PROVO — Provo had the fastest job growth in the first quarter of the year of any city in the country, according to a new report from the Brookings Institution.

The report found Provo’s numbers grew by 2.2 percent in the first three months of the year, compared to the average 0.5 percent growth the rest of the nation saw.

“It doesn’t surprise me at all,” said Val Hale, executive director of the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development, who pointed to Provo’s rankings as part of a broader success story for the state of Utah.

Utah’s growth, according to state business leaders, has consistently rated high over the past five years.

“We have great companies, great leaders here willing to take risks and do the entrepreneurial thing,” Hale said.

It certainly is the case in Provo, where small startups like Black Sheep Café have helped revitalize the city’s downtown area.

“We hit the ground running from day one,” said chef Mark Mason. “Business has been phenomenal.”

Black Sheep Café opened three years ago near the corner of University Avenue and Center Street and has continued to bring diners back with dishes that feature a Native American flair and influences from Mexico, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas.

The restaurant is one of several successful culinary startups that count among close to 50 mom-and-pop businesses downtown.

“We are very fortunate to be part of a very nice, budding culinary scene,” Mason said.

For Mason, creating innovative dishes is something he said he has done his whole life. The restaurant is among the many businesses building the city’s culinary and economic future.

“We’re so fortunate to be part of it,” he said.

Provo Mayor John Curtis said the city loves its startups.

At the north end of town, larger companies like Vivint, Qualtrics and Ancestry.com have made national names.

“We have a section of businesses that brought in more capital per geographic area than any other place in the United States,” Curtis said.

The mayor credits the high level of entrepreneurship — along with the proximity of Brigham Young University and Utah Valley University and diversity he said has been undervalued — for the skyrocketing job and economic growth.

Fast Company also placed Provo third in rankings of “The Next Top 10 Cities for Tech Jobs.”

Though he declined to elaborate on specifics, Curtis pointed to projects that will be announced in the coming months that will further add to the city’s transformation.

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