The Kamas City Council has approved the annexation of approximately 129 acres on the south side of State Route 248 west of the municipal boundary, including a 14-acre parcel where the owners of Ballerina Farm want to build a dairy retail development.

Three council members voted Tuesday in favor of the annexation of six properties that make up the total acreage. Councilor Larry Gines abstained because a family member owns property in the annexation area.

Daniel and Hannah Neeleman are proposing to include livestock pastures, orchards, gardens, a farm store, a café, an event center, a barn and chicken coops on their Ballerina Farm parcel. No development is currently proposed for the other five properties within the annexation, which have different owners, according to a staff report.

The Ballerina land was zoned Agriculture (AG-10). Under the City Council vote, the zoning on the parcel was changed to Agricultural Tourism, a newly created designation.

The staff report says an agricultural tourism development will support and enhance the historic agricultural operations of the Kamas Valley.

“The various different uses will lend itself nicely to encourage visitors to visit and see a working dairy operation with retail components,” the report says.

The Neelemans bought the 328-acre Ballerina Farm in 2018 and live on that property with their eight children. The farm sells pork, beef, baked goods, salt, home goods, aprons, soap and candles.  

The annexation is conditional on Kamas and the Neelemans reaching agreements on who pays for improvements, such as putting in water and sewer lines to the property.

The report says the couple has expressed a desire for a 12-year pioneering agreement. Under that arrangement, they would pay for the lines and other property owners who tie in to them would pay a portion of the cost.

A separate site plan for a creamery would have to be approved by the Kamas Planning Commission after annexation.

Hannah Neeleman, a Utah native, is a social media influencer who posts about her lifestyle to millions of followers on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. She is a graduate of The Julliard School, where she trained as a ballerina.

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Utah Broadband has appointed a new CEO whose priorities include growing the company’s customer base and continuing to provide internet connectivity to unserved and underserved communities in the state, including in Summit and Wasatch counties.

Ben Elkins replaces Taunya Martin, former president of Utah Broadband, who retired. He is pulling double duty by also continuing as head of the Arizona-based AireBeam, which, like Utah Broadband, is a subsidiary of Boston Omaha Corporation.

Elkins has been AireBeam’s CEO for two years and was appointed to the Utah position in May.

During his tenure, AireBeam increased fiber subscribers by 375% and increased overall customer count by 20%, according to the company. Elkins plans to bring the same growth plan to Utah Broadband, which has approximately 30,000 customers in the Beehive State.

“We expect to grow our customer base by 20% to 30% in the next 12 to 18 months,” he said.

Utah Broadband has been providing wireless internet in Utah since 2002 and also began offering high-speed fiber to the home in 2021, the year Boston Omaha acquired the company. The other counties where Utah Broadband operates are Davis, Salt Lake, Tooele, Utah and Weber.

In the past four or five years, growth in the state prompted other internet companies to start building infrastructure in rural areas. Utah Broadband was way ahead of them, he said.

“Utah Broadband served rural Utah for the last 22 years and they’ve gone to spots all the big companies refused to go to and all the different parts of the Wasatch Back,” Elkins said.

He said there are about 5,000 to 6,000 Utah Broadband customers in Summit and Wasatch counties. Jeremy Ranch, Snyderville and Pinebrook are among the communities where a high percentage of residents are customers, he said.

Utah Broadband has wireless and fiber in Heber City. The company has wireless internet customers in Park City proper but “not a ton,” Elkins said. Fiber currently is not in Park City. 

The two counties will be Utah Broadband’s biggest growth areas over the next five to 10 years because of the company’s growing fiber footprint there, he said.

Elkins alternates weeks working in Arizona, where AireBeam is based in Arizona City, a small town halfway between Phoenix and Tucson, and in Utah, where the headquarters is in Draper. Boston Omaha, which is based in Nebraska, also owns InfoWest, an internet service provider in St. George, and Fiber Fast Homes, a nationwide company.

Utah Broadband and AireBeam are working with Utah and Arizona officials to help unserved and underserved areas in their respective states, Elkins said.

