Big League Utah Advisory Boards
Big League Utah is the broad-based coalition united to position Salt Lake City as a Major League Baseball expansion market and the “Future of America’s Pastime.” The expertise and commitment of the Honorary and Community Advisory Board members will contribute to Utah’s success and will help advance the multi-faceted campaign and focused efforts.
Honorary Advisory Board
Gail Miller
Gail Miller is the co-founder and owner of the Larry H. Miller Company, which was established by Larry and Gail in May of 1979 with the purchase of their first automobile dealership in Murray, Utah. Today, the company has a diversified portfolio of businesses and investments across the United States. Their headquarters are in Sandy, Utah. Gail is also chair of the Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation and presides over the Larry H. Miller Education Foundation.
Governor Spencer J. Cox
Spencer James Cox is an American lawyer and politician serving as the 18th governor of Utah since 2021. A moderate member of the Republican Party, he served as the eighth lieutenant governor of Utah from 2013 to 2021. A sixth-generation Utahn, Gov. Cox was born and raised in Fairview, a town of 1,200 in the center of the state.
Speaker of the House Mike Schultz
Mike Schultz was born and raised in Weber County and doesn’t want to live anywhere else. In 2015, he was elected to the Legislature to represent Utah’s 12th House District which includes Hooper, Roy, and West Haven. He has been Speaker of the House since November 2023.
Senate President J. Stuart Adams
J. Stuart Adams serves as President of the Utah State Senate. Before being elected as Senate president, Adams spent nine years on the Layton City Council, four and a half years in the Utah House of Representatives and six years as Senate Majority Whip in the Utah Senate. He is the former Chairman of the Utah Transportation Commission and the current Chairman of the Military Installation Development Authority (MIDA). Adams is a graduate from the University of Utah with a B.A. in business finance and works as a partner in the Adams Company – a real estate, construction and development firm in Kaysville.
Senator Luz Escamilla
On November 4, 2008, Senator Luz Escamilla was elected to the Utah State Senate, becoming the first Latina to hold this position and the first immigrant elected to serve in the Utah State Legislature. She proudly represents constituents in Senate District 10. Escamilla was elected by the Senate Democrats to serve as the Minority Leader, providing vision and extensive experience with the legislative process. She continues to be a trailblazer in Utah politics and in the Utah Legislature.
Senator Lincoln Fillmore
Lincoln Fillmore is a small business owner and entrepreneur. He is a former schoolteacher, school administrator, and minor-league baseball announcer. He’s been to 38 major league ballparks across every major league city in four countries and two continents. His vanity license plate says 463DP.
Representative Sandra Hollins
In 2014, Sandra Hollins was elected to her first term in the Utah House of Representatives. Since January of 2015, Sandra has served our Westside neighborhoods, the people of Salt Lake City, and Utahns across the state in the Utah Legislature. Sandra was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, and has lived on the Westside of Salt Lake City for nearly 30 years.
Representative Ryan D. Wilcox
Rep. Ryan Wilcox fell in love with baseball as a backup right fielder on the family farm in western Weber County, Utah. He has extensive experience at the federal and state levels in both the public and private sectors and currently serves in the Utah House of Representatives as the Chair of the Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee representing northern Weber County. A student of the game, he has served as a youth baseball and softball coach for dozens of teams from beginner t-ball through high school and inner-city clubs and has seen repeatedly how America's Pastime unites fanbases, families, and communities across every conceivable demographic.
Mayor Erin Mendenhall
Mayor Mendenhall is working hard to make Salt Lake City more environmentally and economically resilient, and to take advantage of the region’s historic period of economic opportunity. She is determined to ensure every Salt Laker — no matter their neighborhood, economic or housing status, faith, race, or sexual or gender identity — can access all the city has to offer. Erin’s love for the extraordinary people of Salt Lake City drives an unrelenting commitment to bringing people from different walks of life together in pursuit of results for the entire city.
Councilmember Victoria Petro
Victoria Petro was appointed by the Salt Lake City Council to fill the vacant district one seat in 2021 and later elected by district one voters to serve a four-year term starting from Jan. 3, 2022. She also serves on the Utah Inland Port Authority Board of Directors and was elected as the Council's Vice Chair in 2023. Victoria has worked for several non-profits and as a Diversity Consultant. She encourages sustainable and strategic development for young and diverse communities.
Former Congressman Rob Bishop
Rob Bishop is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for Utah's 1st congressional district from 2003 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he became the dean of Utah's congressional delegation after the retirement of Orrin Hatch from the U.S. Senate in 2019.
POMSLA Co-Chair Lowry Snow
Lowry Snow is the Co-Chair of the Point of the Mountain State Land Authority (POMSLA) Board. He previously served in the Utah House of Representatives for ten years from 2012 to 2022. He is a past President of the Utah State Bar. He has served as a charter board member of the Southern Utah Community Legal Center; a non-profit organized and dedicated to the delivery of pro-bono legal services to the underprivileged in Southern Utah. He is the immediate past Chairman of the Utah State Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission and past Chair of the Washington County Economic Development Council.
Community Advisory Board
Steve Miller, Chair
The Larry H. Miller Company
Steve Miller serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Larry H. Miller Company. He has worked for the company for over 25 years in various positions, including president of Miller Sports Properties, president of the Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah, general manager of Larry H. Miller Fleet Lease, general manager of Larry H. Miller Subaru, and director of New and Used Car Operations for Miller Automotive Operations.
