Building Our Local Economy
One of the most important long term objectives we have as a City is to develop our local economy. The goal is to not only attract appropriate new businesses to Ivins but to help those that are here to flourish. We’re fortunate to have the Veterans Nursing Home coming into our midst that will provide numerous employment opportunities for our residents both in the short and long term. It was a focused effort that brought it here and there are other targeted campaigns underway.
As a destination City with limited outside traffic we will likely never enjoy large scale conventional commercial development. But we do have a number of appealing qualities that brought our existing businesses to us and that will be attractive to others in the future. Our natural beauty, serene environment, health, fitness & arts focus, and proximity to Snow Canyon State Park as well as other recreational opportunities top the list.
Red Mountain Resort and Spa was the first to come and continues to grow bringing people from all over the world to Ivins. More recently The Biggest Loser Resort at Fitness Ridge has located here and capitalizing on the NBC television program of the same name has grown rapidly with a diverse and wide spread clientele. Thanks to the Doctors Jones we have Snow Canyon Clinic that draws patients here from everywhere for their sophisticated diagnostic services. We just got lucky with Tuacahn having the perfect natural amphitheater setting in place awaiting the right people with the vision and resources to develop it. Terry Martin had that kind of vision when he created Coyote Gulch and its outstanding arts village that is a magnet for art aficionados.
We have other outstanding businesses in our midst that have flourished here. Troy’s Auto Body, Lightfoots, Red Mountain Market, Xetava Gardens, Sweet Peas Bakery and others offer outstanding products and services close at hand. And when it comes to construction services we have some of the finest craftsmen around whose businesses are based in Ivins.
With an ongoing stagnant economy and gloomy forecasts for the months ahead this seem like a good time for us to band together and support our own. I’ve made a real effort to buy everything I can in Ivins and I encourage all of you to do the same. If you’re thinking about going out to lunch or dinner you can’t do any better than Xetava Gardens or Sweet Peas Bakery. Red Mountain Market is a terrific grocery store. Todd has recently remodeled and made it feel a lot bigger while expanding his product offerings. He has fresh vegetables, meats and baked goods on hand every day and I don’t think I spend any more shopping there than I would at another store. Mike and Joe run Lightfoot’s, a great convenience store and the perfect place to gas up and grab a snack.
If you’re looking for a unique gift Coyote Gulch offers beautiful arts and crafts in all price ranges. Planning an evening out, how can you beat going to a concert or show at Tuacahn? And when it comes to medical, dental and physical therapy services, you simply can’t find better than we have right here in Ivins. If you’re ready to build, remodel or take care of some needed home improvement look for your contractor, sub-contractors or skilled workers here first. I know from my personal experience how capable they are. In addition to all of these we have other professional services and home based businesses that might be useful to you right here in Ivins.
Ivins is a great place to live and we want it to be a great place to work for more and more of our residents in the future. We’ll continue working as a City to make that happen and hope that you’ll do what you can to support our efforts by supporting our local businesses. Buying locally is the best way to keep our businesses open, at least some of our residents working and to boost the prosperity of our community. Thank you for supporting this important effort.
Mayor Chris Hart