Under President Joe Biden’s Internet for All initiative, the federal government distributed billions of dollars last year to the states, territories and the District of Columbia to build internet infrastructure. The goal is to connect everyone in America to reliable, affordable high-speed internet by 2030.

Elkins said using high speed internet for telemedicine, to attend school and to work from home improves lives. The higher cost of connecting internet in rural areas has not deterred Utah Broadband and AireBeam, he said.

“We would go there and provide service and not worry so much about our cost up front and take care of the customers,” he said. “We knew long term we’re looking at this as a 20- to 30-year investment. If we take care of our customers now, they’ll be a customer the rest of their lives.”

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Park City is implementing a plan to incentivize the type of redevelopment designed to make Bonanza Park a more walkable, mixed-use and livable neighborhood.

The Bonanza Park Small Area Plan outlines a vision for 200 acres in the center of town that will be carried out through code amendments. The diverse neighborhood is just north of Old Town and centered around the intersection of Kearns Boulevard and Park Avenue.

The area is largely composed of retail, commercial, and municipal uses and large surface parking lots, and includes a residential neighborhood.

“Despite this centrality, and its location at the crux of various vibrant neighborhoods, Bonanza Park remains a neighborhood where many drive through, but few walk toward,” the plan says. “Its auto-oriented physical nature, exacerbated by auto-oriented land uses and development patterns, both challenge connectivity and create an opportunity for this plan to explore.”

The plan focuses on the area bound by Park Avenue, Deer Valley Drive, Bonanza Drive, Prospector Square, and the Park City Cemetery toward Snow Creek Drive. It also considers the neighborhood’s connections to nearby communities, as well as its positioning within Park City.

The project goals are to create a mixed-use neighborhood; support locally owned businesses and entrepreneurship; create a safe and intuitive network for pedestrians, cyclist, and transit users; expand the availability of affordable and workforce housing units; create a more welcoming and sustainable community; and weave arts and culture into the community fabric.

Up until the 1970s, Bonanza Park was at the outskirts of town. But as Park City annexed more and more acreage, the neighborhood became its geographic core. With several properties being redeveloped in the next few years, coming up with a comprehensive vision and plan for the neighborhood became a priority, Planning Director Rebecca Ward said.

“We heard general consensus throughout the engagement process that the community is supportive of the mixed-use neighborhood that’s centered around people instead of cars,” she said.

The plan originated with the Park City Council hiring consultants and directing the Planning Department to initiate public outreach on how to do a rezone of Bonanza Park. The planning started in May 2023 and included community meetings, surveys, stakeholder roundtables and input from a 13-member advisory group. More than 1,500 people participated in the process.

The Bonanza Park Small Area Plan got unanimous support from the Park City Planning Commission and the City Council, which approved it on July 11. The nearly 100-page plan supplements the city’s general plan.

Under the Small Area Plan, which will guide public and private investment in the neighborhood for the next decade, a new Bonanza Park Mixed Use Zoning (BPMX) district will replace the current more commercial- and auto-driven zoning.

The BPMX encourages a mix of uses and allows developers to get a density bonus allowing them to build more housing units, taller buildings up to 45 feet or more floor space than normally permitted in exchange for providing a significant community benefit. The 200 acres are mostly privately owned.

“What we’re looking to do is give additional development rights to the underlying property owner, whoever it is,” Park City Planning Commission Chair Sarah Hall said. “So these private landholders will have these additional benefits if they redevelop their area, assuming that they’re providing the community benefits that we’re seeking.”

The Planning Commission and City Council will work together to determine what additional benefits would qualify a developer for a density bonus, Hall said. Public input also will play a big part in the decision.

Examples listed in the plan are underground parking for a significant portion of spaces provided; outdoor community spaces; workforce housing that goes beyond what is required by code for a master planned development; connectivity improvements such as new pedestrian paths; and community facilities such as day care.

The BPMX district should encourage additional housing in Bonanza Park by allowing qualified residential developments by right rather than requiring a conditional use permit, the plan says.