Greg Miller, Vice Chair
The Larry H. Miller Company
Greg Miller is Vice Chair of the Larry H. Miller Company Board of Directors. He has served in various positions within the Miller organization since its 1979 inception, including as CEO from 2008 to 2015 and as a Trustee since 2012. Greg’s entrepreneurial spirit has generated success in diverse industries through the years, the most recent of which being his acquisition and merger of two packaging businesses into a regional leader now known as Snowline Packaging Solutions.
Steve Starks, CEO
The Larry H. Miller Company
Steve Starks is the Chief Executive Officer and member of the Board of Directors of the Larry H. Miller Company. In this capacity, Starks leads the family investment firm that oversees the Miller family’s portfolio of businesses and investments. During his time with the Larry H. Miller Company, he has helped shape the organization’s growth strategy, led mergers and acquisitions, and oversaw the organization’s transformation.
Scott Anderson
Scott Anderson is president and chief executive officer of Zions Bank. Zions Bank is Utah's oldest financial institution and is the only local bank with a statewide distribution of local branches. A native of Salt Lake City, Anderson joined Zions Bank in December of 1990.
Dave Checketts
David W. Checketts is an American businessman and sports executive. Checketts has served in various c-suite roles or as an owner of the Utah Jazz, New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New York Liberty, Madison Square Garden, Legends Hospitality, and the St. Louis Blues.
Spencer P. Eccles
Spencer P. Eccles is co-founder and managing partner of The Cynosure Group, an investment management and advisory firm based in Salt Lake City, Utah. He serves on the board of the Spencer F. and Cleone P. Eccles Family Foundation and as an Advisory Board member of the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation – one of Utah’s largest private philanthropic foundations.
Maria Garciaz
Maria Garciaz is the CEO of NeighborWorks Salt Lake, a nonprofit community development corporation that has worked since 1977 to revitalize neighborhoods experiencing blight and decline. She oversees 19 staff members and an operating budget of $3.2 million and a development budget of $8 million, with $32 million in assets.
Kem Gardner
Kem Gardner was the co-founder and president of the Boyer Company L.C., a firm that has developed more than 20 million square feet of real estate projects in the Intermountain West and other areas of the U.S. Mr. Gardner, who likes to think of himself as a "community builder," is now chair of Gardner Properties L.C.
Natalie Gochnour
Natalie Gochnour serves as an associate dean in the David Eccles School of Business and executive director of the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah. She also serves as the chief economist for the Salt Lake Chamber. In these roles, she provides policy leadership that helps Utah prosper.
Gary Hoogeveen
Gary W. Hoogeveen is president and CEO of Rocky Mountain Power. He is responsible for the company's transmission and distribution operations, customer service, regulatory and legislative affairs in Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming. Hoogeveen is additionally responsible for PacifiCorp’s coal fueling and mining operations as well as thermal generation operations.
David Huntsman
David H. Huntsman is a business executive with the Huntsman Corporation, a global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated chemicals, known for pioneering innovations in packaging and rapid and integrated growth in petrochemicals. He is also president/chief operating officer of the Huntsman Foundation.
Jim Laub
Jim Laub is president and CEO of Cache Valley Electric, an international electrical contracting firm based in Logan, Utah. and is the vice-chair of the Intermountain Foundation board. A graduate of Utah State University, Laub received an honorary doctorate in business and entrepreneurship from Utah State and was the recipient of the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame Contribution to Amateur Football Award.
Derek Miller
Derek Miller is the president and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber and Downtown Alliance. The Chamber is the state’s largest and longest serving business association that “Stands as the voice of business.” In this role, Derek leads the business community in advocating and leading Utah’s continued economic prosperity.
Todd Pedersen
Todd Richard Pedersen is an American entrepreneur and the founder of Vivint, Inc., a home automation, security and energy company. Vivint, Inc. was acquired in late 2012 by the Blackstone Group. Under his direction, the firm branched into Vivint Solar, a solar-energy company.
Thayne Shaffer
In April of 2021, Thayne Shaffer was named President/CEO of America First Credit Union. Prior to this appointment, he was serving as Chief Information Officer. Thayne has worked for America First since 1987, starting in the accounting department as an accounts payable clerk and ultimately serving there as Senior Vice President and Controller.
Dr. Sidni Shorter
Sidni L. Shorter, PsyD, is President and CEO of the Utah Black Chamber of Commerce and Director of the Utah Minority Business Development Agency. Sidni values relationship-building and genuine engagement with clients. She is a social entrepreneur and a strong advocate for change. She helps entrepreneurs and business leaders access affordable capital with growth, progress, diversity, equity, and inclusion as the ultimate goal
Spencer Zwick
Spencer Zwick is co-founder and managing partner at Solamere Capital, a $2 billion multi-strategy investment firm. Zwick served as National Finance Chair and Senior Advisor for the 2008 and 2012 Mitt Romney presidential campaigns. He served as National Finance Chair for Speaker Paul Ryan and as Deputy Chief of Staff and COO in the Office of the Governor Mitt Romney in Massachusetts.
Big League Utah Executive Team
