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Show C-1 B-1 ECOCENTER PUTS SMALL WONDERS ON DISPLAY A PARK CITY FAMILY STICKS TOGETHER BUSINESS, A-15 BUSINESS IN BASIN BOOMS WITH OPENINGS AND EXPANSIONS The Happy April Fool’s Day! The greatest lesson in life is to know that even fools are right sometimes. - Winston Churchill COLUMNS, A-22 TOM CLYDE: SAY ‘WORKFORCE HOUSING’ AND SPARKS FLY Park Record. PARK CITY , UTAH | WWW.PARKRECORD.COM Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues, April 1-4, 2017 Serving Summit County since 1880 Vol. 137 | No. 16 50¢ A legend Moose march for housing of mining days dies TANZI PROPST/PARK RECORD The redevelopment of the Old Town building that once housed the Kimball Art Center is underway. The crews, shown on Friday, removed roof material this week to allow them to shift trusses used for reinforcement from the east side of the building to the west side. That will allow the developers to build a rooftop deck. The Park City Council on Thursday night held a lengthy discussion about a related permit centered on a proposal for event space at the facility. The elected officials remanded the issue back to the Planning Commission. PARK RECORD FILE PHOTO Discussion of event space turns grueling Rich Martinez who enthusiastically shared his expertise about Park City’s mining history as ‘the Ol’ Miner,’ was a mainstay at the town’s annual Labor Day Mucking and Drilling contests. Rich Martinez came to symbolize an era By DAVID HAMPSHIRE The Park Record Rich Martinez, a veteran of about five decades in Park City mining and the patriarch of an extended family of 115 members, died in Francis, Utah, on Tuesday, March 28. He was 82. Rich is probably best known in Park City for his role in the annual mucking and drilling competition at City Park. He organized the competition for many years and gave the playby-play, explaining the intricacies of mining to neophytes watching from the bleachers on Miners Day. But in an earlier era he owned it. Consider: In a 23-year span from 1957 through 1979, The Park Record carried the results of the Labor Day mucking and drilling contest 19 times. In those 19 articles, Rich is listed as the winner of the jackleg drilling contest 12 times and as either the second- or third-place finisher five times. In 1975 he didn’t make the top three in drilling but won the mucking contest. Only in 1978 is his name missing from the top three in both categories. Rich was not shy about staking his claim to a place in Park City history. His most recent license plate announced: “PC LEGND.” Over the years his and his wife’s plates included other classics such as “OL’ MINER” and “9 KIDS.” He was a dedicated family man who doted on his wife, Leona, his children and their spouses, grandchildren and their spouses, great-grandchildren and one great-great grandchild. He and Leona bought each one a Christmas present even after their offspring reached triple digits. He was a gifted storyteller who loved a good joke, even if he was the punch line. His high-pitched laugh punctuated most conversations. Rich was a man of contradictions. He grew up in a tempestuous household but was a gentle man who recalled getting into only one fight in his life. He graduated from high school when Park City mining was in free fall but managed to make mining his career. He was a devout Mormon who never drank or smoked, but in the 1970s he owned and operated The Cozy, one of Park City’s iconic watering holes. He was a Park City native but never resented the wave of newcomers who changed the character of his town. Please see A mining, A-10 3 sections • 50 pages Business............................... A-15 Classifieds ........................... C-15 Columns .............................. A-22 Crossword ........................... C-4 Editorial............................... A-23 Events Calendar .................. C-7 Legals .................................. C-17 Letters to the Editor ............ A-23 Movies................................. C-4 Restaurant Guide................. C-13 Scene .................................. C-1 Scoreboard ......................... B-5 Sports .................................. B-1 Weather ............................... B-2 ZEN OLSON/PARK RECORD The Moose’s March on Main descended Main Street on Saturday as the animals demanded wildlife housing in Park City after decades of human development. The animals want land to be set aside for moose housing, threatening they will “build a wall around Bonanza Flats and make Park City pay for it.” ‘We were here first,’ animals say at Park City protest By THE HAMBURGLAR The Park Record Main Street in Park City became Moose Street for a day on Saturday, hosting an extraordinary, unscheduled demonstration as the community’s moose marched in support of wildlife housing after decades of human development in the area. The animals quietly organized what was dubbed the Moose’s March on Main, an idea spurred by the widely attended Women’s March on Main during the Fundance Film Festival in January. City Hall, the Park City Police Department and merchants along Main Street were unprepared for the herd. The moose started to move down from their favored street of Daly Avenue onto Main Street. It appeared there were hundreds of moose moving slowly down the street. They argued that Park City leaders are spending big money on housing for the work force but nothing is being spent on housing for the wildlife. The moose carried signs attached to their racks. One read “Bicyclists be gone,” while another said ‘We were here first.” Another sign had a simple message: “Native.” The animals stopped a few times to peer at the wildlife photography on display at Main Street galleries to look for relatives before reaching the bottom of Main Street. The leader of the Moose’s March on Main, going by the name More Moose, Less Park, addressed the crowd of moose and agreed to an interview using a moose whisperer for translation. The leader said Park City must provide living quarters for moose if they continue to build housing for the work force. “The deer have Deer Valley and the cougars prowl certain establishments on Main Street,” More Moose, Less Park said. “It is time for our species to have a place in Park