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Show A-2 The Park Record The Park Record. Serving Summit County since 1880 The Park Record, Park City’s No. 1 source for local news, opinion and advertising, is available for home delivery in Summit, Wasatch, Salt Lake, Davis and Utah counties. Single copies are also available at 116 locations throughout Park City, Heber City, Summit County and Salt Lake City. SUBSCRIPTION RATES In Summit County (home delivery): $48 per year (includes Sunday editions of The Salt Lake Tribune) Outside Summit County (home delivery available in Wasatch, Salt Lake, Davis, Weber and Utah counties; all other addresses will be mailed via the U.S. Postal Service): $72 per year To subscribe please call 435–649– 9014 or visit www.parkrecord.com and click the Subscribe link in the Reader Tools section of the toolbar at the bottom of the page. To report a missing paper, please call 801–204–6100. Same-day redelivery is possible if you call during the following hours: * Weekdays: 6:30–8 a.m. * Saturday: 7–8 a.m. * Sunday: 7–10:30 a.m. To request a vacation hold or change of address, please call 435–649–9014 or email: circulation@parkrecord.com Continued from A-1 Basin hotel challenged requests for comment before deadline. “What the Planning Commission is approving is basically a special-event center and with a 100-car parking lot, 5,000-square-foot restaurant and bar,” Wrona said. “A conditional-use permit is not a blank check to ignore the entitlement restrictions on the piece of property.” The Park West Preservation Coalition’s application claimed Planning Commissioner’s committed “several errors and oversights” and the vote was rushed. “The vote has changed the uses of the property by amending the language to allow the restaurant to stand alone, and the massive expansion of density goes against the original approvals that have governed this property’s commercial uses for over 30 years,” the application states. “They never should have awarded this new CUP (conditional-use permit) and we ask the County Council to review the concerns we have with details surrounding the approval.” The application further requests the project be reduced in “size, scope, density and intensity.” Planning Commissioner Chuck Klingenstein, who cast the dissenting vote, said the original approvals made the project “incredibly difficult” to review. “We are trying to take this old approval with a modern-day development,” he said. “The one that concerned me the most was the noise. When the original hotel was approved, my sense was they were trying to fit an inn into a neighborhood and be respectful of the neighborhood. But, for me, it was all the other uses that I didn’t know if we could mitigate the impacts from. There was the potential for outdoor activities, and that includes yoga retreats, but what about weddings and small concerts?” Planning Commission Chair Canice Harte, who voted in favor of the project, said the original Class II permit allowed for a hotel of 15 rooms or less and a restaurant. He said the two primary uses are in line with the prior uses. “Our decision was largely, in part, due to the county attorney’s office’s interpretation. We were following suit with that,” he said. “When it first came to the commission, it was much larger. I’m very happy that the project came out the way it did as a result of public input.” Harte said he was not surprised to hear that appeals had been filed. He added, “I think it is a very personal issue for the residents in that area. It might have gotten an appeal either way.” “For the residents who opposed the project, and for anyone, this is a great example of public input working,” he said. “With a conditional-use permit, the way the process works is you start with the assumption of its approved and what can you do to mitigate it.” A date for the appeal has not been schedule, but will likely take place in January. Whether the Council approves or denies the application, the decision can still be appealed to the Third District Court. THE NEWSROOM To contact the newsroom, please call 435–649–9014 or email editor@parkrecord.com For display advertising, please call a sales representative at 435–649– 9014 or email val@parkrecord.com To place a classified ad, please call 435–649–9014 or email classads@parkrecord.com Contents of The Park Record are Copyrighted 2015, Wasatch Mountain News Media Co. All rights reserved. No portion may be reproduced in any form without written consent of the managing editor or publisher. The Park Record (USPS 378-730) (ISSN 0745-9483) is published twice weekly by Wasatch Mountain News Media Co., 1670 Bonanza Drive, Park City, UT 84060. Periodicals postage paid at Salt Lake City, Utah, 84199-9655 and at additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to The Park Record, P.O. Box 3688, Park City, UT84060. Entered as second-class matter, May 25, 1977, at the Post Office in Park City, Utah, 84060 under the Act of March 3, 1897. Subscription rates are: $48 within Summit county, $72 