OCR Text |
Show Viewpoints The A-27 Park Record. Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues, March 30-April 2, 2019 editorial Cheer on Park City girls leading charge against tech’s gender gap D guest editorial Input is critical to a successful Kimball Junction master plan BEV HARRISON Park City Kimball Junction. It’s the gateway from a heavily populated valley and international airport to our world-class ski resorts and hundreds of miles of mountain biking/hiking trails, to a best-in-the-country town, the annual Sundance Film Festival and many more major cultural and athletic events. Kimball Junction. All of us in Park City and the Snyderville Basin have a stake in it. It’s where many of us live, work, shop and dine. For all of us, it’s a place we travel through on our way to most anyplace else. And that makes its future a very big deal. In a process now underway, Summit County officials are considering a zoning change for Kimball Junction from Community Commercial to Mixed Use. Planners say this re-designation will allow them to “redesign it based upon people-oriented principles,” “make a neighborhood out of a hodgepodge” and transform it from a “pedestrian hostile place to one that is pedestrian friendly.” It will take many, many years; this is a plan for the future. To learn more, check out a draft of the Kimball Junction Neighborhood Master Plan on the county’s website. The report The Park Record Staff PUBLISHER ....................... Andy Bernhard Editor ................................... Bubba Brown Staff Writers ......................Jay Hamburger Scott Iwasaki Angelique McNaughton Ben Ramsey Carolyn Webber Alder Contributing ............................. Tom Clyde Writers Jay Meehan Teri Orr Amy Roberts Tom Kelly Joe Lair Copy Editor ............................ James Hoyt Engagement Editor..Christopher Samuels Photographer .........................Tanzi Propst Circulation Manager ............. Lacy Brundy Accounting Manager ......... Jennifer Snow ADVERTISING Advertising Director ........... Valerie Spung Advertising Sales ................... Jodi Hecker Erin Donnelly Lindsay Lane Sharon Bush Events Manager ................. Julie Bernhard Production Director ..................Ben Olson Production ........................Chelsea Babbitt is interesting. Text, photos and drawings on every page make it a pretty quick read. It’s clear that Kimball Junction could look and function very differently than it does today. The plan was drafted by the Kimball Junction Neighborhood Master Plan Committee over the course of 18 months and submitted, by them, to the county planning board for their endorsement at a meeting and public hearing held on Feb. 12. Many attendees complained about the lack of residents’ involvement in the plan’s development. They raised serious concerns about population and density. The commissioners, however, liked the draft well enough to send it to the County Council for discussion. The Council has scheduled a “work session” for Wednesday, April 10, at the Sheldon Richins Building, subject to change. The public is invited; however, this is not a public hearing. One or more of those will be scheduled after open houses are held. These will allow residents to learn more, ask questions and voice concerns. I’m counting on the county to heavily publicize these. I’m hoping a crowd of folks will attend and give their input. Community engagement is written all over the plan. Here is a quote. “Successful plans must always include a quality neighborhood engagement effort. Plans fail when property owners, neighborhood residents, and other important community stakeholders feel left out of the planning and design implementation process.” I was fascinated by how the draft plan described creating a “people-oriented environment” at the Junction. I live in the Foxpoint neighborhood in Redstone and we bike, walk and ride a bus to most of the places we want to go. It’s no surprise that one of my favorite sentences in the plan is, “The goal (of a people-oriented design) should be to accommodate vehicles in an environment built for people.” I liked what I saw and read about wide sidewalks, connectivity, landscaping, bike lanes and public gathering spaces. I didn’t much like the parts about parking garages, increased building height and density. I think there will be public opposition to these things requiring a lot of explaining by the county. Listen for information about public engagement opportunities on KPCW this spring, look for articles/ads in The Park Record and for flyers that may be posted in the area. Keep in mind, scheduled times for Kimball Junction discussions by the County Council may change based upon its updated agendas. For the record espite small steps in the right direction, the tech industry remains a man’s world. A group of teen girls at Park City High School, though, are out to change that. Last year, they formed the Girls in Tech Club at the school, taking aim at the gender gap in tech by encouraging their female peers to get involved in activities like computer programming. Now, the club is taking it a step further, organizing a girls-only hack-a-thon open to high school students around the state. Parkites should support the students’ efforts by helping them raise the money needed to put on the event, the first of its kind in Park City. Then we’ll sit back and watch as they chip away at the lingering perception that it’s strange for people with a pair of X chromosomes to be interested in computers or are somehow less capable than men to work in the tech industry. The mission of increasing gender diversity — not to mention racial diversity — in tech is paramount. From social media to smart devices in our homes, technology plays a large and ever-increasing role in our lives. It’s imperative, then, that the tech industry is shaped by a variety of perspectives and that the people who create the tech we use are representative of society as a whole. That’s why it’s disappointing that the gender gap is still so large. According to the nonprofit organization Women Who Tech, 28 percent of proprietary software jobs are held by women, and women own only 5 percent of tech startups. That’s despite women making up 56 percent of the workforce. Solving the problem begins by getting girls hooked on tech at a young age. The efforts of the PCHS Girls in Tech Club are a terrific step in that direction. So is the Park City School District’s elementary school coding program, which teaches both boys and girls one of the 21st century’s critical skills. Fortunately, what’s happening in Park City is part of a broader