Plan priorities also include maintaining a consistent underlying zone height of 35 feet and preserving frontage protection zones, which are existing overlays that protect views along Park City’s entry corridors.

The protection zones include properties within 100 feet of the right-of-way line of Kearns Boulevard, Park Avenue and Deer Valley Drive. Wide setback requirements along these corridors protect vistas of surrounding mountains and hills for drivers entering and leaving the city, the plan says.

Now that the plan is adopted, the next step is to implement code amendments, Ward said. A public hearing will be held each time the Planning Commission reviews a proposed amendment, which will give the community the opportunity to weigh in on it.

Deb Rentfrow, a resident and advisory group member, strongly supports the frontage protection zones and said underground parking is a huge community benefit. She also likes the BPMX zone, the goal to improve connectivity and the idea of keeping things local.

It’s unknown whether all elements of the project will come to fruition, but it was a good exercise for plan participants to determine how they want Bonanza Park to look and what needs it should serve, Rentfrow said.

“It’s going to feel more like a neighborhood,” she said. “It has the potential to really be a wonderful neighborhood for all of Park City, not just for the people who live in Bonanza Park.”

Mark J. Fischer, an advisory group member, said he strongly supports reductions in parking requirements for existing businesses that have long-term tenants so they can better serve their customers. 

Fischer also is working to ensure the plan is not oriented only toward new construction and wants code updates that cover the existing businesses.

“We want to make sure there are benefits for both,” he said.

Fischer is the former owner of a 5-acre parcel at the intersection of Kearns Boulevard and Bonanza Drive that Park City purchased in 2017. The municipality conducted a separate feasibility study of the site to craft a vision for the property at the same time it was creating the Small Area Plan.

Overall, Fischer said he is very much in favor of the Small Area Plan.

“I’m very optimistic about the future of the area and look forward to Bonanza Park becoming the best it can be,” he said.

Turning the vision into reality

The plan offers recommendations on how to achieve the project goals.

Creating a mixed-use neighborhood with livability in mind includes updating the frontage protection zones to ensure any increases to allowable building heights are stepped back to protect mountain views and establishing development guidelines for new multifamily and mixed-use buildings.

Actions that can be taken to support locally owned and unique retailers and restaurants are limiting conventional chain businesses, putting limits on nightly rentals, hotels and timeshares, and capping commercial square footage per building. Those moves can help Bonanza Park be a “locals” neighborhood,” the plan says.

To create an environment in which people can safely walk, bike and ride transit, a network of pedestrian and bicycle linkages should be established, the plan says. It says when considering development proposals, the city should encourage multiple connections through Bonanza Park and leverage future developments to fund mobility improvements.

The plan recommends potential future pedestrian and trail connections within the neighborhood to fix a connectivity gap between the nearby Rail Trail, the McLeod Creek Trail and Poison Creek Trail. In addition, the connectivity network should work externally with adjacent neighborhoods, such as Prospector, according to the plan.

Craig Dennis, executive director of the Prospector Square Property Owners Association, was part of the advisory group and pushed for better connections between the Prospector community and the Bonanza Park area. Prospector Square has limited parking, so he’ll be paying close attention to any adverse impact, he said. 

“But that said, if this helps bring business to the restaurants in Prospector Square and other things going on in Prospector, that’s great,” Dennis said.

Ways to expand the availability of affordable and workforce housing and make the neighborhood more inclusive include working with developers to build more of the units and working with residents and property owners to preserve naturally occurring moderate income housing. NOAH is rental housing that is affordable without the use of public subsidies and occupies the space between market-rate units and government-assisted subsidized units.

Recommendations to create a more welcoming and sustainable community include ensuring all Bonanza Park residents are within a safe and comfortable 10-minute walk to a park and incentivizing sustainable development in the neighborhood.

As the home for the Kimball Art Center, Bonanza Park is also a significant hub for Park City’s art scene, the plan notes. The plan recommends using public art and placemaking elements such as murals, lighting, and signage that reflect the identity and character of Bonanza Park and ensuring public art is incorporated into development proposals.

