You can ride your bike or walk along the trail that circles the 21st Street Pond in Ogden, a city-owned body of water in an area that has traditionally been given over to industrial use.
You can fish from the edge of the lake in certain spots, a popular activity for many as recreational amenities in the area have slowly expanded.
Don’t put a kayak or swim in the small body of water off 21st Street, however, at least for now.
Then-Mayor Matthew Godfrey inked an agreement back in 2008 with Goode Ski Technologies, giving the water ski maker a concession to use the small body of water — which it dubs Goode Ski Lake — to research ski design. The agreement is to last 30 years, with Goode retaining the option to extend the accord another 20 years, until 2058.
“It seems highly unusual to me. I don’t know of anybody else given a contract, given a free lease for space like that for 50 years,” said Kevin Lundell. He’s an Ogden City Council candidate in elections this year who’s very familiar with the deal and has brought the topic up while campaigning.
Now, though, a fledgling movement is afoot to revisit and revamp the 2008 accord to give the public more access to the lake, creating a new recreational amenity for Ogden. As it stands, Willard Bay State Park north of Plain City and Pineview Reservoir through the Ogden Canyon to the Ogden Valley are the closest recreational water bodies to Ogden.
Goode Lake in Ogden, also known as 21st Street Pond, is shown on the left side of this 2019 aerial image of the neighborhood where it sits. | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
“It was given away to a private company without any public input or the involvement of the City Council. Sixteen years is long enough,” said Karen Thurber, who’s created a Facebook group to drum up support for the cause. “It could become a beautiful park and a huge attraction for tourists as well.”
Mayor Ben Nadolski is supportive of change and while short on specifics, said his administration has been in talks on the subject with Chris Roberts, owner of Goode. “Goode Ski has been really cooperative and collaborative throughout our discussions, demonstrating a clear commitment to delivering a positive outcome for the public. We’ve made great progress together,” Nadolski said.
Mike McBride, spokesman for the Nadolski administration, noted that the 2008 accord was crafted at a time when Ogden leaders were eager to do what they could to draw outdoor companies to the area. Given environmental issues in the area at the time, he added, the site wasn’t viewed “as a valued public amenity” as it is by some today.
“It was a good match to bring such a reputable company as Goode to Ogden, and they have been good stewards of that space while growing their global brand,” McBride said.
But while there now seems to be a willingness to debate the future of the 21st Street Pond, Nadolski worries about the topic becoming a “political wedge” in the lead-up to City Council elections in November, complicating talks. Lundell, for his part, wonders what exactly administration officials have done to promote the cause. He’d like more details.
“I’d like to hear if they are looking into that lease … if they’ve even approached that topic with Goode Ski Technologies,” said Lundell, who worked for Goode making skis many years ago and, at that time, skied on the lake.
He also wonders if Goode is complying with terms of the lease, wonders if noncompliance could give the city wiggle room to regain control of the lake. Among other things, the 2008 accord requires Goode to keep its headquarters in Ogden and use the pond for research and development.
“It’s been at least two years since anyone has seen a boat on the on the pond,” Thurber charges. “Furthermore, sources in the company tell us that all of their research and development is happening outside of Utah in much more conducive conditions, on larger lakes, where professional water skiers work.”
Roberts, who says he’s open to the possibilities, counters Thurber’s contention. “Very active with it on research and development for our water skis, yes,” he said.
Some are calling for more public access to Goode Lake, also known as 21st Street Pond, off in the distance in this Aug. 31 photo. A water ski maker has a concession with Ogden that largely gives it control of the city-owned lake. | Tim Vandenack, KSL.com
Goode doesn’t use the lake in the winter and there aren’t set times when researchers get on the water, but it serves the company. “We make everything here in Ogden at our facility. We can literally make a mold, make a ski, go out that afternoon, test it, come back and do that process over and over until we get a ski or product that we like,” he said.
He, too, was short on details on talks he’s had on the subject with city officials. Either way, neither he nor Nadolski offered a timeline for talks and Roberts said any new accord on the lake’s use will take work. It can’t just be suddenly open to the public as is.
“There’s definitely things that need to be improved on it if it becomes public access,” Roberts said. “But I think there’s ways that we can work together in the future to accommodate what we need as company but also help the city and use this beautiful lake that’s there.”