outside of Summit County, Utah. Subscriptions are transferable: $5 cancellation fee. Phone: 435–649–9014 Fax: 435–649–4942 Email: circulation@parkrecord.com Published every Wednesday and Saturday Continued from A-1 The mayor reflects difficult for others and roads became further clogged. There was also a sense of a changing vibe in Park City during the Thomas years, illustrated through concerns about the corporatization of Park City, advances in real estate prices and the tragic overdose deaths of two teens. “I learned that this community is evolving and changing. But even as new people arrive, they want to be part of it,” Thomas said. Thomas, at many times quietly, sought to ensure Park City’s longtime tight-knit tendencies were not lost amid the economic expansion. The mayor was perhaps the leading figure in discussions that eventually led the municipal government to embrace the ideals of social equity, something brought on by concerns about an upper class that is thriving in Park City alongside the struggling middle and lower classes. City Hall toward the end of his administration launched formal talks about the broad topic of social equity with the discussions expected to continue after he leaves office. Thomas said it is a “complete community concept.” “That disparity in lifestyle, I think I’ve always been aware of it,” Thomas said, describing that some Parkites work multiple jobs and there are families living in crowded quarters. “It’s been more dramatic than I thought.” Some of the successes during the Thomas administration stand with the most notable of the skiing era. It was during his term that City Hall acquired Bonanza Flat, long-desired acreage in Wasatch County downhill from Guardsman Pass. The 1,350-acre Bonanza Flat deal is seen as the greatest accomplishment of Park City’s renowned open space program. Park City voters passed a $25 mil- Continued from A-1 For questions about your bill, please call 435–649–9014 or email accounts@parkrecord.com The Park Record online is available at www.parkrecord.com and contains all of the news and feature stories in the latest edition plus breaking news updates. The Record’s website also hosts interactive entertainment, restaurant and lodging listings and multimedia features. Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues, December 30, 2017-January 2, 2018 TANZI PROPST/PARK RECORD The lower parking lot at Park City Mountain Resort is one of the parcels with attached development rights dating to the 1990s. Vail Resorts, the PCMR owner, is interested in moving ahead with a project and is seeking a developer. Continued from A-1 Project envisioned local residents.” A range of people in Park City will almost certainly closely follow any discussions about development plans at the base of PCMR. Businesses and property owners at the Resort Center will likely wonder about impacts of a development on what has traditionally been the primary entrance to PCMR while people with real estate bordering the base will probably have interest in learning about the effects of a substantial development so close to their own places. There could also be questions about the amount of development under consideration that would be linked in some fashion to PCMR. The proposed Treasure project along the Town Lift is sizable in both its current iteration as well as a scaled-back version dependent on City Hall acquiring a 50 percent stake in the project. The King’s Crown de- Direct Importer of the World’s Finest Rugs A t t h e H i s t o r i c Vi l l a T h e a t r e 3092 So. Highland Dr., Salt Lake City (801)484-6364 888.445.RUGS (7847) Mon.-Sat. 10 am to 6 pm velopment along Lowell Avenue is also proposed on the PCMR slopes. The three projects are under separate ownership and will be reviewed independently, but, seen together, they represent a significant potential increase in development tied to PCMR. The former owners of PCMR won the overall approval at the base in the 1990s as it appeared Park City, as a mountain destination, was poised to compete with the elite names in the industry. It was shortly before PCMR and the wider community of Park City were set to host upward of half of the events of the 2002 Winter Olympics and during one of the area’s growth booms. PCMR moved quickly on the Marriott’s MountainSide and the Legacy Lodge, but there has been little discussion publicly about the remaining development rights over the years. It was expected, though, Vail Resorts would not wait indefinitely to move forward with a project. Development has long been seen as a lucrative segment of the mountain resort industry. The City Hall discussions about a project, anticipated to be primarily before the Park City Planning Commission, could dwell on issues like the prospects of increased traffic, the height of the proposed buildings and the layout of the development. Danger extreme slide. Now most slopes are waiting for a trigger, like us, to come along and cause it.” Last year the region experienced a considerable amount of