“Combined, these recommendations will facilitate the vision for Bonanza Park and create the community that Parkites desire,” the plan says.

The Bonanza Park Small Area Plan was led by Park City’s planning staff in collaboration with planning and design firm MKSK, engagement specialists Future IQ and mobility and transportation experts Fehr and Peers.

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Officials in Summit County are watching for conditions that could create a fire risk high enough to warrant implementation of restrictions that are already in place in much of the state.

When those conditions are met, Summit County Fire Warden Bryce Boyer plans to make a joint request with officials from other counties in northeast Utah for a Stage 1 fire restriction order. The other counties that potentially could be part of the request are Wasatch, Duchesne, Daggett and Uintah.

Utah State Forester Jamie Barnes, who also is the director of the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands, issues the orders, and putting in one request for multiple counties would streamline the process, Boyer said. In addition, having the whole region under the restrictions at the same time would cut down on public confusion, he said.

Stage 1 restrictions ban:

• Open fires of any kind except within established public facilities in improved campgrounds, picnic areas or in permanently constructed fire pits at private homes where running water is present.
• Smoking, except within an enclosed vehicle, trailer or building, a developed recreation site or while stopped in an area that is paved or free from dry vegetation.
• Discharging or using any fireworks, tracer ammunition or other pyrotechnic devices including exploding targets.
• Cutting, welding or grinding metal in areas of dry vegetation.
• Operating a motorcycle, chainsaw, ATV, or other small internal combustion engine without an approved and working spark arrestor

Summit County did not have any firework restrictions on July 4. Boyer said there were no calls about fires started by fireworks.

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The Summit County Council on Wednesday approved a speed limit of 15 miles per hour on multi-use transportation trails, a move designed to increase safety on the pathways.

The limit applies to bicycles and e-bikes and both paved and compacted gravel trails in the Snyderville Basin Recreation Special Service District.

In addition, council members — while convened as the Snyderville Basin Special Recreation District governing board — approved a county code change allowing people who are 65 or older to ride electrically assisted bikes on singletrack trails. A singletrack, or natural surface trail, is a mountain bike trail that is wide enough for only one bike.

The changes, which will go into effect 15 days after they are published by the Summit County clerk, will make e-mountain bike regulation consistent across the Park City and Basin Recreation trail system.

E-bikes are barred on all trails in both jurisdictions where mountain bikers, hikers and others recreate, but e-bikes are allowed on paved paths. People with mobility disabilities are exempted from that rule in both Park City and the Snyderville Basin district.

Park City already allowed people 65 and older to ride e-bikes on singletracks, and in late May, the City Council approved a 15 mph speed limit for the municipality’s transportation trails.

The Snyderville Basin Special Recreation District and Park City partnered on a survey to get residents’ views on regulations for e-bikes. A random sample of Park City and Snyderville Basin residents was asked for input, and QR codes were placed at trailheads to get more opinions.

The results seem to call for an adjustment in how e-bikes are managed, according to a Basin Recreation report.

The ban on e-mountain bikes on trails except for those used by people 65 or older and individuals with disabilities had strong support.

Approximately 70% of respondents wanted designated speed limits in both jurisdictions, with most supporting 12 to 15 miles per hour or 10 to 12 miles per hour. Fewer than 15% said there shouldn’t be a designated speed and enforcement is enough.

Some who took the survey had additional ideas including adding signage and having bike rental shops inform riders about the local regulations.

The staff report says additional education campaigns and the presence of additional rangers will encourage compliance with the regulations.

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Lake Rockport Estates was established in 1971 as a seasonal community and the infrastructure was designed for seasonal use. As the Wanship subdivision grew, its small private water utility struggled to keep up with demand.

Now, with more residents living in the 328-lot development full-time, the Lake Rockport Estates Property Owners Association’s board of trustees has asked that the subdivision be considered for annexation into the Mountain Regional Water Special Service District, which was created by Summit County in 2000.

