IVINS, Utah (ABC4) — In our continuing quest to become the most indispensable news outlet for the State of Utah, ABC4.com is thrilled to announce the construction of our new Southern Utah Bureau in partnership with Black Desert Resort in Ivins, Utah.
Starting this month, ABC4 will build a full-time news bureau — the Black Desert Newsroom — for one of the fastest-growing and most dynamic areas in the Beehive State. The new facility, which will become a permanent fixture at the resort, will be ABC4 Utah’s second newsroom, in addition to our main studios in Salt Lake City.
Keeping in the tradition of being Utah’s oldest television station and a national broadcasting pioneer, the ABC4 Black Desert Newsroom will be the first and only television studio in Southern Utah.
The full-service newsroom will not only include a broadcast center, but a weather studio and stunning views from a new 360-degree weather cam to give Southern Utahns a clear view of what the skies look like in their neighborhoods.
“We couldn’t be more excited to partner with Black Desert on this project,” said ABC4 News Director Nancy Bauer. “Having a 360-degree Weather Cam at Black Desert will allow us to forecast year-round from the St. George metro area. Our Southern Utah reporter will be headquartered at Black Desert, a central location in Southern Utah, and they will be able to quickly travel anywhere for breaking news. What this is, is a real benefit for our viewers — more coverage of Southern Utah, 365 days of the year.”
“We could not be more thrilled working with Black Desert,” said ABC4 General Manager/Vice-President Mark Danielson. “We’re going to be expanding and growing and investing in Southern Utah like never before, and Black Desert really makes all this possible.”
Black Desert Newsroom
While ABC4 has had a presence in Southern Utah for some time now, the expansion of a studio at Black Desert will not only bolster our coverage of the southern part of the state, but it will cement our station’s commitment to leaving no part of the Beehive State without coverage.
“We’ve installed and established a new fiber connection, connecting our facilities in Northern Utah with our new transmission site,” said Danielson. “In fact, we’re building a new transmitter up on Webb Hill out here, which is going on right now, just to expand and increase and improve the coverage. It is a true investment, because we know how important Southern Utah is to the entire state.”
Bauer said additional hires are being made now in anticipation of the bureau’s opening, adding a robust layer of coverage to what ABC4 already does in St. George. As the year progresses, the studio will undergo several changes before the final location is fully equipped in the autumn of 2024.
Black Desert 4Warn Weather Center
ABC4 Chief Meteorologist Alana Brophy will do her first forecast from the new ABC4 Black Desert 4Warn Weather Center by the end of April. Currently, the 4Warn Weather team broadcasts a daily forecast from St. George, but Brophy said the new studio will give ABC4 viewers a bird’s-eye view of the skies in Southern Utah
“As a weather team, we have always remained committed to delivering your 4Warn forecast statewide, and with two different, defined climates in our major metropolitan areas, an equal focus in Northern and Southern Utah has been a priority,” said Brophy. “This expansion with the Black Desert Weather Center in Southern Utah amplifies our commitment to the growing southwestern corner of the state and gives our 4Warn Forecast a home in an area we already know and love.”
Brophy said the Weather Center will bring a level of accuracy and precision to Southern Utah forecasts that viewers deserve.
“We are not only forecasting your weather, we are living in it, watching how storms interact with the surrounding mountains and valleys, and delivering the information you need the most from where you live,” she said.
Black Desert Skycam
Danielson said one of the primary reasons Black Desert made such an appealing partner is that the resort is located on one of the most picturesque properties in America. The Black Desert Skycam, which will be installed on the highest point of the resort’s hotel, will allow locals to see the weather and people outside of Utah to see what they’re missing.
About Black Desert Resort
Black Desert Managing Partner Patrick Manning said the partnership with ABC4 is a win for everyone in Southern Utah.
“Black Desert’s a huge resort, but really it’s about the impact it can make,” said Manning. “It’s leveraging its size to do good for the community, and partnerships like this with ABC4 are just at the forefront of what’s important. We want to be synergistic, we want to be collaborative, and we want to show up where there’s hurt and we want to be able to help.”
The final iteration of the new Black Desert Newsroom will coincide with October 2024’s PGA Tour stop, highlighting the resort’s world-class golf course. The Tom Weiskopf-designed, 19-hole championship course spans 7,200 yards. Beyond being a golf legend, the late Weiskopf, who died in 2022, was chosen to design the course due to his previous work designing courses among Hawaii’s lava fields — a geographic quirk Southern Utah shares with the Aloha State.
“I love that ABC4 is showing up for Southern Utah,” said Manning. “I love the focus that the state is starting to give Southern Utah, because we deserve it.”
Manning said by the time the PGA Tour rolls into town, the resort will boast 450 hotel rooms, five restaurants, a convention center, a spa, and more. He said he expects the opening to happen around two weeks before the PGA Tour.
The golf course, however, is already open for players looking to take to the links in one of the most beautiful courses in the world.
Watch ABC4 in the coming months for more information on this exciting partnership!
