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Show A-18 SAT/SUN/MON/TUES, NOVEMBER 1-4, 2008 www.parkrecord.com LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Brown brings experience, wisdom, stability Editor Returning Mel Brown to the Utah House will serve you and the state well. Please know how much the legislature needs the experience, wisdom and stability which he brings to that body. Of late, there has been too much of division, too much of incivility, too much of power politics and too little statesmanship. We need to reverse that trend before it seriously impairs the quality of public discourse and debate in our state. I have watched Mel for many years. His sound judgment, evenhandedness and common sense help his fellow legislators stay on course and avoid the unproductive sideshows. Keep Mel working for you and for the common good. Kay Mclff Rqjresentative, House District #70 RichSeld, Utah Discounted lift tickets are still available Editor Many thanks to Jans and ColeSport for selling the discounted Park City Mountain Resort lift tickets to benefit Habitat for Humanity. The $25 lift tickets are valid opening day through December 19, 2008. There are still some available at Jans and ColeSport. Get yours today before they are sold out. Thanks to Jans, ColeSport, and Park City Mountain Resort! Julie Bemhard Executive director, Habitat for Humanity, Summit & Wasatch PCTVto rebroadcast state soccer finals Editor. I would like to congratulate the Park City High School girls' soccer team for their terrific performance last weekend in the 3A state championship game. In spite of dominating play they came up short in the final score, but to all of us at Park City Television who were involved in the shooting and editing of the game, our Park City girls were champions. Double-overtime double-shootout games are what we call "good television". Park City Television will rebroadcast the game twice on Sunday, Nov. 2 - at 8:30 a.m. following the Mountain Weekend Show, and then again at 1 p.m. Hope for a snowy day and stay inside to watch the game. We hope you all enjoy the broadcasts of this terrific team! McPolin. She has a realistic understanding of the pressing issues we face in our school district. Because Mo Hickey is running unopposed for District 1, he will enhance the balance of skills and experience of the members of the school board with his extensive financial expertise. What we need to round out the skills set of our board members is a qualified educator like Gerd who understands the practical issues of teachers and administrators. It is time to bring some balance to our school board by electing a person with Gerds teaching and administrative experience. We cant afford to not have Gerd on our board of education. Please vote for Gerd for the district 3 seat on the Park City Board of Education. PCEA endorses Hickey, Aguilar Editor: I am writing to you as president of Park City Education Association Stanton D. Jones and on behalf of the 250 teachers in Park City Television the Park City School District that PCEA represents. Last week, our executive board met with the three candidates who are running for seats on the PCSD School Board. All the candidates answered questions from us for a little over an hour on the direction each of them would like to see the school board and other various topics that the PCSD faces. PCEA executive board voted Editor unanimously to endorse and support We would like to extend our sinMo Hickey and Gerd Holmsencere THANK YOU to all the volunAguilar. Mo, who is running unopteers who assisted us in making the Carolyn Frankenburg posed for District 1, received our 28th Annual JANS Winter Welcome Park City endorsement because he believes another huge success. Your support that the school board needs to confor the Youth WinterSports Alliance tinue to promote better communicaand all our young athletes reminds us tion with staff and community memagain and again why we live and play bers. He also shared some creative here, Great friends, great communiideas to help teachers with the high ty and great winter sports! It takes cost of living in Park City. Mo hundreds of volunteers to set up, believes that the school board should run, and tear down the event in an be more transparent and involve all incredibly short period of time. Each stakeholders in decisions. and every year we are amazed at the Editor Gerd Holmsen-Aguilar, who is tremendous amount of individuals I am writing to support Chris who step up to make this event hap- Robinson for Summit County running for District 3, also received pen. We couldn't have done it with- Council Seat D. I feel Chris is a shin- our endorsement and support. Gerd out you! • ing example of a great leader. Chris is a former teacher from California. possesses solid leadership skills and PCEA thinks it is critical to have Hope to see you next year! has years of experience which will someone on the board who has benefit Summit County. Chris has "been in the trenches." Her experiJulianne Rosen-Carone extensive experience in property ence as a teacher and labor-union Gwen Dudik rights, water rights, renewable ener- president can only help round out Volunteer coordinators, Jans Winter gy and conservation. This experience the board with direction and perWelcome will help Summit County as it contin- spective the next three years. ues to develop. Whether you are voting early or I encourage you to join me in sup- on November 4, PCEA encourages Park City residents to vote and supporting Chris with your vote! port Mo Hickey and Gerd HolmsenAguilar. They can definitely make a Andy Wheeler positive difference and contribution Park City to the Park City School Board and District. 