City. Moose over, people of Park City.” In an unexpected admission, More Moose, Less Park said the numerous sightings of moose in recent months in Park City involved animals that are part of the movement. Those moose were not grazing in Old Town and elsewhere in Park City. They were scouting locations for housing, he said. “These humans would gather around taking pictures. And then the police would show up. But none of the humans really understood that those moose were gathering intelligence. We had some locations identified for housing, but, like Park City people, we realized the places were too small,” More Moose, Less Park said. Now, the animal said, the moose will demand Park City turn the wide expanse of Bonanza Flats into moose housing. The open land is a perfect location that offers vegetation, lakes, easy access to Park City’s heated driveways in the winter and delectable landscaping in the summer, the moose said. “We will build a wall around Bonanza Flats and make Park City pay for it,” More Moose, Less Park said, displaying a sign reading ‘Build the wall’ and taking a strong stand against the municipal government’s plans to set aside the acreage for people to use. “This land is our land. This land is not your land.” City Hall was not sure how to respond to the unexpected herd on Main Street. Police Chief Suede Carpenter demanded the moose produce a permit, saying he could turn the march into a more “tranquil” event, if they understood what he meant. Mayor Jest Thomas, a consummate politician, called for better relations between the moose and the people of Park City. “We, the people of Park City, are immigrants in your homeland,” the mayor told the gathering of moose. “We took your land, developed and then developed even more, and then ignored your demands for a place to live out your dreams. We honor your contribution, but we will not pay for your wall. We need all our money to finish paying for Bonanza Flats.” City Councilors send disputed proposal back to lower panel By JAY HAMBURGER The Park Record The Park City Council on Thursday night held a grueling meeting about a developer’s proposal to operate an event space at the former location of the Kimball Art Center, opting to send the issue back to a lower panel amid a wide-ranging community debate closely watched by Old Town dwellers, businesspeople with Main Street interests and the preservation community. The discussion extended well past 10 p.m. as Mayor Jack Thomas and the City Councilors considered their options for the high-profile application to operate an event space. It was not clear until the final moments whether the City Councilors would cast a vote to at least partially deny the event space or whether the issue would be remanded to the Park City Planning Commission for additional discussion. The elected officials eventually supported a motion made by City Councilor Andy Beerman to remand the issue to the Planning Commission. The vote was 5-0. The City Councilors want the Planning Commission to reconsider issues like traffic, parking and methods that could be employed to reduce the amount of noise that would escape the event space into the surrounding neighborhood. The Planning Commission in December approved the event space on a unanimous vote, but many of the issues addressed on Thursday were also broached by the lower panel. The Planning Commission-approved permit allowing the event space was put before the City Council as a result of an appeal by two Old Town residents – Sanford Melville and John Stafsholt -- and the Park City Historical Society. Please see Moose, A-2 Please see Talk, A-2 Drug probe nets teen We all scream for . . . He admits buying the fatal synthetic opioid By BUBBA BROWN The Park Record In an emotional and at-times contentious court hearing Friday, a 16-yearold boy admitted to purchasing the drug U-47700 online that eventually made its way into the hands of two 13-year-old Park City boys who died of overdoses in September. The teen, facing two misdemeanor charges and one second-degree felony, made the admission as part of a plea deal with prosecutors. In exchange for pleading guilty to a Class A misdemeanor count of reckless endangerment and a misdemeanor contempt charge from a prior incident involving possession of drugs, prosecutors dropped a felony count of distributing a controlled or counterfeit substance. Judge Elizabeth Knight sentenced the teen, who has spent the last several months in an inpatient treatment center, to probation that includes internet restrictions, 80 hours of community service and a $175 fine. Knight also ordered that the Park City Police Department release its reports involving the case, something the parents of the 13-year-old boys lobbied for after what they described as several failed attempts to get the records. The charges stem from the investigations into the September deaths of Ryan Ainsworth and Grant Seaver, best friends and students at Treasure Mountain Junior High School, who were found dead in their homes less than 48 hours apart. Police later determined they had died from taking U-47700, a synthetic opioid commonly called “pink.” On Friday, the teen said in court that he ordered U-47700 online in order to feed a drug addiction. When he tried the drug, it made him severely ill, but said the opioid still made its way into the possession of Seaver and Ainsworth. The teen denied, however, that the boys got the drug directly from him. TANZI PROPST/PARK RECORD Amelia Abbett, right, a 10-year-old, closes her eyes as she savors the flavor of a taste-test spoonful of lavender ice cream from the Wasatch Creamery booth at Swaner Preserve & EcoCenter’s Meet The Producers event Thursday evening. Her brother, 6-year-old Oliver, middle, opens wide for a spoonful of brown butter ice cream as Wasatch Creamery employee Ruby Gillin hands him another spoon with a sample of Oreo ice cream. Attendees sampled a variety of local foods and flavors. Please see Drug probe, A-2 VISITOR GUIDE Lindsey Vonn readies for strong showing in Park City Olympic athlete Lindsey Vonn will sign her book, “Strong Is the New Beautiful” at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 4, at Dolly’s Bookstore, 510 Main St. For information, visit www.dollysbookstore.com. |