snow, creating a deep and, mostly, stable snowpack, Gordon said. He added, “This year it is really just the opposite,” which is unusual. “We are coming off the heels of a dry November and dry December, and this is the first test the snowpack has received, as far as a load and a recent storm,” he said. “If you spent a couple years here in Utah, and your last memory was of last year’s deep, stable snowpack of epic riding, this year is entirely opposite.” Considering the amount of snow that has fallen, backcountry coverage is enticing for recreators, Gordon said. But, the north-facing shady slopes in the mid-toupper elevations are producing a dangerous snowpack. “That’s the kind of terrain we are drawn to,” he said. “But, that terrain holds pre-existing weak layers.” The current avalanche risk is at a considerable danger level of about 3 on a scale of 1 to 5, according to the Utah Avalanche Center. Gordon said that is when most avalanche accidents occur. “Our unusual snowpack is going to produce unusual avalanches,” he said. “Just the mere fact that you can trigger an avalanche from an adjacent slope and at a distance is a huge red flag.” lion ballot measure that funded most of the $38 million price tag. A fundraising effort brought in the remainder. City Hall during the Thomas administration reached an agreement, which was not finalized by the end of his term, to acquire land in Bonanza Park to create an arts and cultural district anchored by the Kimball Art Center and the Sundance Institute. The municipal government also negotiated a deal to acquire a 50 percent stake in the Treasure land, something that could later lead to a breakthrough in the hotly disputed development talks should voters approve the funding necessary for the agreement. “What I wanted to do, frankly, is help show the possibilities in all those cases,” Thomas said about Bonanza Flat, the arts and cultural district and Treasure. He also is pleased with City Hall’s environmental efforts, noting officials attended a training program led by former Vice President and green activist Al Gore. The City Hall program has shown clean-burning energies can succeed, he said. Thomas, meanwhile, was the City Hall figure who needed to lead the relationship-building efforts with Vail Resorts as it acquired PCMR with the settlement of a lawsuit that spanned two mayoral administrations. The relationship was strained at times, particularly during the controversy about the Colorado firm’s efforts to trademark the name “Park City” as it applies to a mountain resort. Vail Resorts eventually abandoned the efforts after outcry in the community and opposition from the municipal government. Thomas said Vail Resorts is in the process of integrating itself into the community. He explained the company appears to take care of employees and is committed to providing funding to not-for-profit organizations. Thomas said he does not hear as many negative comments about Vail Resorts as he did two years ago. “People don’t come to me and complain about Vail,” he said. The mayor said he will miss working with municipal staffers, but he does not plan to “haunt the hallways of City Hall.” He plans to travel in the U.S. in 2018. “Easy Rider in an Airstream,” Thomas said. Other red flags for backcountry recreators to watch out for include “whoomphing sounds and shooting cracks,” Gordon said. But, he added, the most obvious clue to predict avalanches is the occurrence of other avalanches. The region needs back-to-back storms to improve the stability and depth of the snowpack, but no storms are forecasted, Gordon said. But, once it starts snowing, the avalanche danger will ramp up and slopes that haven’t had a slide will be susceptible. “The problem with these types of lowsnow years and, it’s counterintuitive and that’s what tricks experienced people, is they think we haven’t had that much snow so how can there be avalanches?” he said. “We have to think about not only the snow we are riding in, but the snow we are riding on.” The Utah Avalanche Center is advising backcountry travelers, including skiers, snowboarders, snowmobilers, snowshoers and hikers, to stay away from steep, wind-drifted slopes, particularly those that face the north. “It all looks white and fluffy and we are stoked for the new powder,” he said. “We have been snow starved this winter, so we just have to think this is an unstable base, and it is going to need some time to heal and adjust to the last storm.” Gordon said the fact that avalanches are still being triggered several days after the most recent storm is indicative of the risk. He emphasized that avalanche reduction is nonexistent outside of the area’s resorts. “If you are heading into the backcountry, of course you need to be prepared for your own self rescue and be your own forecaster,” he said. “That means wearing and knowing how to use an avalanche beacon and shovel. But, if you have to use your avalanche gear, you have made a mistake and you screwed up. The big ticket item is avalanche avoidance.” |