'Winter Welcome' volunteers stepped up again For County Council, vote for experience Aguilar offers perspective, experience Editor It is time to bring balance to the school board. Gerd Holmsen Aguilar is the best choice for the school-board position for District 3. She is extremely qualified and her knowledge and skills will bring a greatly needed balance to our existing members seated on the school board. She is an educator by profession and spent her entire 40-year career in public education. Her resume is perfect for this position as it includes not only many years in the classroom but also extensive administrative experience. She has been trained in interestbased bargaining and has chaired a teacher association political action committee while living and working in California. Gerd has the practical and very needed perspective of an educator and the hands-on problemsolving skills as an administrator. Gerd has grandchildren in the Park City School district and has spent countless, hours as a volunteer at It's time for all of us to be represented Editor I urge everyone to vote for Kathy Lofft for House District 53. Kathy has traveled the district, from Rich County to Daggett County to Morgan County and here in Summit County. She has listened to all of our concerns about clean air, education, health care and land use. She is smart, articulate and will not only represent us well, she will respond to our issues by legislating intelligently and working hard. It is past time for ALL of us to be truly represented in our State Legislature. Liza Simpson Park City Mike Holland PCEA president Anne Bransford gets if when it comes to people ily offers them a couple of solutions to their problems. She is a delegator who doesnt ask anyone to do anything she wouldn't do herself. Anne will represent the entire PCSD community. Please join me in supporting Anne Bransford for School Board District #3. Lynn Pinyan Park City Bransford will support our children Editor Anne Bransford and Ifirstmet 52 years ago in the maternity ward at Holy Cross Hospital, now Salt Lake Regional. We both grew up together in Holladay, Utah, often having joint birthday parties. Our ancestors were miners in Park City in the late 1800s. Both of us are 5th-generation Parkites. I was delighted when I heard that Anne was moving to Park City ten years ago with her then three young children. I didn't see much of her in those early years since she was busy raising her children as a single mother, chairman of Field Day for five years in a row at PPES, and running her kids to lessons and activities. She once told me that she was infivecarpools at the same time. I did see daughters often since they were involved in our Arts-Kids program where I volunteer weekly. Anne is a natural leaden She motivates others to join her in dedicating their time and energy to better of the community. It was no surprise to me that Anne decided to run for school board last March. She is one of the rare individuals who wants to give back something to the community where her children have been deriving some benefit: in this case, 40,000+ hours in the PCSD classrooms. She is passionate about being on the school board and I know she will serve you and our children well. Whitney Wallace Park City Editor I have had the privilege of working with Anne Bransford on two separate occasions. The first time was six year ago selling real estate at The Canyons and now as a Destination Host for a high-end club in Upper Deer Valley. Anne gets it when is comes to people. I have seen her take the most challenging clients with high demands and expectations and put them at ease within minutes. She is amazing to watch when confronted with a difficult situation. She usually makes angry people laugh and read- Hanrahan has walked the talk Editor I am excited to endorse Dr. John Hanrahan for County Council. John first impressed me when we met at a neighbor's card game about ten years ago. I found him friendly, engaging and thoughtful. He and my neighbor Todd, a fireman and HOA president, encouraged us to get involved and serve the community. They were graduating classmates of Leadership Park City 2000. And John has cer- tainly walked that talk in many ways over the past ten years, especially with his long-held dedication to the health needs of Summit County's uninsured, through The Peoples Health Clinic, and serving the poor, through the Hope Alliance, in countries like Peru after the 2007 earthquake. John has shown the character, community values, and skill set to improve community relationships and services. He has demonstrated management and budgeting skills providing quality medical care with limited funding. During Dr. Hanrahan's career, from his medical