Don't count Utah out as retirement location

[SteveR]

Utah is beautiful, but too many Mormons - about 70% I believe. I mentioned polygamy to the woman that gave us the tour. She responded by saying any polygamists have been ex-communicated from the LDS. She also said that the Mormons abide by the law, which says polygamy is illegal. I translate that to mean, if it wasn't against the law, the LDS would still condone the practice.
Once again, I have to restate that Utah is beautiful, but I couldn't live there.

Don't confuse the areas outside of Salt Lake City with the Salt Lake City area. They are very different. Park City is even more progressive and more "normal" than SLC. The rural parts of the state tend to be very LDS. Plural marriges do exist in the state and it is not all that unusual to see a "married group" in the grocery store. It is rare in the larger cities but not so rare in the rural areas.

While it may be against the law and the "official" LDS church position is it is illegal and is not practiced...it is tolerated if not sanctioned as long as it is kept low key. Make no mistake, the LDS church has a lot of power in the state and in the country. It has over $10B in assets and has massive holdings in everything from hotels to cattle ranches (the largest in Florida). They say jump and the rest of the state says "how high". The church just bought out an entire retail mall block in the city. What they want...they get. The few non-LDS state senators and other government workers have little impact on the direction the state takes. It is truly Vatican West.

 

[renferme]

Don't confuse the areas outside of Salt Lake City with the Salt Lake City area. They are very different. Park City is even more progressive and more "normal" than SLC. The rural parts of the state tend to be very LDS. Plural marriges do exist in the state and it is not all that unusual to see a "married group" in the grocery store. It is rare in the larger cities but not so rare in the rural areas.

I'm not confused, as have never been in the Salt Lake area before.
Have only been to southern Utah.
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[Brat]

There is a world of difference between visiting and living in any locale.

I love the Keni Peninsula. Would I live there? Not on your life.

There are a variety of reasons why there can be a difference in the experience of a visitor and a resident. What is important is to know what differences are important to you.

 

[CyclingInvestor]

I have bicycled across Utah twice as part of tours. It's scenery is rivalled only
by Colorado overall. It is also the cleanest state. There is also almost no
roadside litter. Most western states are pretty clean away from the cities,
but Utah really stands out here (just one of the little things you notice while
cycling).