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Show VIEWPOINTS A-13 www.parkrecord.com Wed/Thurs/Fri, September 27-29, 2017 EDITORIAL South Summit school bond is smart and sorely needed I Discourse around care facility misconstrued Editor: In a society where too much of our communication and interaction goes from dialogue to dismissal and beyond in a nanosecond, I was reminded in a letter to the editor this week that words really matter. In this case, in a letter from Paul T. Meyers, Ph.D. (Park Record Sept 20 22) regarding the proposed care facility, I was reminded just how true it is -- how words matter. Please note I was unaware of the proposal and have neither researched it nor have an opinion on the proposal. My comment is only about the communication. While Mr. Meyers was proffering a thoughtful expose on what may be inconsistencies of the communication of this project by the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission, he chose to elevate his rhetoric, perhaps to try to whip the neighborhood into a frenzy, when he used the word “asylum” to describe the facility. Does Mr. Meyers think that characterization was accurate? Necessary? Appropriate? Words matter. The words we choose and use in our communication matter. And in an increasingly polarized society I think it is incumbent upon all of us to find a way to enter into civil discourse as opposed to that which is incendiary. On the flip side, by choosing the incendiary path, most rationale readers simply dismiss the communication altogether. Just a thought. Jim Arnold Park City Author of autism letter lacks compassion Editor: I would like to clear up some misconceptions offered by Paul T. Meyers Ph.D. in his letter to the editor printed 9/20/2017 “Resident questions proposed care facility.” First, this group home is not an “asylum.” It will be a group home for up to four high-functioning autistic adults. (This could later be expanded to a total of eight but the expansion would require Planning Commission approval.) Second, the “commercial appearance” of the structure was addressed at the Planning Commission meeting. While the Planning Commission did not feel it was in their purview to require changes, the applicant did indicate they would The Park Record Staff PUBLISHER...........................Andy Bernhard Editor...............................Nan Chalat Noaker Staff Writers .........................Jay Hamburger Scott Iwasaki Bubba Brown Angelique McNaughton Ben Ramsey Carolyn Webber Contributing .................................Tom Clyde Writers Jay Meehan Teri Orr Amy Roberts Steve Phillips Tom Kelly Joe Lair Copy Editor ................................James Hoyt Engagement Editor ...........Kira Hoffelmeyer Photographer ............................ Tanzi Propst Office Manager .......................Tiffany Rivera Circulation Manager ................Lacy Brundy Accounting Manager ............Jennifer Snow ADVERTISING Classifieds/Legals................ Jennifer Lynch Advertising Director.............. Valerie Spung Advertising Sales ............................Lori Gull Jodi Hecker Erin Donnelly Lisa Curley Olivia Bergmann Digital Products ......................... Mike Boyko Manager Production Director .................... Ben Olson Production.........................Nadia Dolzhenko Patrick Schulz Linda Sites attempt to make the front of the group home more residential in appearance while keeping the costs down. As for the structure being a commercial enterprise, it is a “non-profit” group home that is an attempt at providing housing for highfunction adults with autism. While the location is adjacent to the Ranch and Elk Run condos it is also right across the street from several “commercial” enterprises that include two office buildings, one pre-school/day care and one school. Finally, I was surprised by the lack of understanding and compassion about autistic adults. These adults will present no threat to the community. This is not a rehab facility. It simply is an attempt to provide housing for a certain segment of our population that needs some assistance with daily living. It is intended that there will be supervision 24/7 to insure that these adults get to their jobs, eat properly and assist with daily activities. Presumably this group home is an attempt to provide care for these young adults after their parents have left this world. I applaud the group home as an attempt to provide for these individuals and help them integrate into our society. David A Vecchi Pinebrook resident NAC says inclusiveness makes town stronger Editor: I am compelled to respond to Paul T. Meyers, Ph.D’s letter to the editor in The Park Record’s Sept. 20-22 edition. I appreciate the community engaging and posing questions about the proposed adult independent living facility in Pinebrook and would love to offer some opportunities for education on the benefits of inclusive and welcoming communities. While this is not our project, daily in my work I see the unique abilities in all of us and the ways they can shine when people focus on each other’s strengths, not our weaknesses. Individuals on the autism spectrum, for instance, have great talent to lend to our local community, including Pinebrook residents. Did you know major corporations around the world are searching for their unique talent to help them build successful technology? At the National Ability Center we are champions of the inclusion of all people of differing abilities, not just because we care, but because we know it works. Studies across nearly every sector show when we are diversified, inclusive and compassionate we all benefit. Thank you to the thousands of people in our local area as well as our visitors and part-time residents that already show their support for a community where everyone has a place and is valued. As Mr Meyers requested, for those still looking to ponder ‘salient questions’ he has posed, I invite you to join me at the National