education, training and experience, to his nonprofit executive leadership, he has cultivated a decision-making discipline where he gathers the right information to make the best decisions in a timely manner. He has produced most of the results with the help of others, demonstrating his ability to inspire, motivate and team up with residents, patients, business owners, employees, donors, volunteers, supervisors, and managers to accomplish goals. I will expect similar positive results as John focuses his talents on using community resources as a County Council member to improve affordable housing, growth planning and management, open space, environmental stewardship, alternative energy, and water resources. Please join me in supporting Dr. John Hanrahan for County Council. Joe Keman Park City Weinstein would use common-sense approach Editor: Steve Weinstein has my vote for Seat E on the Summit County Council. I have known Steve for over 20 years and feel confident that his intelligence, his ability to think creatively and his absolute fearlessness in standing up for what he believes will make him a valuable asset to the County Council. Summit County faces huge issues regarding growth, traffic and development. I believe Steve Weinstein will use a common sense approach to steer Summit County in a direction that will benefit all of us. Please join me in voting for Steve. KK Heslop Park City please see more letters on .-• , A-17 /: K£ GUEST EDITORIAL The truth about transfers of development rights (TDRs) in Summit County By Max Greenhalgh, Park City I hope to shed light on the confusion surrounding Summit County's involvement in TDRs (transfers of development rights). Having served on the planning commission during the time the TDRs were enacted, as well as chair of the TDR subcommittee, I not only had a front-row seat but was a key participant. Background A central theme of the Basin General Plan is to halt urban sprawl across hillsides and meadows and promote the clustering of densities in town, village, and resort centers, where development can be serviced more efficiently with less impact to traffic and the environment. The General Plan suggests TDRs as one way to achieve this goal. The county has never had a formal TDR system, but the county did approved three TDRs from 1999 to 2002 for developments that had been vested under previous codes. At that time, no funds were available for acquiring open space. All three projects were adjacent to the Swaner Nature Preserve, a crown jewel of the Basin. It seemed the TDRs were the county's last resort to preserve these lands. TDR properties at The Canyons All three TDRs involved properties at the Canyons. The Canyons was processed through the Resort Matrix of the code, which includes a requirement for a TDR component. To meet this standard, the Canyons provided several receiving areas for density transfers. The properties included 15 acres known as Snyderville West, parcels for resort-type density, and several Colony lots. Under county supervision, most of the Colony TDR lots were spent in transferring densities within the Canyons itself. The three TDRs for densities originating outside the Canyons are as follows: Mountain Meadows TDR The Mountain Meadows parcel consisted of 60 lots on 94 acres in the middle of the Snyderville Meadows. The Canyons recruited an anonymous investor who pur- ferred densities to a handful of parcels as chased the parcel and deeded it to Swaner follows: 19.75 of the density units were sent Nature Preserve. The donor received six of to two small development plots owned by the Colony TDR lots and roughly half of MJM, 56.25 were sent to the SW-2 and SWthe density allocated for the Snyderville 3 parcels at the Canyons, and 74 were sent West property. to the Creekside TDR Newpark Creekside was a town cenIn hindsight the TDR at the SW-2 ter, which 121-acre project vested for 17 lots was also in the northeast and SW-3 parcels could have been owned by corner of the managed differently for a better result MJM. The Snyderville meadf o u r ow. Swaner but that setback pales in significance remaining Nature Preserve lots were purchased the to the wealth of community benefits the left on the land and then TDRs as a whole are providing at Somerset asked the TDR site and committee for absolutely no cost to Summit County e x t i n help in transferguished ring the density. citizens." with the Swaner had ^ ^ ^ _ _ ^ ^ _ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ filing of a recruited an ^ ^ ^ ™ " ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ™ conservaanonymous tion easeinvestor who would purchase the density if ment by MJM in favor of Swaner Nature it were relocated to the Colony. The Preserve. investor was a principal in the Colony projThe density transferred to Newpark ect. Swaner would use the proceeds to pay totaled 236,800 square feet, which is double off the loan it had obtained to purchase the the density for 74 of the Somerset units. Creekside parcel. The other transfers were made on a 1-for-l A TDR agreement was enacted that basis. The agreement also provided for the authorized the creation of 20 additional county to receive 112,000 square feet of Colony lots to accommodate the