Sandy, Utah

Sandy is a city in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, located in Salt Lake County, Utah, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the city had a population of 96,904 people.

Sandy is known for several important places. It is home to the Shops at South Town shopping mall, the Jordan Commons entertainment, office and dining complex, and the Mountain America Exposition Center. The city is also where the soccer-specific America First Field is located. This stadium, which opened on October 8, 2008, is where Real Salt Lake and Utah Royals FC play their home games.

Currently, Sandy is working on creating a new walkable and transit-oriented city center named The Cairns. In January 2017, the city adopted a master plan to guide growth over the next 25 years. This plan focuses on sustainable living, easy walking, friendly design for people, and nature-inspired ideas while managing growth and its challenges. The city center will be divided into different villages to help organize the new developments.

History

Early settlements

Sandy is located at the base of the Wasatch Mountains, thirteen miles south of Salt Lake City. For a long time, groups of Paiute, Shoshone, and Bannock people used the area as they traveled between Utah Lake in the winter and Bear Lake in the summer.

People began settling in Sandy in the 1860s and 1870s because there was plenty of land available in the less crowded southern part of the Salt Lake Valley. The town started with just one square mile of land near the Jordan River. The name "Sandy" might have come from the dry soil, or perhaps from a man named Alexander "Sandy" Kinghorn who helped build the first train line there.

In the early days, Sandy grew because of silver mining in Little Cottonwood Canyon. The town became an important place for processing silver, with three big factories called smelters. The railroad, built in 1873, also helped Sandy grow by connecting it to Salt Lake City.

Incorporation

Sandy became an official town in 1893. Before this, the town had many visitors and temporary residents, which some people did not like. After becoming a town, Sandy changed and became more like a quiet community where families lived. By 1900, there were fewer places for visitors, and the town felt more peaceful.

In the late 1960s, Sandy started to grow quickly. New neighborhoods formed, and the town began to look more like a city with shops, schools, and services. Even though many people thought of Sandy as a place where people lived and worked in Salt Lake City, it grew into a busy area with its own businesses.

The Cairns

In 2014, Sandy City made plans to change its downtown area over the next 25 years. They want to build a new city center called The Cairns. This plan includes adding tall buildings for homes and offices, updating the Shops at South Town shopping place, and creating new walking paths and a theater. The project covers a large area between 9000 South and 11400 South, from Interstate 15 to the TRAX Blue Line. It will have different parts, including a place for offices and shops along State Street, a big area with city offices and a theater, and a place near the train station for homes and shops.

By February 2017, some parts of the plan were already being built, like new office buildings and a theater. More homes and shops are still being worked on, and plans are being made to improve ways to travel between different parts of the city.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, Sandy covers 22.4 square miles (58 km²). Most of this area is land, with just a small part being water.

The eastern part of Sandy, where many homes are, is on the slopes of the Wasatch Range. The western part is in the valley bottom. Interstate 15 and State Street (US-89) pass through the west, and the Jordan River forms part of the border with West Jordan and South Jordan.

Climate

Sandy has either a humid subtropical or a humid continental climate, depending on the climate system used.

Demographics

Sandy, Utah had a population of 96,904 people as of the 2020 census. The median age was 36.7 years, with many families and individuals living in the city.

In 2010, Sandy was the sixth largest city in Utah, with 87,418 people. Most people identified as White, with smaller groups of Asian, Black, Pacific Islander, Native American, and people from two or more races. Some people also identified as Hispanic or Latino.

Education

Sandy used to be part of the Jordan School District, but in 2007, people voted to split it into two districts. Now, the Canyons School District is the main school district in Sandy. It started in the school year of 2009–10.

The city has many schools, including 18 elementary schools, six middle schools, and five high schools. There is also a technical school called Canyons Technical Education Center and a private Catholic elementary school named Blessed Sacrament School.

Sandy is also home to Salt Lake Community College's Miller Campus, which offers training in automotive skills, cooking, business, and public safety. The University of Utah has a campus in Sandy for adult learners that opened in 2015.

Sports

Sandy is the home of the Real Salt Lake, a Major League Soccer team started in 2004. They play at America First Field on the city's west side. The city is also where the Utah Royals team plays. They are part of the National Women's Soccer League and share the same field. Sandy has a practice place for the Utah Mammoth and will have a new one for the Utah Jazz in 2027.

Transportation

Roadways

The roads in the city follow the same grid system as the rest of Salt Lake County. I-15 runs along the western side of Sandy, with three exits located in the city. U.S. Route 89 runs parallel to I-15 through the city as State Street, and Utah State Route 209 runs east/west, ending within the Wasatch Range at Alta Ski Resort.

Bus

The Utah Transit Authority (UTA) has a bus system that serves the city. It includes regular routes, special FLEX routes, and a ski service route. These buses connect to light rail stations, shopping areas, office parks, and government offices. The ski bus runs from Historic Sandy TRAX station to Alta Ski Area and Snowbird during the season.

Rail

UTA's TRAX light rail system serves Sandy. The city has four light rail stations: Historic Sandy, Sandy Expo, Sandy Civic Center, and Crescent View. All of these stations are on the Blue Line, which goes to Salt Lake Central Station to the north and Draper Town Center to the south.

Notable people

Sandy, Utah has been home to many interesting people. Some are well-known athletes like professional football players Ryon Bingham, Doug Jolley, and Dalton Schultz. Others include actors such as Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Craig Richard Nelson, and dancers like Derek Hough and Julianne Hough.

The city has also been home to notable figures in other fields, such as Apa Sherpa, who helped set a record for reaching the top of Mount Everest many times, and Elizabeth Smart, who became an advocate after being kidnapped.

In the media

The 1992 TV movie Deliver Them From Evil: The Taking of Alta View is based on an incident that happened in Sandy in 1991.

Elizabeth Smart was found walking with those who had taken her in Sandy nine months after she was taken from her home. This event was shown in a CBS movie called The Elizabeth Smart Story.

The made-up HBO drama Big Love takes place in Sandy.

Local media

Sandy has its own newspaper called the Sandy City Journal. It is a tabloid-style paper that reports on local government, schools, sports, and special features for the community.

Sister cities

Sandy has two official sister cities, as recognized by Sister Cities International.