Kelly Bush leads Kearns through cityhood and community growth

From an Army air base during WWII to one of Salt Lake County’s newest cities, Kearns has a history of pride, diversity and community. Kearns Mayor Kelly Bush has led the charge in getting respect and recognition for the nearly 38,000 residents who call Kearns home.

It’s no easy task to build a government entity from scratch, but that’s exactly what Bush has done over the last few years, taking Kearns from a metro township in 2015 to a city in May 2024. She served in several leadership roles in the community before being appointed mayor in 2018.

“We were coming out of a time when nobody had voices. A lot of these communities had been neglected,” Bush said. “Our roads were run down, we had poor lighting. People were pretty frustrated that a lot of things were not happening. They didn’t feel like they had a voice.”

The elected officials in Kearns, and other unincorporated areas in Salt Lake County, believed they would be the voice for their residents to County officials. It was only after the first meeting with the County that leaders in those areas learned they were supposed to create their own legislative bodies.

Kearns Mayor Kelly Bush has been instrumental in preserving the city’s identity, status and independence as it moved from a township to a city. (Photo courtesy of Kelly Bush)

 “Honestly, I think at the time that not one person in the County expected this, for any of us to come as far as we had,” she said. “We were never set up to succeed and, to be honest, I never thought we would…We were relentless fighters and dreamers and knew what these communities wanted and what we needed. We were going to succeed and we built a government from the ground up.”

For years, cities surrounding Kearns had slowly eroded the area’s tax base. West Valley City, West Jordan and Taylorsville had cherry-picked commercial areas to incorporate, leaving Kearns with more than 37,000 residents and a limited tax base. 

Discussions were held about being absorbed into one of the surrounding cities, but no city wanted to take on the additional expense of nearly 38,000 residents. Bush and her team had to make it work. By applying for federal monies and grants, Bush was able to secure millions of dollars for improvements in the city, including a recent road project that overhauled 6200 South.

“I would hope the one thing that I’ve done that would make the most difference is giving these people a voice,” she said. “They can get mad or they can love it but they should expect honesty from whoever represents them.”

Bush grew up in Millcreek, graduating from Skyline High School. She moved to Kearns after she got married to raise her family. She rejects the perception that Kearns is a dangerous city, saying it’s no more dangerous than any other city in the Salt Lake Valley. 

She feels privileged to represent such a diverse community that includes Somalian, Vietnamese, Hispanic and Latino cultures, and many others.

“My kids had so many different types of experiences,” she said. “They experienced all the different cultures their friends had and there were so many different cultures. They got to go to different parties. They got to go to different churches. They got to go over and eat the different foods and they were always invited to all these super cool celebrations. It was so much fun because we made so many different types of friends. That was not something I experienced on the east side.”

Kearns City Councilmember Crystal Butterfield has worked with Bush since 2020. Butterfield credits the mayor with getting the Oquirrh Shadows Unified Fire Authority Fire Station No. 107 reopened, improving roads and lighting conditions, staying on top of legislation that affects Kearns and keeping the city afloat through numerous grant opportunities.

“She has been instrumental in getting the things that we need and working behind the scenes with a lot of stuff I don’t even see,” Butterfield said. “She has been instrumental in making sure that we get grants and funding so we have extra resources. I’m just amazed at how many grants she can pull in.”

Bush is not running for re-election this year but hopes to be hired as the Kearns city manager in 2026. She is proud to represent a diverse community with a small-town feel and to dedicate her time to connecting to residents who feel like family to her.

When the locally-owned La Placita Market burned down in January, the Kearns community rallied to support one of their own. Bush said that’s just the way things are done in the city.

“Our community will celebrate with each other and mourn with each other,” she said. “They stick together. They are there for each other no matter what and you better never mess with them. They are K-Town all the way.”