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Show A-8 Wed/Thurs/Fri, December 16-18, 2020 The Park Record Meetings and agendas Red Card Roberts By Amy Roberts TO PUBLISH YOUR PUBLIC NOTICES AND AGENDAS, PLEASE EMAIL CLASSIFIEDS@PARKRECORD.COM Solstice celebrations AGENDA SUMMIT COUNTY COUNCIL Wednesday, December 16, 2020 NOTICE is hereby given that the Summit County Council will meet electronically, via Zoom, on Wednesday, December 16, 2020, (All times listed are general in nature, and are subject to change by the Council Chair) Consistent with provisions of the Utah Open and Public Meetings Act, Utah Code Ann. §52-4-207(4), the Summit County Council Chair has issued written determinations supporting Summit County Council’s decision to convene electronic meetings of the Council without a physical anchor location. Due to the health and safety risks related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and considering public health orders limiting in-person gatherings, members of the public should not attend Council meetings in person. However, members of the public are invited and encouraged to view and participate in the Council’s electronic meetings as described below. To view Council meeting, live, visit the “Summit County, Utah” Facebook page at 3:50 p.m. OR To participate in Council meeting: Join Zoom webinar: https://zoom.us/j/772302472 OR To listen by phone only: Dial 1-301-715-8592, Webinar ID: 772 302 472 11:55 AM Work Session 1) Interview applicants for vacancies on the North Summit Fire Special Service District (2 hours, 15 min) 2:10 PM - Council Members log into Zoom meeting (10 min) 2:20 PM Closed Session - Personnel (20 min); Property Acquisition (60 min) 3:40 PM - Council Members log into Zoom meeting (10 min) 3:50 PM Work Session, Continued 1) Pledge of Allegiance 2) 3:55 PM - Presentation and discussion of the final 2019 CAFR and independent audit; Matt Leavitt (30 min) 4:25 PM Convene as the Board of Equalization 1) Discussion and possible approval of 2020 stipulations; Stephanie Larsen, Travis Lewis, and Jared Brooks (10 min) Dismiss as the Board of Equalization 4:35 PM Consideration of Approval 1) Discussion and possible adoption of Snyderville Basin Public Transit District Ordinance No. 917, Amendment to the Snyderville Basin Public Transit District Governing Structure and By-Laws; Jami Brackin (45 min) 2) 5:20 PM - Advice and consent of County Manager’s recommendation to appoint members to the Summit Coun ty Board of Adjustment (5 min) 3) 5:25 PM - Appoint members to serve on the North Summit Fire Special Service District (5 min) 4) 5:30 PM - Council Minutes dated November 16, 2020, November 17, 2020, and November 23, 2020 5) 5:35 PM - Council comments (15 min) 6) 5:50 PM - Manager comments (10 min) 6:00 PM Public Input If you would like to submit comments to Council, please email publiccomments@summitcounty.org by 12:00 p.m. on Wednesday, December 16th. If you wish to interact with Council at 6:00 p.m., for public input, please follow the “Public Comment Instructions”. 6:15 PM Closed Session - Personnel (45 min) Members of the County Council, presenters, and members of public, may attend by electronic means, using Zoom (phone or video). Such members may fully participate in the proceedings as if physically present. Individuals with questions, comments, or needing special accommodations pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act regarding this meeting may contact Annette Singleton at (435) 336-3025 Olympics on tight timeline to chart new path on protests American athletes have led push for greater leniency EDDIE PELLS Associated Press For generations, the IOC knew exactly where to look for key support of its ban against protests at the Olympics. In 1968, it was the U.S. Olympic Committee that sent home its own athletes, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, when they raised their fists while on the medals stand at the Mexico City Games. In 2019, it was the same organization that placed its own athlete, Gwen Berry, on probation for doing the same after her win at the Pan-Am Games. This week, the American federation put the IOC on notice: It is no longer the IOC's partner when it comes to enforcing the contentious Rule 50. The USOPC is now heeding the calls from many of its own athletes and will no longer punish them for kneeling or raising fists or any other kind of acceptable demonstration at the Olympics. “When you sit in my seat, you have to make decisions that you think are on the right side of history,“ said CEO Sarah Hirshland. “And I believe we're on the right side of history.“ But there are details to iron out, and they strike to the heart of how much change is truly possible between now and next July, when the Tokyo Olympics are scheduled to take place. High on the list: What can athletes demonstrate about, and what will an acceptable demonstration look like? “That becomes a difficult situation,“ said Harry Edwards, the activist who helped brainstorm the gestures by Smith and Carlos 52 years ago. “Because you could very easily get into a thing of trying to outdo someone else and it ends up having nothing to do with the spirit of the issue.“ That confusion helps explain the calculated response to the USOPC that came from the IOC in the form of a short release from the head of its athlete commission, swimmer Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe. Well aware that the protest rule can't stay as-is for the foreseeable future, Coventry and the IOC are in the process of surveying athletes across the globe for their thoughts about possible changes. She said the majority of the respondents believe in the right of free speech, which is “respected“ at the Olympic Games (but only in certain settings) and “express support for preserving the ceremonies, the podium and the field of play.