Creekside density in Newpark. When the 112,000 density - 17 for the anonymous investor square feet of density for the county is fac(who was obliged to buy the land and tored in, the incentive for the Newpark install the infrastructure) and three for the transfer amounted to only 6,400 square county to use for future TDRs. About half feet, or the equivalent of four residential of the lots were configured on plats already units. As a result of the negotiations to in the pipeline, in places that could not be expand Newpark to make room for the seen from the highways, while the balance additional density, MJM donated 65 acres were to be placed in future phases of the to the Swaner Nature Preserve. Colony completely hidden from view. The Snyderville Basin Recreation Somerset TDR District purchased the county's 112,000 Somerset had been vested under a previous square feet in Newpark for a price of $1 code for 154 townhouse units on 35 acres million for its field house site. situated on a prominent bluff behind the Complications Red Barn Nursery, across from the outlet The TDR agreement obligated the county mall. The project blueprints had been sub- to provide marketable title for the SW-2 mitted for approval and construction was and SW-3 parcels within 90 days. about to begin. A TDR agreement was Complications arose in trying to work out achieved with the owner, MJM, that trans- cost-sharing arrangements for the road and utilities among ASC (the Canyons owner) and other property owners. These complications hindered the county's ability to grant title within the timeframe required. In the binding arbitration that ensued, MJM was awarded $4,826,314 as compensation for its costs and lost profits. To satisfy the ruling, the county assigned MJM four of the Colony TDR lots and paid them almost all of the $1 million the county received from the Recreation District. MJM relinquished its interest in the SW-2 and SW-3 parcels, which have reverted to the county, and which are now combined into the LV-4 and LV-9 parcels in Lower Village. The value of these parcels offsets, in large part, the loss of value suffered in the arbitration ruling. Settlement of Canyons TDR lots In the November 1999 Canyons SPA amendment, five Colony TDR lots were assigned to the county. As previously noted, three Colony TDR lots were assigned to the county in connection with the Creekside TDR. One additional Colony lot was added when the Mines Ventures development was incorporated into the Colony. (The county had been assigned one of the Mines Ventures lots in the consent agreement for that project.) Thus, the county had claim to nine Colony TDR lots prior to the arbitration ruling. After the dust had settled on the Somerset TDR, five Colony TDR lots remained. Of the five Colony TDR lots, three were platted and two were to be included in future phases. Issues of infrastructure assessments, property-damage claims, and marketing restrictions, along with uncertainty as to when the unplatted lots would be available, led county officials in 2006 to accept a bird-in-the-hand cash payment of $4,540,000 for its interest in the five remaining Colony TDR lots. That money was deposited in a fund set up expressly for acquiring open space. Summary and Conclusions The three TDR projects had been approved or vested under previous codes. 1 Because development was imminent, and no open-space fund existed, the TDRs were the only viable means for preserving these prized lands. The county did not buy the TDR receiving properties; they were provided as a requirement in the county's Resort Matrix. The county did not pay for any infrastructure costs; they were factored into the settlement for the Colony lots. To date, the TDR transactions have helped preserve 331 acres in the Swaner Nature Preserve - 90 acres from the Mountain Meadows TDR, 121 acres from the Creekside TDR, and 100 acres (35 at the Somerset site and 65 adjacent to Newpark) from the Somerset TDR. Additionally, $4,540,000 has been deposited in the county's open space fund. Thus far, those funds have been used in the acquisition of the 40-acre Roberts Parcel, the 184-acre purchase (with Park City) at Quarry Mountain, and the 20-acre Koleman parcel. There's still considerable value in the county's remaining TDR entitlements at the Canyons. They include 20 hotel units in the resort core and parcels LV-4 and LV-9 in the Lower Village, comprising 6 ? acres, which are approved for 185,000 square feet of residential, commercial, and resort density. All of the transferred density was converted from full-time dwellings, in suburban configurations that burden service providers, to commercial and resort-based densities that contribute to the tax base. AH of the TDRs were discussed and voted on in public meetings of both the planning commission and board of county commissioners. None of the present planning commissioners or county commissioners were involved in approving the TDRs The bottom line - in hindsight, the TDR at the SW-2 and SW-3 parcels could have been managed differently for a better result, but that setback pales in significance to the wealth of community benefits the TDRs as a whole are proving at absolutely no cost to Summit County citizens. I |