hearing on Library Budget Amendment No. 1 (a 1% cost-of-living increase for library employees and a new safety team position). It approved Nathan Rafferty and Luz Escamilla to the Airport Board (terms ending Jan. 9, 2028), reappointed Van Turner to the Mosquito Abatement District Board (to Dec. 31, 2027), Ginger Cannon to the Parks, Natural Lands, Urban Forestry and Trails Advisory Board (to Jan. 9, 2027) and Tanya Hawkins to the Racial Equity in Policing Commission (to Dec. 29, 2025).
What residents said
Gaza cease-fire resolutionArtificial turfWater conservationTransit fare zone
More than 30 speakers asked the council to back an immediate, permanent cease-fire in Gaza, citing the death toll, humanitarian aid and city tax dollars; one speaker also urged expanding the free fare zone for local buses to the city boundary. Council Members Eva Lopez Chavez and Chris Wharton each spoke briefly in response; Wharton also remembered a longtime District 3 resident and advocate who had died.