Mayor’s Message 2026 State of the City

Lyle Holmgren, Mayor January 2026

“I had faith in the development of the town of Tremonton.”

— David Holmgren, Mayor of Tremonton, 1927-31

As I reflect on my time serving as Mayor, and sixteen years on the City Council, I am filled with gratitude—for the people of Tremonton, for the opportunity to serve, and for the steady progress our community has made together.

When I began my service as Mayor in 2022, I committed to providing a clear annual State of the City and a monthly Mayor’s Message—not simply as reports, but as a way to remain accountable, transparent, and connected. I also committed to focusing on Tremonton’s long-term needs: infrastructure, water security, economic vitality, and community gathering spaces—while honoring the character and heritage that make our city home.

Looking Back: Our Focus in 2022 At the beginning of my tenure, Tremonton was experiencing strong economic momentum alongside continued growth. While that growth brought opportunity, it also required careful planning to ensure that infrastructure, water systems, Main Street, and public spaces could keep pace responsibly.

Key priorities identified in 2022 included:

· Securing long-term water reliability

· Revitalizing Main Street and creating meaningful public gathering spaces

· Preparing infrastructure for continued growth

· Strengthening partnerships and pursuing outside funding to reduce the burden on local taxpayers

· Preserving Tremonton’s agricultural roots while planning responsibly for the future

What We Accomplished Together By the end of my tenure, Tremonton is stronger, better prepared, and more resilient, having continued the steady progress passed forward from those who served before me.

Midland Square now stands as a true community gathering place—honoring our veterans, hosting events, and providing residents with a central place to come together. What was once an underutilized space has become a point of pride and connection.

Main Street revitalization reshaped the heart of our city, and it would not have happened without extraordinary community service. I want to recognize the Main Street Steering Committee, whose members devoted countless hours to listening, studying, debating, and helping the City Council thoughtfully consider what a stronger, more vibrant downtown could

become. Their work guided planning decisions, informed design choices, and ensured revitalization reflected both Tremonton’s heritage and its future.

Water security, one of the most critical issues facing our community, also saw major progress. Tremonton expanded its secondary water system, conserving culinary water while ensuring future capacity. The Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) system will strengthen our ability to manage water resources wisely, protecting both residents and agriculture.

When I began my tenure, water was the most common concern I heard from residents—questions about long-term supply, growth pressures, and preparedness for the future. Through careful planning, infrastructure investment, and—just as importantly—the conservation efforts of our residents, Tremonton made meaningful progress.

In 2025 alone, our community conserved more than 200 million gallons of culinary water. That achievement reflects not only secondary water infrastructure improvements, but a shared commitment by residents to use water wisely. It is a powerful example of how planning, partnership, and individual responsibility can come together to protect a vital resource for future generations.

Through strong state and regional partnerships, Tremonton secured more than $4.5 million in grant funding to support infrastructure, water projects, planning efforts, and community improvements while easing the burden on local taxpayers.

These accomplishments were not accidental. They were the result of long-term planning, collaboration with the City Council and staff, and a shared willingness to do the steady, often unglamorous work of preparing for the future.

A Community Tested—and United This past year also revealed the true heart of our community.

In August, we lost Officers Lee Sorensen and Eric Estrada, who were killed in the line of duty while protecting others. Their loss was sudden, tragic, and deeply felt throughout our valley. We also witnessed extraordinary courage from Sheriff’s Deputy Mike Allred and his K-9 partner, Azula, who were seriously wounded. Even after being injured, Deputy Allred’s actions in alerting other law enforcement officers on how to approach the area undoubtedly saved lives.

In the days and weeks that followed, Tremonton came together in remarkable ways—supporting families, honoring sacrifice, and standing alongside law enforcement with compassion and resolve. The outpouring of care, respect, and quiet generosity reflected the very best of our community. While we cannot erase loss, we can choose how we respond to it—and Tremonton responded with unity, dignity, and love.