movement throughout the state. The annual SheTech Explorer Day put on by the Women Tech Council, for example, provides a hands-on tech experience for thousands of high school girls from around Utah and allows them to meet female role models in the industry. And Utah recently became the first state to designate a day to recognize girls in tech and promote diversity. As a community, we salute the efforts and cheer on the girls and women who are breaking down barriers. For more information about the Girls in Tech Club’s hack-a-thon, or to donate to the event, visit gofundme. com and search for “girls in tech.” letters to the editor The Ikon curse Editor: The Alterra acquisition of Deer Valley motivated me to re-read Hal Clifford’s “Downhill Slide” after 15 years. The cover states, “Why the corporate ski industry is bad for skiing, ski towns, and the environment.” Skied Deer Valley in 1981 when Edgar Stern was at the helm. In time, was able to make a few turns with my next-door neighbor Stein Eriksen. Both were ski lovers. Now the mountain is no longer about the sport, rather, all about profit. The mountain is crowded. Recently, I was hit twice in the same day. Once in the Northside area, the second while entering the “Silverlake Express” lift line. Friends of four decades are selling and leaving town. One has settled in Wyoming, the other in Sun Valley, Idaho. Thank you for the “Ikon” curse, Alterra! You are such a loving, generous corporation! Claudio Vianello Park City Seniors snubbed Editor: For the 2018/2019 season, Deer Valley generously gave all season pass purchasers an Ikon Base pass as an additional benefit. For the 2019/2020 season, all season pass purchasers will again receive the Ikon Base pass, except seniors have been excluded. Deer Valley, for some unknown reason, has decided to take away this benefit from seniors. Granted seniors can purchase a season pass at a reduced rate. But there are other groups that can also purchase a season pass at a reduced rate, for example college students, young adults and children. They, however, will still have the benefit of receiving an Ikon Base pass. Why are seniors being singled out as not worthy of receiving this benefit? Seniors are a core segment of all Deer Valley guests. In addition to their pass purchases, seniors generate a significant amount of additional revenue on the mountain themselves and through family and friends that they invite to Deer Valley. Furthermore, while being excluded from the Ikon Base pass benefit, seniors are also disadvantaged in the amount of Wasatch Benefit days provided. In previous seasons the Wasatch, Solitude and Brighton benefits amounted to 10 ski days in the Cottonwood Canyons. This coming season the benefit is only four days. That is a double whammy for seniors. As core contributors to Deer Valley, seniors are entitled to a full explanation as to why they have been singled out and excluded from a significant benefit provided to other season pass purchasers. Deer Valley knows exactly who their senior pass holders are. Deer Valley could easily contact them all to provide an explanation, which would have been the right thing to do before putting the policy change in place. Deer Valley, on behalf of all seniors, please explain why we have been singled out as not worthy of the basic benefits other season pass purchasers will be entitled to. Tom Farkas Park City Profits over Parkites Editor: As April 7 looms on the calendar, it becomes more and more clear that Vail Resorts has little to no interest in the local population of skiers and snowboarders here in Park City. With one of the better snow years on record and also one of the earliest closing days on record, one can’t help but wonder why Vail Resorts will not extend the ski season. When asked, Park City Mountain Resort Senior Communications Specialist Jessica Miller claimed that she had no comment, so perhaps speculation is all we can do. It’s understandable to think that a one- to two-week season extension would serve mostly the local population. Trips would not be overwhelmingly booked by tourists to snag a few more days of skiing in April. While locals have a longstanding “reputation” for not spending money at resort restaurants, shops and hotels, we do buy our season passes, just like everyone else. We are also the ones that help run the restaurants, shops and hotels that make Park City Mountain Resort such a great place to visit for hundreds of thousands of guests each year. Vail Resorts could most certainly offer a season extension. They have done so in the past, along with the previous owners of PCMR. Even having just Crescent and 3 Kings lifts open for another week would be nice. Although, just like with the removal of night skiing, this is a decision that would need to be based on our community and the people that live here, not solely on profits and losses, so I am certain that Bill Rock and his team will disregard this letter just like they have done with countless others. Brian Mehregan Park City A pasture proposal Editor: Perhaps now that Sweeney et al. have money graciously provided by the people of Park City they can thank us by providing the remaining funds to protect Armstrong Pasture from development. (Tax deductible too!) Charles David Park City Photos by Christopher Samuels Asked in Pinebrook Do you plan on skiing after Park City Mountain Resort and Deer Valley close? Chris Garrison Prospector “I have the Ikon Pass, and Brighton and Solitude are open for another week or so, and Alta will be open on the weekends, so that’s my plan. I know a lot of people that are going to hike up and ski down here.” Chris Lacasce Trailside “It depends on the weather. We’ve had enough skiing, right? So if the weather’s good, sure. If not, no worries. I’ve got kids, so I’m not a hardcore (skier). I’m indifferent at this point.” Kayte Glennon Sandy “Probably not. A couple of gals I work with would say yes. I’m done with the ski season, but that’s just me. I travel a lot, so that’s what I’m doing (in the spring.)” Kaz Sinnott Pinebrook “I mean, it kind of depends. I’m a big car guy too, so after the season closes, if it were just me, I would call it quits and wait until next year, but if I really get that itch then I might go once or twice.” Troy Rutten Pinebrook “Definitely. It’s been such a great snow year, right? I’ve got an Ikon Pass, so I’ll have access to Alta or Snowbird to continue skiing into May. I tour as well in the backcountry so I’m sure I’ll go out for a few days there.” See these photos and more by following The Park Record on Facebook.com/parkrecord and Instagram.com/parkrecord |