

City Cast Salt Lake
City Cast
City Cast Salt Lake is Salt Lake City’s daily news podcast. Host Ali Vallarta and a bevy of smart and entertaining locals will bring you conversations about the issues that matter most to SLC. Some days City Cast will make you proud; other days it’ll make you angry. It will celebrate Salt Lake’s triumphs, (try to) solve its mysteries, and explore its history. City Cast will help you feel more connected to the Wasatch Front – whether you’ve lived here for 6 months or 6 generations.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Sep 8, 2023 • 27min
Great Salt Lake Lawsuit, Election Results, and Dogs in Grocery Stores
Big news this week with a primary election, a lawsuit to protect the Great Salt Lake, and households with dogs outnumbering households with kids in Salt Lake City. Producer Ivana Martinez joins lead producer Emily Means to break it all down and share their picks of the week.Subscribe to our daily morning newsletter. You can find us on Instagram @CityCastSLC and Twitter @CityCastSLC.Learn about the drama surrounding Celeste Maloy at the Republican GOP convention. Catch up on the CD2 primary election rundown with KSL Radio reporter Lindsay Aerts. Looking to advertise on City Cast Salt Lake? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads.

Sep 7, 2023 • 23min
How To Romanticize Life in Salt Lake
It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of your to-do list. Today, we invite you to slow down and romanticize your Salt Lake life with us. Producer Ivana Martinez and Hey Salt Lake newsletter editor Terina Ria join lead producer Emily Means to share the little Salt Lake City things that bring them joy. Subscribe to our daily morning newsletter. You can find us on Instagram @CityCastSLC and Twitter @CityCastSLC.Looking to advertise on City Cast Salt Lake? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads.

Sep 6, 2023 • 17min
The Best Indie Bookstores in Utah
Cozy season incoming! The leaves and temperature are hinting at the arrival of fall in Salt Lake, and we can’t wait to curl up with the new book we got from an independent book shop. Looking to branch out from big-box stores? Provo-based author Whitney McGruder is on a quest to visit every locally owned bookstore in Utah and shares her top picks with producer Ivana Martinez.Whitney’s favorite bookstores:
The Legendarium in Salt Lake City
Poppy Books and Gifts in Spanish Fork
Find Whitney’s books here.Try the Fellowship of Indie Utah Bookstores challenge, and get your map stamped when you visit any of the bookshops listed. Subscribe to our daily morning newsletter. You can find us on Instagram @CityCastSLC. Looking to advertise on City Cast Salt Lake? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads.

Sep 5, 2023 • 26min
Why the Congressional District 2 Primary Matters
Primary Election Day is here! Some Salt Lake County residents have municipal races on their ballots. But the big-ticket item — for Republican voters in Congressional District 2 — is the GOP primary to replace outgoing Rep. Chris Stewart. KSL Radio reporter Lindsay Aerts joins lead producer Emily Means to break down the differences between the three candidates and explain the significance of this race.How and where to vote on Primary Election Day in Salt Lake County.Catch up on the hot election goss about the Republican candidates from the CD2 race.The Salt Lake Tribune has a handy breakdown of which cities in Salt Lake County have municipal primaries.Subscribe to our daily morning newsletter. You can find us on Instagram @CityCastSLC and Twitter @CityCastSLC.

Sep 1, 2023 • 28min
Sanctioned Camping by Winter? Food Co-Ops, and the Library Is Unionizing
Salt Lake City has named an ambitious timeline for opening a new sanctioned campground: this winter. But where will it go? Building Salt Lake editor Taylor Anderson joins lead producer Emily Means to round up the week’s news, including the far-off opening of a new cooperative food market. Plus, Taylor and Emily share their picks of the week.Listen to our conversations with the three mayoral candidates:
Mayor Erin Mendenhall on homelessness
Rocky Anderson on homelessness
Michael Valentine on homelessness
Our interview with Andrew Johnston, Salt Lake City homeless policy director, on a homeless state of emergency and sanctioned camping.Subscribe to our daily morning newsletter. You can find us on Instagram @CityCastSLC and Twitter @CityCastSLC.Looking to advertise on City Cast Salt Lake? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads.