“ Though Coventry's committee is still accepting feedback, and won't make any final decisions until early next year, she's previewing a far less radical adjustment to Rule 50 than the U.S. contingent would like. American athletes have been reeling from a summer of unrest over police violence against Black people in the United States. Every major sports league has agreed to change policies to give their players a bigger platform to discuss race and social injustice. But U.S. sports leagues and the Olympics are very different creatures. The Olympics are a behemoth that counts America as only one of 206 countries who are members. Some of the biggest members are among the IOC's most important partners — China, for instance, hosted the 2008 Olympics and will do so again in 2022 — and they don't share the same concerns or values about free speech or racial injustice as do the United States and many of its closest allies. “Many have also recognized the practical question of how to choose between the opinions of hundreds of issues from different angles across the world,“ Coventry said of her survey respondents. “We can see that it would be very difficult to make such a judgment without dividing the athlete community across all 206 NOCs.“ Moushaumi Robinson, who led the U.S. athletes group that pressed for the changes, said she understands the complexities. Her group continues to discuss them to try to come up with solutions. “A lot of us just want to be able to say ’I may not agree with you but I respect that you have a voice,’“ she said. “And we want to be able to express it without someone punishing you for it.“ All of which leads Edwards to believe that Thursday's move by the USOPC and its athletes is a sign of progress — not necessarily a huge leap but another step. “This is an ongoing struggle, and it's going to continue to be a struggle,“ he said. “And what today reflects is that this generation of athletes is more than willing to do their part.“ “The days are long, but the years are short.” It’s a sentiment often offered to new parents in hopes of reminding them the struggles of today — the tantrums and potty training and 3 a.m. feedings — are fleeting. They might seem unending, but soon you’ll be watching your kid collect a high school diploma and wonder where the time went. Whoever coined that phrase had obviously never lived through a pandemic. Here, in this perpetual state of quarantine, the days are short but the year seems impossibly drawn out. I can’t tell you what I did yesterday, much less last week. But I can tell you those days were full, jammed probably, and they certainly flew by. Which is entirely at odds with the idea we seem to be in our 37th month of 2020. I feel like I’ve had at least six birthdays since the country ran out of toilet paper and hand sanitizer. The shortest day of the year is upon us. Dec. 21, the winter solstice, will grant us just over nine hours of daylight in Park City. The darkness of the next several weeks can be a little, well, dark. With the exception of a good powder day, even the most self-motivated among us can struggle to pull back the covers in the morning. Knowing this, I found myself googling suggestions for celebrating the winter solstice. I thought it might be beneficial to consider the event worth enjoying rather than merely enduring. I learned this year’s winter solstice is a little extra special due to what is being called the Great Conjunction of 2020. Jupiter and Saturn, the two largest planets in our solar system, will appear to embrace in the Earth’s night sky. The last time they were this close together and observable with the naked eye was about 800 years ago in 1226. Aside from this stargazing treat, I also learned the winter solstice has been honored by ancient civilizations, indigenous cultures and various religions throughout the years. Some of the rituals are still practiced today. Considered a turning point in the year (God, let’s hope so!) and the birth of a new solar year, the winter solstice is the reason thousands of visitors typically head to England’s Stonehenge, which is known for its precise alignment with the sun’s movement. There, they sing, dance, play instruments and essentially have a prehistoric Burning Man as they celebrate regeneration, renewal and self-reflection and wait for the sun to rise. This year, though, no gatherings are allowed due to COVID. Instead, the sun’s rising will be livestreamed from the stones. Also canceled this year is the annual Krampus parade in Hollabrunn, Austria. Typically held on the winter solstice, this annual tradition seems to be a hybrid of Halloween and an S&M festival. People dress up like Krampus — the half-demon, half-goat counterpart to Santa Claus — and while wearing horned masks and fur body suits, they terrorize, tease and “gently whip” the crowd. The traditional Krampus run in Austria is said to ward off bad spirits near the winter solstice. Every year over 30,000 people enter a lottery to be one of just 60 people allowed to stand inside the 5,000-year-old Newgrange monument and absorb the first rays of the day. This Stone Age monument is a burial mound in Ireland’s Boyne Valley. It contains a 62-foot passage that leads into a chamber aligned with the sun as it rises. But since it’s in Ireland, there’s no guarantee sunlight will actually pierce through the top of the chamber and illuminate the room. In Japan, people can be seen soaking in a hot bath with floating yuzu fruit to welcome the winter solstice. The tradition is so popular that some Japanese zoos even offer the animals fruit-filled baths. And in Korea, red bean porridge is both eaten and spread around the house to keep evil spirits away and bring good luck on the solstice. If, like me, you’re fresh out of yuzu fruit, your fur body suit and whips have already been stored for the season and you don’t find red bean porridge particularly appetizing, maybe we simply celebrate the impending return to longer days and shorter years. Amy Roberts is a freelance writer, longtime Park City resident and the proud owner of two rescued Dalmatians, Stanley and Willis. Follow her on Twitter @amycroberts. Ridgelines By Tom Kelly The art of perseverance It’s a bluebird day as Parkite Rosie Brennan strides up the snow-covered trail alongside a mountain stream. It’s a