Outdoor Retailer show may leave Salt Lake City, seeks bids from other cities

Organizers of the Outdoor Retailer show are soliciting proposals for a possible new location for the massive, twice-yearly conventions held for two decades in Salt Lake City. The call for bids follows outcry from some industry leaders who say the show should leave Utah in protest of state public lands policies, particularly its vocal opposition to the newly anointed Bears Ears National Monument. The shows, which organizers say bring at least 45,000 visitors and $40 million annually to the state's economy, may still remain in Utah's capital, they said Monday. But multiple groups associated with the convention stressed the need for choosing a venue whose policies support the outdoor industry's "culture" and "values." "We've heard member discontent as well as comments from Utah's [political] delegations and efforts on public-land policy that are out of alignment with what our industry stands for," said Amy Roberts, executive director of the Outdoor Industry Association, which has close ties to the show and encouraged the show's owner, Emerald Expositions, to seek a range of potential host cities...more