OCR Text |
Show MOUNTAIN Continued from page 9 have scary table. to sanction thought for activities there, a anyone on a time The somewhat odd set of events that led skiing and environmental groups to clash in the quest to host successful crosscountry and biathlon competitions in 2002 may have been set in motion during the mid-1980s when Salt Lake Olympic boosters were mounting a serious quest to bring the Games to Utah. uring that same period, crosscountry skiing enthusiasts in Utah hosted a World Cup competition in Parleys Canyon on the Mountain Dell Golf Course. Although that competition was fraught with problems, known Bid the then Olympic boosters as the Salt Lake Committee - identified crosscountry site. Still, that remains tions as not having enough snow, havunique because SLOC doesn’t open its ing too much traffic noise and pollumeetings to public discussion. Nor did tion and not having challenging terits predecesrain. Fearing sor, the Bid poor reviews “To bost crosscountry and biathlon Gommittee, in front of when selecting millions of at Mountain Dell Golf Course TV viewers would be like bolding skating Olympic sites. and wind events on a frozen lake. It would Lg tg Kea local Olympic , a Salt Lake City Dios Tet s be disrespectful to the athletes. Councilwoman hope is . Deeda Seed Utah’s ticket — Joan Guetschow, former two time was reminded hand but no one would pay attention to me,” Seed said. “I was shocked. | said to Tom (Welch), what is the purpose of me being here, if I can’t ask a question?” Seed says things have improved somewhat and the city now will be briefed by the — on Olympicsrere Op eet Ol ao that episode gave Corradini a heads-up is any one’s guess. But the mayor insisted the community be heard on the Little Dell proposal. to the future as the world’s look winter sports capital, a new selected. Olympic crosscountry site was Because the SLOC makes its decisions somewhat unilaterally, a new site - Olympic was the Except for one thing: Salt Lake City Mayor Deedee Corradini wanted to make sure the new location, known as Little Dell, wouldn’t jeopardize the city’s watershed. As it turned out, the SLOC had selected a site just north and golf course as the venue for crosscounty and biathlon Olympic events. According to Salt Lake City’s official Olympic bid for both the 1998 and 2002 Games, Mountain Dell would be the site for a half-dozen events, even though it was located at a relatively high elevation for such competitions. The golf course sprinkling system would be retro-fitted for snowmaking, according to the bid, and the long fairways are natural for skiing. In hindsight, it looks as though not a lot of thought went in to the selection of the golf course. Now Mountain Dell is openly spurned by national skiing organiza- TIMES identified and that was Biathlete of when attended she a November SLOC meeting as the city’s liaison. “‘T went to the meeting. We assumed that our liaison would be able to partic. I raised my ipate in the process . “The SLOC asked if they could at Little Dell,” said Corradini spokesman Ken Connaughton. “The mayor said yes, but that there had to be a public process. Clearly, there needed to be community input.” Continued on page 10 that. Cee Ooi AS mY barrage ( at hadi I Tet are east of Mountain Dell Golf Course and just above the recently completed Little Dell Reservoir in Hatch Canyon. The mayor put together what has become known as the “Little Dell Working Group,” not knowing that it would provide the forum to drive Olympic organizers nuts. What the working group did, among other things, was provide a public forum that allowed community input on the Olympics - if only the 2756 West Rasinussen barr ark City 801-647-5880 i ¢ F Owe i -In-Stock! STATE STREET é be r Ad every purchad se 1 DAY PASSES WHILE THEY LAST MUST BRING IN COPY OF THIS AD TO GET THIS DEAL! eR a Invo Mi “ona af New. Cars. om Inventory!” boas/. /veu a! Say MON.-FRI. 9-6 * = & ; x De a hag SSTr:y tit “DEALER RETAINS REBATE, PLUS TAX & LICENSE OAL. Te eo fir PAGE 9 ~ oan a te |