At the officers’ funerals, one truth stood out above all others: their lives were defined by service. They did not seek recognition; they accepted responsibility. And in the days that followed, our community instinctively answered that same call.

That call to serve did not end with words spoken at the funerals—it continued in the quiet, collective actions that followed.

Neighbors gathered to restore the site of the tragedy, turning a place of sorrow into one of healing. At the Box Elder County Fair, families, friends, and local businesses came together during the junior livestock auction to support the officers’ loved ones. At the rodeo, riderless horses were led into the arena in silent tribute. When Deputy Allred and Azula entered during their recovery, the crowd rose—not in celebration, but in gratitude.

Service and sacrifice have long defined our community. This year marked a significant milestone in honoring that legacy. On Memorial Day 2024, eighty years after the loss of four Borgstrom brothers in World War II, we dedicated a permanent memorial at Tremonton Cemetery. The memorial features a bronze eagle standing watch over the brothers—LeRoy, Clyde, Rulon, and Rolon—all killed in action within six months of one another in 1944. The eagle also stands symbolically over all who have served and continue to serve our nation in uniform.

What began as a local effort to honor the Borgstrom family grew into something larger. Through collaboration between the City, local veterans, the Borgstrom family, and generous community members, we not only created the memorial but also worked with the Utah State Legislature to rename the twenty-mile stretch of Highway 102 through Tremonton as the Borgstrom Brothers Memorial Highway. Their story was later honored in the Governor’s State of the State address.

The Borgstrom memorial stands at the heart of a community shaped by generations of service. From those who fought in distant wars to those who serve today in our armed forces, their willingness to sacrifice for something larger than themselves has protected the freedoms we often take for granted. The cost of that freedom is never abstract—it is carried by real families, in real communities, across generations.

As we remember Officers Sorensen and Estrada, we also remember the Borgstroms, the hundreds of veterans honored on our Veterans Memorial in Midland Square, and all who answered the call to serve. Service and sacrifice are not relics of the past—they are the living foundation upon which communities like ours still stand.

A Community Built on Service My father once taught me a lesson that has shaped how I approach community leadership. After a long day of farm work, I recorded hours that included mowing the lawn. He crossed out the hours I spent mowing the lawn and said gently, “Lyle, sometimes we have to do things just to make things better.”

He wasn’t talking about fairness or recognition. He was talking about responsibility—the quiet kind that doesn’t wait to be asked.

That principle applies to all of us. Service is the rent we pay for living in a community we care about. It shows up when we volunteer, check on a neighbor, mentor a young person, or choose patience and kindness in our daily interactions. These moments rarely feel dramatic, but together they change the emotional climate of a town. They lower the temperature. They remind us that disagreement does not require division.

What I will remember most from my time as Mayor is not a single project or dollar amount—it is the people:

· City employees who showed up day after day

· Volunteers who served quietly

· Business owners who invested locally

· Residents who cared enough to stay engaged—even when issues were difficult

Tremonton has always been shaped by service, resilience, and generosity. That spirit remains our greatest strength.

Looking Ahead Challenges remain. Growth will continue. Infrastructure will require attention. Water will always demand wise stewardship. These realities did not begin with my term, and they will not end with it.

But I am confident in Tremonton’s future.

I believe—as my grandfather once did—that Tremonton’s best days are built not by avoiding challenges, but by facing them together—by communicating openly, listening carefully, and choosing to work side by side, even when we don’t always agree.

Thank you for the trust you placed in me. Thank you to the City Council, Planning Commission, city staff, and volunteers—past and present—whose leadership and service have shaped this community over many years. I am deeply grateful for the past mayors, council members, and city employees who served and sacrificed to bring Tremonton to where it is today. As the old proverb goes, “We all drink from wells we did not dig,” And thank you to the people of Tremonton for continuing to make this a place worth calling home.

Indeed, I, too, have faith in the development of the town of Tremonton.