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Show County resists city adding to 'sphere of influence' To Interstate 80 . . - -1 - To Interstate 80 Annexation Policy -- --. Declaration Boundary J ToParkWest ' PT cpr"-L . Park City Limits ylS. ' fx" Annexation Area . The city would like to be j notified by the county of V-'.-r ;1 development planned in """""s- tj the shaded area. by Rick Brough --- Park - City -has -proposed- an -agreement with Summit County that would extend its area of influence over building development in the Snyderville area. But the Summit County Commission has been cool to the idea, which was prompted by landowners in Snyderville who resist what they say will be added regulation from Park City. "We don't need any more bureaucrats," said resident and landowner Michael Ivers. The city and the commission are scheduled to discuss the idea further next Wednesday. The city is asking for an interlocal agreement that would extend a half-mile "extra-territorial jurisdiction," jurisdic-tion," granted by the state, that now exists around the city. Under this concept, the county must notify the city if a development is proposed for any area within that half-mile zone. Before the county approves the development, the city then has a year to consider whether it wishes to annex the property in question. The city wants to apply this rule to its official Annexation Policy Declar" ation area, which was adopted in April, 1982 (See map.) Going north on Highway 224, it stops just south of the highway's intersection with the White Pine Canyon Road. And on Highway 40, it would stop about a mile from the U.S. 40-Highway 248 intersection. (Thus, it would take in Round Valley and Richardson Flat. ) The policy was an official declaration that the city might be interested in annexing the areas. In addition, said City Manager Arlene Loble, the city would have a "sphere of influence" over the Snyderville Basin, going north to Kimball Junction and east to U.S. 40. This would allow the city to review plans for development in the area. Loble said it is not unprecedented for cities to have a large area of influence around their boundaries. In her native Montana, she said, the extra-territorial, jurisdiction is 12 miles from city boundaries. The city needs to do this, she said, because the Snyderville area will have impacts on Park City. She said the county, for instance, has not made recreation plans for the area, so demand will come to Park City. The City Council formally presented present-ed the proposal when it met with the f County Commission on Feb. 27. At that time, General Services Director Stan Strebel explained to the commission that the proposal involved involv-ed a trade-off. (The city asks for a greater land area to review for annexation.) , ' But in return, he said, the city would have less time to hold up a ' county development for possible,, annexation. It would have 90 days instead of a year. In addition, the city cannot annex an island of land out in the county, said Strebel. It would have to be connected by at least a "cherry stem" of property to the city. (Annexation also requires approval from owners representing a majority the assessed valuation of the land. ) However, even on Feb. 27, county commissioners were skeptical of the idea. Commissioner Tom Flinders said then, "What this looks like is a license for Bill Ligety (Park City planning director) to come out and say 'Thus sayeth the Lord.' " Flinders told the Record he has a good relationship with Ligety and the city needs to review development in the area. But landowners in the area don't want the proposal. If the city annexed, he noted, it would have to bear the burden of servicing the area. "It's better from our position (the. county's) but the people don't want it," he told the commission. Commissioner Stan Leavitt also opposed the extended jurisdiction boundary. He told the Record that even before Feb. 27, he had received criticism from landowners who heard about the city's idea. One property owner in the area is Dr. D A. Osguthorpe, who owns about 200 acres there. Osguthorpe said his property taxes will go up if his land becomes city property. "I can't afford to be annexed." Property owner Robert Wright told the Record he can't understand the boundaries of the new annexation annexa-tion zone. He owns eight acres at the base of Quarry Mountain. The boundary runs through the middle of his land, he said. "It doesn't fit any geographical or topographical line." The Record asked landowners about an argument often advanced by the city: Since Snyderville is the "entrance corridor" to Park City, the development in the area, especially commercial, affects the economic and aesthetic status of Park City. Therefore, the city should have a strong voice in Snyderville. The most forthright response to this argument came from Mary Lehmer. (Her family holdings in the annexation area .include 3000 acres in W hite Pine Canyon. ) The city is in no position to plan for the county, she said, since it did a poor job planning the city. The city, she contends, ruined the Highway 248 entrance by allowing " mortuaries, storage lockers and lumber yards. "Now we're concerned about the other end." ... The city's proposal is an insult to the county, she said. "We believe we're the most omnipotent, omniscient, omnis-cient, smartest bunch of gentry in the nation." Responding to the same argument, argu-ment, Osguthorpe said he has no plans to develop his land. The city should be more concerned about what the planned expansion of Highway 224 will do to the visual area, he said. Ivers said the county has done a good job of planning the area's commercial and visual access. Wright said his land, a half mile from any road won't affect the entrance corridor. As for Park City annexing his land, he said, "I was born in Park City, but they should in no way be able to prevail upon the county for any permits or ordinances." ordin-ances." City Manager Loble said the county is in a position where it could tell the city to stay out of Snyderville. "But I would hope they would think about what's in the best interest of making the Snyderville Basin work.','. . And there are other considerations, considera-tions, said city planner Dave Boesch: For instance, Osguthorpe's.. taxes would not necessarily rise if he were annexed, Boesch said. There are mechanisms to keep the property tax at its present status until the land is developed. Next week the city and county will discuss the interlocal agreement for the first time since February. City representatives are scheduled to attend the regular county commission session on April 24. |