The Outdoor Industry Association has announced that after next year, Salt Lake City will no longer host the Outdoor Retailer show, which has called Utah home for 20 years. Some companies, like Patagonia, had said they would not participate in the shows because of the Utah Legislature’s opposition to the new Bear’s Ears National Monument and desire to shrink the size of the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument.
According to the Deseret News, Paul Edwards, the governor's deputy chief of staff, said "It smacks of gross ingratitude to a community that has embraced the Outdoor Retailer show, subsidizing its success and expansion through direct investment—let alone extraordinary hospitality."
At stake is at least an estimated $50 million annually, according to a study by Visit Salt Lake and the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute.
We want to know what you think about this. Are Governor Herbert and Utah Republicans right in expressing caution about expansion of a federal role in public land management in Utah? Is this the right move by the OIA in moving the Outdoor Retailer show out of Utah? What is best for the economies of areas adjacent to National Parks and Monuments: Tourism and Outdoor Recreation, Extractive Industries, something else?
