The East Zion Initiative is a comprehensive private and publicly-funded conservation easement situated at Zion's East Entrance. Most of the land upon which the initiative is situated has been donated by local landowners Kevin and Stacy McLaws and Steve Neeleman, owners of the Zion Mountain Ranch and the Zion Ponderosa Ranch & Resort respectively. As guardians of large parcels of land adjacent to Zion National Park, these families sought to ensure the sustainable development of the park's eastern gateway community following years of unprecedented growth in the number of visitors to the Greater Zion area. 

The idea aims to conserve the area's vital natural resources and preserve the original rural setting of Zion's East Side, while simultaneously providing expanded recreational opportunities and economic benefits to a rapidly growing local community. Additionally, the sustainable development of Zion's East Side is a welcomed idea by those in favor of lessening congestion in Zion Canyon and the park's often over-crowded Springdale entrance.

For potential business interests and those hoping to bring more attention to their brand, the East Zion Initiative presents a unique opportunity to capitalize on the growing demand for outdoor recreation and tourism in a newly developing business district. With public records revealing that the project has currently received more than $20 million in both public and private funding, it is safe to suggest that the once-quiet and unknown east side of Zion, is about to "blow up" as the kids like to say.

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 The Centerpiece of the East Zion Initiative in the immediate future will be the East Zion Visitor Center. This will be an interagency cooperative, staffed by NPS Rangers along with State and County representatives and officials from the Zion Forever Project. It will  house a park museum designed to host rotating art and displays, a large format theater, a Zion Forever Project Store and a covered outdoor patio for Ranger talks and presentations. 

Just to the south of the Visitor Center, an agricultural exhibit will provide a greenhouse and a working farm that will introduce visitors to traditional methods of harvesting crops, while a nearby farm to table restaurant will offer dishes crafted from local fields. 

Some 35 miles of  purpose-built mountain bike trails have already been built in the adjacent Applecross Trail System, and 40 miles of hiking trails are in the works that will border the national park, just to the south of the new visitor center. 

In addition to these trails, the initiative provides for a 1,000-space parking lot, which will sit just to the north of the visitor center. This lot will be serviced by an alternatively fueled transportation shuttle system, which will run from both Zion Canyon, to the west, and the town of Kanab, to the east, to the East Zion Visitor Center with the aim of eventually providing service to St George. 

Along with these developments come a limited yet eclectic array of hotels, restaurants, gas stations, guide services and rental shops that will spring up in the coming year, all contributing to a growing consumer base and a burgeoning community that exists to serve the needs of a wide-ranging number of guests from across the globe. 

The writing is on the wall... The time to become involved with East Zion is now!