special place for her. The Dischmatal, or Dischma Valley, winds to the north from Davos, Switzerland, eventually crossing a medieval route over the Scaletta Pass to the Engadin. Standing out is the towering Schwarzhorn, a sentinel along the ridgeline, much like Jupiter Peak back home. “I like it because it’s a wide valley and gets lots of sun. We call it Sun Valley,” Brennan said. As a World Cup cross-country ski racer, Brennan’s home is Davos most Decembers. It’s one of the more gorgeous stops on the tour with an elevation much like Park City. Some of her foreign competitors aren’t all that comfortable with the altitude. But it suits Brennan just fine. It’s just like home. Anchored in Europe now, she’ll spend Christmas there next week. For a decade, Brennan has been a journeyman on the World Cup tour. Now 32, she got payback last weekend. On Saturday, in the most unlikely event — a freestyle sprint — she won. The next day was her preferred distance — a 10k freestyle. She won again. Today, she’s the World Cup leader — on top of the overall, distance and sprint rankings five races into the season. “I set my goals in the spring for the 10k — the sprint race was just a complete surprise,” she said. “I had zero expectations for that. I was really doing it as a prep for the distance race, so that one was just shocking.” Brennan’s career as a skier has been far from typical. Living in Park City, she and her family alpine skied on weekends for fun. But mom had a rule. The kids needed at least one organized activity outside school. “I had a lot of energy as a kid, so I think I was driving her absolutely nuts,” laughed Brennan. Her mother, Wiggy, suggested cross-country skiing. As a 14-year-old, Brennan gave it a try. Her first fall outing was on roller skis. Then coach John Callahan took her up to West Yellowstone, Montana, for early-season snow. “Moms always know best,” Brennan said. “It was a perfect fit. I loved it immediately. I was just captivated and the team was awesome and so much fun. I just wanted to do anything I could to be able to keep up with them and get better as quickly as I could.” Skiing the White Pine Touring Center trails, she rose quickly through the ranks, guided now by coach Gordon Lange. It was a formative time for the cross-country program in Park City as she trained alongside future Olympic medalists like Billy Demong. In just a few years, from middle school to high school, she was on a pathway to the top. Life is about choices — some you make and some are made for you. Her career has met many forks in the road. She’s somehow made it through all of them and still has that passion she felt as a teen. As expected, coming out of high school, she had an offer to join the national team. It was a dream come true. But she chose Dartmouth and became a four-time All-American skier under coach Cami Thompson-Graves. Then it was off to Anchorage to work with coach Erik Flora at Alaska Pacific University, alongside her friend Sadie Bjornsen and the incomparable Kikkan Randall, whose career was burgeoning. Her pathway was never easy. A back injury in college, a mountain bike crash in Moab, the sudden death of her father, Tom, and an on-and-off standing with the U.S. Ski Team. Finally, in 2018, she made the Olympic team. But a month before PyeongChang, she felt a bit off. Good early-season results trailed off deeply in January. It was not the Olympics she had hoped for. She would later learn that she had mononucleosis. That spring, she was not renominated to the U.S. Ski Team. In characteristic Rosie Brennan fashion, she fought back with results on her own, making the team again the next year and rising to become one of its leaders. If patience and perseverance are hallmarks of great athletes, Brennan has been the poster child. Through thick and thin, though, she’s come out better and still with a big smile on her face. “It’s probably my stubbornness,” she said. “The interesting part is that I don't really know what it is. There have been moments where I've definitely questioned whether or not I want to be doing this and even gone as far as quitting for like a month and really taking some time to think if this is really what I want to do. “But for whatever reason, there's just been something in me that really has felt like I hadn't achieved what I was capable of. I just couldn't stop trying until I could show myself that I was actually capable of what I thought it was.” She reflects back on the pathway that brought her to this point where, for at least the time being, she’s the FIS cross-country World Cup leader. “Maybe some of it's just luck, but I feel so fortunate to have had the coaches I have had — all just truly remarkable people. Every single one has just seen something in me. I don't know what it is that they just feel, but they have just always had my back and and continued to push me to strive for more and believed that I have more in me.” Brennan will sit out this weekend’s city sprint in Dresden, Germany, to spend a quiet Christmas in Davos. On New Year’s Day, she’ll be over the mountain from Davos in tiny Val Müstair, Switzerland, on the Italian border for the start of the grueling 10-day Tour de Ski. Looking back on all the choices across her decadeand-a-half as an elite cross country ski racer, Rosie Brennan is in a good place. She has a degree from Dartmouth, a masters in education, a couple World Cup wins and right now is the best women’s ski racer in the world. As she skis back through the Dischmatal towards Davos with the sun dropping below the ridgeline, it’s nice to think of how far she has come from that first experience at White Pine Touring in Park City. Wisconsin native Tom Kelly landed in Park City in 1988 (still working on becoming an official local). A recently inducted member of the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Hall of Fame, he is most known for his role as lead spokesperson for Olympic skiing and snowboarding for over 30 years until his retirement in 2018. This will be his 51st season on skis, typically logging 60 days in recent years. |