Aug 31, 2023 • 17min
When a Tattoo Is More Than Body Art
Earlier this month, the Utah Museum of Fine Arts opened the Tatau: Marks of Polynesia exhibit, which explores the art, tradition, and history of tatau (Samoan tattooing). Lead producer Emily Means talks with Verona Mauga, cofounder of the Pacific Islander advocacy organization Le Malu, about this tradition and its revival, as well as her own tatau experience.The exhibit runs through December. You can find out more and get tickets here.Subscribe to our daily morning newsletter. You can find us on Instagram @CityCastSLC and Twitter @CityCastSLC.Looking to advertise on City Cast Salt Lake? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads.

Aug 30, 2023 • 24min
Your Guide to September in Salt Lake
September gets a bad rap. It’s kind of an awkward month that’s bookended by the end of summer and the start of fall. But producer Ivana Martinez and host Ali Vallarta argue it’s one of the best times of the year. They round out their best bets for you to try this month to make this September one to remember. Here are some of the events and places we talked about in this episode:
Utah State Fair
Celebración Sinfónica
Night Lights at Deseret Peak Complex
Salt Lake Bees games
Sundance Resort Scenic Lift
Woodland Biscuit Company
Nobletts Creek Trail
Broadway Centre Cinemas
Midway Swiss Days
Snowbird’s Oktoberfest
9th and 9th Street Festival
Avenues Street Fair
We also mentioned the book “Golden Axe” by local poet Rio Cortez, and this episode about the best nearby hikes. Vote for City Cast Salt Lake in City Weekly’s Best of Utah competition.Subscribe to our daily morning newsletter. You can find us on Instagram @CityCastSLC and Twitter @CityCastSLC.Looking to advertise on City Cast Salt Lake? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads.

Aug 29, 2023 • 20min
What's the Salt Lake Accent?
From “oh my heck” to dropping our Ts, many Utahns have a special way of speaking. Lead producer Emily Means talks with theater professor and dialect coach Stacey Jenson about the origins of the Utah accent and what defines it.This episode originally aired Aug. 29, 2022.Take the Hey Salt Lake Utah phrases quiz.Subscribe to our daily morning newsletter. You can find us on Instagram @CityCastSLC and Twitter @CityCastSLC.Looking to advertise on City Cast Salt Lake? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads.

Aug 28, 2023 • 20min
Housing, Ski Beaches, and Other Ways Park City is Changing
The affordable housing crisis isn’t unique to Salt Lake City. In Park City, there are more jobs than residents, which means lots of people commute into town each day. So how will the city government get workers housed and out of traffic? KPCW reporter Parker Malatesta joins host Ali Vallarta to break down what housing projects are in the pipeline as well as other developments that could majorly change the trajectory of the ski town.Take the bus from Salt Lake City to Kimball Junction.Subscribe to our daily morning newsletter. You can find us on Instagram @CityCastSLC and Twitter @CityCastSLC.Looking to advertise on City Cast Salt Lake? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads.

Aug 25, 2023 • 28min
Primary vs. Caucus, an Olympic Relic Returns, and a Backstreet Boy’s Blanky
Enjoy the primary election while it lasts, because the Utah GOP is forcing Republican voters to go to caucus night for next year’s presidential election. Salt Lake Tribune reporter Andy Larsen joins host Ali Vallarta to break down the impacts of ditching primaries. Plus, Ali’s white whale — the Hoberman Arch — makes its triumphant return. And the new face of Utah-based Minky Couture is … a Backstreet Boy.The Salt Lake Tribune’s voter guide for municipal primary elections in Brighton, Bluffdale, Cottonwood Heights, Draper, Murray, Sandy, West Jordan and West Valley City.The full list of early voting locations, dates and hours in Salt Lake County.Subscribe to our daily morning newsletter. You can find us on Instagram @CityCastSLC and Twitter @CityCastSLC.Looking to advertise on City Cast Salt Lake? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads.