OCR Text |
Show The Park Record A-22 MEETINGS AND AGENDAS Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues, March 4-7, 2017 MORE DOGS ON MAIN By Tom Clyde TO PUBLISH YOUR PUBLIC NOTICES AND AGENDAS PLEASE EMAIL CLASSIFIEDS@PARKRECORD.COM Tear down this wall SUMMIT COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH MEETING AGENDA Directors Report (Rich, 4:15 – 4:25) March 6, 2017 4:00 PM – 5:30 UALBOH (Dorothy, 4:25 – 4:30) Summit County Health Department 650 Round Valley Drive Park City, Utah 84060 Legislative Update (All, 4:30 – 4:45) Source Protection Issues and Update (Rich, Chris, others, 4:45 – 5:05) PUBLIC MEETING 4:00 – 5:30 Welcome and Approval of Minutes (All, 4:00 – 4:05) Introduction of Chris Ure, new Board member (4:05 – 4:10) Public Comment (4:10 – 4:15) Continued From A-18 Mountain Town News sort community of Idaho. The Idaho Mountain Express noted Idaho Power is trying to remove a similar vulnerability by building a second transmission line in the Wood River Valley between the communities of Hailey and Ketchum, which are about 10 miles apart. This would produce more visual obstruction, steel poles about 60 feet tall, although a portion would be underground. The Express reported some local opposition. Aimee Christensen, a local advocate for renewable energy, argues for more local renewable generation. A wind storm powerful enough to topple power poles in one line might well be strong enough to take out another set of transmission lines, she contended. Tree well claims another life in the Sierra Nevada TRUCKEE, Calif. — Another life has been claimed by a tree well, this time at Northstar, the resort near Truckee owned by Vail Resorts. The Sierra Sun reported a 43-year-old snowboarder died after being fished out of the tree well. ”We found him on his back, in a tree well, unconscious,” Dane Jasper told the Sierra Sun. “Together, we couldn’t pull (the victim) out, so we kept shouting until another man arrived, and the three of us managed to pull (the victim) out. We gave CPR until the ski patrol arrived, but (the victim) wasn’t responsive.” For Jasper, the chilling case was a reminder to never ski or board alone. The Sierra Sun reported that 94 inches, or 7.83 feet, had fallen in the seven days prior. There is enough snow for skiing into July at Squaw TRUCKEE, Calif. – Squaw Valley plans to stay open until July 4, something it hasn’t done since 2011. Last year it closed in late May, on Memorial Day. Squaw had recorded 565 inches of snow as of last week, compared to the average 450 inches for the same day. January was the snowiest in 45 years of record-keeping at the resort. Vail Resorts reported that this is the snowiest winter for the Tahoe area in 22 years. It’s also a very rainy season 100plus miles away at Sacramento. Normally dry and sunny, Sacramento has received more rain than either Portland or Seattle. Pot clubs in Aspen? And visits to emergency rooms ASPEN, Colo. – It’s now been Silver Creek Sewer Update (Rich, Phil, 5:05 – 5:15) 7-11 Septic Issues (Phil, 5:15 - 5:30) Adjourn three years and two months since Colorado began sales of marijuana for recreational use, and Gov. John Hickenlooper says he’s starting to get comfortable with legalization. Hickenlooper, who grew wealthy and gained prominence as a craft brewer, opposed legalization. But on “Meet the Press” on Sunday, he told moderator Chuck Todd that he’s still not “there yet, but we have made a lot of progress.” Hickenlooper went on to say that there has been no great spike in use by teenagers, as some had feared, and there’s anecdotal evidence of fewer drug deals. “Maybe this system is better than what was admittedly a pretty bad system to begin with,” he said, referring to the days before legalization. Hickenlooper downplayed hints offered by the Trump administration that it may enforce federal laws that ban any sales or use of marijuana, just as it has vowed to enforce federal laws governing immigration. But Colorado is still finetuning its legalization. One issue still up in the air is how much public consumption will be tolerated. Aspen has allowed three private events in Aspen during the past three Winter X Games in which attendees could openly and legally consume marijuana. But you can’t smoke it in hotels, nor in public bars. Denver officials are working on regulations to open a oneyear pilot of bring-your-own marijuana clubs. State lawmakers may consider measures to allow either “tasting rooms” run by marijuana dispensers or smoker-friendly clubs akin to cigar bars. Aspen Mayor Steve Skadron said he’s open to having a conversation about businesses that allow public consumption. The Aspen Times reported the city decided against private pot clubs in 2015 because of ambiguity in state law concerning private smoking venues, along with worries about how they could negatively affect Aspen’s image. Colorado is still assessing the impact of legalization on public health, a process that is likely to take many years. The fundamental problem is that because it was illegal, there was no baseline for measuring changes. Now that marijuana use is legal in Colorado’s eyes, there’s no reason not to tell doctors why you’re at the emergency room of the hospital with more THC – the psychoactive agent in cannabis – in your blood than you know what to do with. A report, Monitoring Health Concerns Related to Marijuana in Colorado in 2016, found that Summit County led the state in emergency room visits related to marijuana consumption, with 56 per 1,000 residents, and Routt County – where Steamboat Springs is located – came in second at 17 per 1,000. Dr. David Wilkinson, medical director of the Emergency Department at Yampa Valley Medical Center, told the Steamboat Today that nearly all the cases have involved edible marijuana. “They get extremely anxious, they’re hyperventilating, they’re over-emotional,” he said. He told the newspaper he thinks the community has a responsibility to more thoroughly educate people, particularly children, about the drug. Due to recreational legalization, children are making judgments at an earlier age about what they think of marijuana and whether they’ll try it, Wilkinson said. Immigrant communities continue to be jittery PARK CITY, Utah — Things continue to be jittery in the immigrant communities of resort valleys, as evidenced by reports out of both Park City and Ketchum, Idaho. A hastily organized forum about enforcement of immigration laws in Park City drew 300 to 350 people. The meeting was held after agents from the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, arrested four residents on felony charges involving illegal entry into the United States. At the forum, reported The Park Record, local lawenforcement chiefs drew applause when they indicated they would not partner with the federal government in enforcing immigration laws. But the subtext of the story is more nuanced. Summit County Sheriff Justin Martinez said that when someone arrested by his deputies cannot prove he or she is in the United States legally, his employees contact ICE for assistance with identification. However, ICE determines whether the individual remains jailed or can post bail and gain release. In Idaho, Ketchum elected officials approved a resolution inherently political: all people are welcome, including immigrants, and among those undocumented immigrants and those who are refugees. Idaho has no cities that have declared themselves sanctuaries for illegal immigrants. But Boise, and now Ketchum, have adopted so-called “welcome” resolutions. Suzanne Frick, the Ketchum city administrator, said that because Ketchum contracts with the Blaine County Sheriff’s Department for law enforcement, it doesn’t have the authority to tell sheriff’s deputies what federal directives should or should not be followed. As such, it cannot be a sanctuary city. Instead, it is a “welcoming city,” she said. Mayor Nina Jonas told the Idaho Mountain Express that “driving a segment of the community underground is not the healthiest, strongest or safest thing to do.” Get all the latest Park Record updates. The Legislature has spent an inordinate amount of time this session on the future of the “Zion Curtain.” It’s a perennial distraction. It used to really bother me, but I’ve come to the conclusion that there’s some benefit in them having an issue they care so deeply about that, in the end, matters so little. When you think of the serious damage they could be doing, spending a large portion of the session arguing about the Zion Curtain is almost cute. It’s like a pacifier. The Zion Curtain is a requirement in state law that a restaurant that sells liquor must have the bar preparation area shielded from public view, lest women and children be mortified at the sight of demon liquor dispensed from a metered pouring device, ice added, and (I’m beginning to swoon) a piece of lemon put on the rim of the glass. The barrier must be opaque and 7 feet tall. The new theater in Salt Lake had to build a Zion Ceiling because people could see drinks mixed from the atrium. Restaurant owners have hated it for years because it is just one more expense, and depending on the building and where the plumbing for the bar area is, it makes a strange enclosure in the middle of an open room. There have been moves to get rid of it for years, and the negotiations become silly. For every foot the barrier is lowered, some new and equally ridiculous requirement will be proposed to replace it. Lower the wall, and servers have to mix drinks left-handed while holding a red umbrella. This year, the proposal was to eliminate the Zion Curtain, so the bar area was in full view, but then require a “moat” of 10 or 15 feet around it in which no decent people could be seated. Restaurant owners complained about that because, if the bar is in the center of the building, that 15-foot perimeter eats up a lot of expensive floor space. If you are doing business in a 25-foot wide building on Main Street, and the bar, bar back and working space is between a total 10 feet, the 15-foot buffer means your patrons have to sit in the building next door. As long as they are 15 feet away from the bar in that restaurant. Makes perfect sense. So as a mitigation to that, they have now proposed that the moat can be narrower, if, instead of a Zion Curtain, you plant a hedge that is at least 4 feet high. So the width of the planters, added to the reduced buffer, add up to about the same distance. The restaurant as- For every foot the barrier is lowered, some new and equally ridiculous requirement will be proposed to replace it. Lower the wall, and servers have to mix drinks left-handed while holding a red umbrella.” sociation has come to the conclusion that, stupid as the Zion Curtain rule is, it probably is better to leave it alone. Here’s a proposal. If you go into a restaurant for dinner with the family and find things not to your liking, whether it’s the view of margaritas being poured, the music too loud or not to your taste, the temperature is uncomfortable, or the servers are dressed inappropriately for a meal with the young ‘uns, you do this: When you pay your bill, you mention to the man- ager that you were disappointed/ offended/annoyed by some aspect of the experience and will be eating somewhere else next time. The manager may say, “What were you thinking, having your 10-year-old’s birthday party at Hooters instead of Chuck-ECheese?” But the free market principle of people exercising choice would prevail. It works pretty well in most contexts. If enough people said that a nearly topless woman mixing a flaming cocktail is inappropriate for a family lunch, either the customer mix or the management style would change. It’s ironic the same group, who are about to take up arms against the idea of the landlord imposing regulations on the season and intensity of grazing on the landlord’s property, feels it is necessary and appropriate to put the legislature in charge of the interior decoration of every restaurant in the state. These guys can’t stand the thought of the jack-booted thugs at EPA suggesting there are limits to how toxic the air in Salt Lake can be. It may be causing thousands of serious health problems, even deaths, every year. But air pollution is a private matter between a man and his 1976 Plymouth Belvedere, and the feds should stay out of it. But the Zion Curtain, well, we have to protect the delicate sensibilities of our folks who are apparently not smart enough to eat somewhere else if they become dyspeptic at the sight of a liquor bottle. Is the sight of a glass of beer being dispensed any more disturbing than that of a pint of whipped cream being squirted on a cubic yard of cheese cake? Tom Clyde practiced law in Park City for many years. He lives on a working ranch in Woodland and has been writing this column since 1986. SUNDAY IN THE PARK By Teri Orr What it took to rise What I miss the most about the ‘70s is Tommy. And not caring if I wore a bra or not, because those perky little twins could stand up on their own then. I miss the music and lack of cell phones and the days before AIDS. I miss living at Lake Tahoe with San Francisco just four hours away. I miss the wild sense of discovery and feeling that somehow it was up to us to change the world. Watching the television special “When We Rise” this week made me realize I lived through a piece of extraordinary history. At the time, it was just us, pushing the edges of convention and hot tubs and unfair laws. When I met Tommy, he was the friend of my older friends who had the store next to me in Tahoe City. Mine was children’s clothing, theirs was Christmas year round. We both opened in 1973 in the middle of town, across from the lake and down from the giant evergreen that divided the road. By 1977, they had sold the store to their friend’s son, Tom, who wanted a career in merchandising. He had recently not graduated from college. I remember the story when his family arrived for his graduation: He slid behind