New leader takes community mission to heart

Meggie Troili is excited about her next big OgdenCAN project: partnering with First Presbyterian Church of Ogden, local service providers, and the East Central neighborhood to transform the church’s annex building into a community-focused hub for services and collaboration.

It’s one of many duties Troili has taken on since becoming director of the Weber State Office of Community Development and Ogden Civic Action Network (OgdenCAN) in May 2025.

Previously, she created The Living Museum of Sugar House, turning Salt Lake City’s Sugar House neighborhood into an open-air museum, and led affordable housing programs for the Redevelopment Agency of Midvale City, spearheading the Midvale Main Street Community Engagement Initiative.

Troili said she believes in OgdenCAN’s mission, focusing on the health and well-being of one of the lowest-income areas in Ogden, the East Central neighborhood, located between Washington Avenue and Harrison Boulevard, and 20th and 30th streets.

OgdenCAN is a joint effort including anchor institutions like WSU, Intermountain Healthcare, the Weber-Morgan Health Department, and America First Credit Union, working alongside community partners and East Central neighbors.

“We are all combining economic resources, expertise, neighborhood knowledge, and reach to have a big impact on the East Central neighborhood,” Troili said.

OgdenCAN funds research, provides seed funding for area non-profit pilot programs, and facilitates a community leader program where residents are paid to complete a seven-month training program to serve their neighborhoods. The work has resulted in a concerted effort to improve East Central Ogden’s Lester Park, the activation of the Dumke Arts Plaza downtown, and numerous other projects.

Troili says East Central is a vibrant part of Ogden with incredible community strengths, longtime residents, and a growing sense of connection. At the same time, the neighborhood faces some of the toughest structural barriers in the state and residents experience lower access to healthcare, higher housing cost burdens, and economic challenges that impact health and opportunity, according to the Utah Healthy Places Index.

“These conditions make East Central a powerful place to focus coordinated, community-driven investment,” Troili said. “And as OgdenCAN continues to grow its partnerships, including new col-laborations with Mayor Ben Nadolski and additional community partners, we’re working to expand this model to support neighborhoods across Ogden.”