Ability Center for a simple tour where I can show you how focusing on our abilities strengthens our workforce, our team, our community and your neighborhood. For the rest of you, please join the ability movement and support inclusion. Opportunities to volunteer or participate in our numerous programs in Park City, Salt Lake City and Moab abound along with other great community programs for all abilities across our state. Together we are possibilities. Gail Barille, CEO National Ability Center Please see more Letters on A-12 t has been nearly 30 years since the South Summit School District last asked its constituents to approve a bond. Since then enrollment has steadily increased –more than 15 percent in the last decade, with a 5.6 percent increase expected this year over last. For the most part, students are attending classes in the same facilities they have used for nearly three decades. (South Summit High School was built in 1990, the middle school was built in 1980 and the elementary school was built in 1986.) There have been a handful of remodels and the district has implemented several creative measures to create additional classroom space (single classrooms have been subdivided and classes are also held in the high school library and at the district office building, for instance), but according to district officials, they are “flat out of space.” And, as anyone who has driven through the Kamas Valley can attest to, new single family homes are being built at a rapid pace, giving rise to concerns that all three schools will be significantly over capacity within five years. To cope with current overcrowding and new growth, the South Summit Board of Education is asking voters to approve a $58.65 million bond on the upcoming General Election ballot. The cost to property owners will be about $96 per year per $100,000 of taxable value on a single-family home and $174 per year per $100,000 for a business property. The lion’s share of the bond will be used to build a new high school on a large parcel of land west of Kamas, near but not adjacent to the current campus on the east side of town. Building a much-needed secondary school that can provide a more competitive high tech learning environment for South Summit students is essential. It will also alleviate pressure on the existing campus where elementary and middle schoolers will then be able to spread out over the three facilities. Once the new high school is available, the elementary school, currently serving kindergarten through fourth grade, will house pre-K through second grade. The middle school will go from serving grades five through eight to housing grades three through five and the high school will be converted into an intermediate school for grades six through eight. The trickle-down effect will give every grade more breathing room and allow administrators to focus on more specific age groups. Admittedly, the cost to taxpayers is significant, but the plan is well conceived and has already has garnered significant community support. It offers benefits at every grade level and anticipates population growth that is already cascading into the region. When South Summit School District voters receive their ballots in mid-October, whether they have students in the schools or not, they should think of the bond as a wise investment in maintaining a quality educational system, one of the top hallmarks of a healthy community. GUEST EDITORIAL Transportation owner hopes city reconsiders SAM RUBIN Park City I am the owner of Four Seasons Concierge and Mountain Transportation Network, the second of which was one of three finalists for the recently cancelled Microtransit RFP. I want to thank the City Council for saving the Community over $680,000 for a six-month pilot by not proceeding with the recommended vendor for the Microtransit RFP. Had the selection committee followed the recommendations made by City Council for the RFP, which included weighting their decisions toward a local company, working more closely with the local “For Hire” community, and actually contacting one of our references, I feel that my company, Mountain Transportation Network, would have been the recommended vendor and we would have been the one sitting at the table last week educating the public as to the benefits of microtransit, showing the public why an Electric Vehicle makes the most sense, and therefore why the Tesla Models are the safest vehicle for microtransit. We would have not only unanimously won the City Council’s vote but also that of the public, while saving at the same time the City $400,000 in cost — as our solution was $281,000, over $100,000 less than the initial proposal by Downtowner. Now that there is no chance for a microtransit solution to be implemented this year, I would encourage the community to visit our website: www. mountaintransportationnetwork.com, to learn more about microtransit, the benefits, and the solution we proposed. My company has been fully transparent and has posted every article, research, quote, proposal, and presentation we have prepared — without any redactions, for all to read. Since going live on the 4th of August, we have not received one negative email or comment on our Facebook page. We HAVE received messages of support and changed the perception of many of those that sat in the audience at this week’s City Council meeting. In fact, we already have members of the public that have downloaded our app from the Google Play Store (those that have an iPhone… our app is pending approval by Apple). The solution we had proposed was a partnership between the leading on-demand software technology company called dashride, which has over 400 businesses using their software. The U.S. Open Tennis Tournament recently used dashride to provide transportation for the players, referees, executives, and volunteers. In Washington D.C., DC Taxi uses dashride to manage their fleet of over 7,000 “for hire” vehicles. We had planned