their seats, tapped them on shoulders and said, “I bet you thought I’d be up there.” He had failed to gather the credits needed, but he knew his east coast parents had already told their friends about his planned career in retail so he let them come to the ceremony. They could create another story after that. He figured, why deny them the joy of attending his (almost) graduation? He was an imp like that. Which is why I loved him. By 1977, I was divorced with two small children at age 26. I had a business to run, a family to raise and a little living to do. Tommy certainly thought so. And every other weekend, when my ex had the responsibility of the children, I would hire someone to work the store and run away to San Francisco, because everything was happening there. Everything. And having married too young to my high school sweetheart who turned out to be abusive, I wanted to taste all my just desserts. Tommy also knew just where to send me. On a business trip one weekend, Tommy suggested I see Peter Allen perform. Liza Minnelli’s ex, he had a show that was supposed to be INSANE …in a little place in the Castro. I had no idea what “in the Castro” meant. I took a single woman along who worked with me. When we arrived at the theater we were greeted by a little “Game of Thrones” style man, which seemed strange but not strange enough on its own. Our tickets were general admission and I kept thinking it was odd, because it was we who were being led to the front row, passing row after row of the most handsome men I had ever seen. Tommy had set me up of course, and The television series unearthed feelings/ pieces of my past I carefully had recycled like a pair of bellbottom jeans.” made certain we were seated and treated to the wildest show I still have ever seen in my long life. On nights at Tahoe, I wanted to go out I would go over to Reno, an hour away. And if I had no sitter, Tommy would volunteer to take the kids. He loved them without measure. And they him. His parents would come out from New Jersey from time to time and be certain Tommy and I were “a thing.” And we let them think that. It was easier on Tommy that way. On weekends in Tahoe, when I didn’t have the kids, we would go dancing and clubbing together, he being the perfect wing man, as in,“if you don’t go for him…I will.” Tommy saved me from myself more times than I can count. I left Tahoe in 1979 and moved to Park City. Tommy was the only one for years who knew my ex had threatened to kill me. I figured leaving The Lake would be sad, but I needed to start over. Shortly after Tommy sold his store and relaunched himself in Beverly Hills. He became the manager of the Val- entino boutique there. It was his life’s dream. My mother needed a triple bypass in the mid-1980s and I came back to a very different San Francisco. Her doctor said there was a new disease that only seemed to be hitting gay men, transferred somehow through blood. I would have to find five people with my mother’s blood type to secure enough blood for surgery. I needed to know about their lifestyles, the doctor said. That same summer Rock Hudson announced he was suffering from AIDS. He died a few months later. When I think about the word “surreal,” I think about those six months. My daughter attended college in southern California and Uncle Tommy cared for her with clothes and dinners and advice. From time to time, we would reconnect — a holiday here and work trip there. He was happy and in love. His longtime partner died of AIDS in 1989. The next decade was hard for Tommy. He couldn’t hold a job due to his illness. When I was getting ready to open the Eccles Center I went to Los Angeles to see Alvin Ailey for the first time. I joined Tommy for brunch the next day. I didn’t recognize him. He was bloated, spotted and moving so slowly. We laughed and retold old stories. The next year he was gone. “Pneumonia,” his parents told their friends in 1999. I had Fed Exed him a letter days before telling him what I thought we all wanted to hear at the end: He had loved and been loved in return. The television series unearthed feelings/pieces of my past I carefully had recycled like a pair of bell-bottom jeans. And it made me miss all the Tommys who lived in the shadows before they lived, briefly, large. I can’t explain how all this makes me feel, except I’m gonna download some Peter Allen music (“The Boy From Oz”) and dance around my house all crazy this Sunday in the Park… Teri Orr is a former editor of The Park Record. She is the director of the Park City Institute, which provides programming for the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Center for the Performing Arts. |