on fully integrating with Park City’s MyStop app and offered to expand coverage and hours of operation above and beyond the RFP Service Areas. Our app would have worked in tandem with the local “For Hire” community, and would help to add value to the existing “For Hire” permitting process for the City. With all of that said, it is what it is, but it is not all bad news. This past weekend, we performed a soft launch of our Mobile Application, which is one that works together with many of the local “for hire” companies to offer a “local service” for “locals” and “by locals.” Our application has features that are currently not offered by the popular Transportation Network Companies such as booster seats, consistent pricing, prices that NEVER surge, the ability to “Favorite” or “Block” a driver, and most importantly, assurance that the driver of the vehicle has a FBI/TSA background. In addition, a portion of each ride will be given back to a different local non-profit organization. We hope the community embraces this “local” app and as a result it reduces the number of Uber and Lyft cars that circle around aimlessly and idle on Main Street. We hope that one day, the City will revisit the idea of microtransit, and when it does, we will be waiting with open arms and able to integrate into our application. GUEST EDITORIAL Facility critic: issue is type of use, not autism PAUL T. MEYERS Ph.D., Park City Ordinarily I don’t engage those who seem irrational and ignorant of the primary issue (proposed care facility in Elk Run) but since the letters attacked me personally, I am compelled to respond. The issue doesn’t concern autism per se, it concerns an institutional (possibly commercial) facility being injected into a residential neighborhood. Except for two schools and an office complex, the proposed facility would be the only exception to usage in the Elk Run environment. Note that the schools and complex are separated from the residences by Pinebrook Road. The applicant for the care facility, Mr. Hood, represented his intent as the construction of a home for a family that had an autistic son, not a four-apartment building with plans for expansion to four more units. So Ms. Sullivan, in her letter, is right to use the term “Group Home,” but I did not mention a “large staff of doctors, nurses, therapists, etc.” However, at the public hearing Mr. Hood did say that caretakers would be necessary. Now I hear about an administrator and/ or security officer. Caretakers would be necessary if the objective is to teach skills for independent living. And that means the future inhabitants are now dependent. So let’s not leave some phony impression that this would be just another domicile like every other house. I noticed at the public hearing that to my knowledge the supporters of the proposal do not live in the immediate area that would be impacted. Also, many asserted that they had LETTERS POLICY The Park Record welcomes letters to the editor on any subject. We ask that the letters adhere to the following guidelines. They must include the home (street) address and telephone number of the author. No letter will be published under an assumed name. Letters must not contain libelous material. Letters should be no longer than about 300 words (about 600 words for guest editorials) and should, if possible, be typed. We reserve the right to edit letters if they are too long or if they contain statements that are unnecessarily offensive or obscene. Writers are limited to one letter every seven days. Letters thanking event sponsors can list no more than 6 individuals and/or businesses. Send your letter to: editor@parkrecord.com autistic children so they are emotionally biased. One man sounded like he might be the building contractor should the project come to fruition. If these people feel so strongly, why don’t they build the facility in their backyard or in one of Park City’s many gated communities? The key issues concern use, appearance and location -- not autism. As I recall the commission gave conditional approval during the meeting with several questions unanswered. If I recall correctly, during the period allotted for the public to speak, they were cautioned to refrain from asking questions. Back to my opening statement and the ad hominem attacks. To the officers of CONNECT, I would ask them to point out where I said something intended to prolong “the devastating stigma and isolation” of anyone with mental health issues. As to the word “asylum” in the 19th and early 20th centuries there was the connotation that implied an institution for the insane (legal term). But if you care to use a dictionary, asylum also implies a place of safety, a refuge, and the protection afforded by a sanctuary. In most of the world today asylum is what political refugees seek and apply for when fleeing repressive regimes. The CONNECT officers maintained that I was fear mongering. I am puzzled as to how asking a couple of objective questions as food for thought is fear mongering. But again the subject is not “mental health issues and brain disorders.” Personally, having worked at an institution in Pennsylvania for mentally retarded (term at the time) children I applaud the scientific/social progress in remediation of such maladies. In the case of Ms Sullivan, I’m sorry my letter induced “anger, sadness, distress.” But I do challenge her to identify in my letter the passages of hateful rhetoric or where I argued against “housing opportunities for...individuals with intellectual disabilities.” I find it both presumptuous and amusing that she would recommend that I “pursue an education in the humanities.” I would point out to Ms Sullivan that I have both and M.A. and a Ph.D. in the interdisciplinary program of American Studies. So, although I’m well aware of how much I don’t know, I am able to recognize logical fallacies, emotional hogwash when I encounter it. In conclusion, I am not the issue and neither is autism. |