The annexation would allow Lake Rockport’s system to connect with the district’s public system. Currently, Lake Rockport residents receive water six months of the year, according to Andy Garland, Mountain Regional Water general manager.

“LRE is a small private water utility that has found it difficult to control operating costs while maintaining a safe, reliable water supply under current Utah water regulations,” Garland said in a June letter to the Summit County Council. “It is believed that residents of LRE will benefit from being part of a larger system that is more efficient to maintain. MRW, with its qualified staff and proven expertise, is well-equipped to operate a public water supply system.”

Another option would be to become a wholesale water customer while Lake Rockport continues to look for permanent alternatives, the board of trustees says in a memo to the council. There are 178 water connections in the community.

Garland said it might be possible to interconnect the Mountain Regional Water and Lake Rockport systems with approximately 3,000 feet of water transmission line.

The Summit County Council discussed the project June 12 and was supportive of looking into the feasibility of annexation but did not take formal action.

The next steps are up to Lake Rockport Estates property owners, who would be paying for the entire project. Annexation would require the approval of 100% of them.

The property owners need to hire an engineer to do a feasibility study and depending on those results, possibly get an easement through Promontory and Rockport Ranches to complete the most cost-effective transmission line location from Rockport Ridge Road to Sage Lane, according to Garland.

In addition, the current infrastructure would need to be improved to meet the rules and standards of the Utah Division of Drinking Water, he said. Most water lines in the Lake Rockport system are not buried to frost depth, and replacing the distribution system “would be a significant financial impact,” Garland said.

He gave a ballpark figure of $20 million for the entire project, or $300 a month paid by property owners for a 20-year bond.

Water is available from May 1 to Oct. 31 to all lots in the Lake Rockport Estates neighborhood — described on its website as an undeveloped, recreational community — but the system may not operate at urban standards, the subdivision’s website says.

“During the winter months the water is shut down due to freezing, and general repairs can often take much longer than in towns and cities,” the website says. “You should also be aware that this is a high desert area and is susceptible to drought.”

Many lot owners have underground tanks, but if those go dry, they either have to truck in water or figure out some other method to get it, Garland said.

The Board of Trustees’ memo says Lake Rockport’s original developer drilled six wells on the project but only a single shallow one was viable and the other five were eventually abandoned. As more lots were developed, the water infrastructure was expanded and improved.

Lake Rockport Estates added a deeper well in 2009, replaced an 80,000-gallon storage tank with a 365,000-gallon tank and did upgrades on buried piping in preparation for a plan to facilitate year-round water, the memo says. It says the original well was abandoned in 2010 and the remaining well was supporting the community at a flow rate of 70 to 90 gallons per minute.

Then in 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic work-from-home era and during an extended drought, there was a jump in the number of people moving to the community. The well’s production dropped to 23 gallons per minute and it was unable to keep up with demand from residents, the memo says.

A new well completed in February produced only 21 gallons per minute.

“Given LRE’s history of wells drilled in the community that were determined not to be viable community-scale water sources, LRE does not currently see an economically viable path for continued drilling efforts and is therefore weighing alternatives to secure water sources for our community,” the memo says.

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As a resort town with extremely high housing and living costs, Park City struggles to recruit employees and once had a position as a mechanic for the municipality go unfilled for more than 400 days. 

Since then, an Employee Value Proposition program has helped reduce the time from when most jobs are posted and a candidate accepts an offer to 60 to 90 days, according to Sarah Mangano, Park City human resources director.

The goal of the program, which was launched two years ago, is to improve Park City’s ability to attract, retain, engage and produce a competitive and motivated workforce. The city currently has 360 full-time employees.

Initiatives introduced by the municipality’s human resources team include a new quarterly performance review program, enhanced health care benefits with network expansion, increased employee recognition through a new online recognition and tracking system and modernized recruitment and job advertisement processes to reduce the time to fill positions. 

In addition, the city hired NFP, a benefits consultant, to study compensation for its employees. The study results were used to set fiscal 2025 salaries.

“I think if we had not looked at our pay competitively and how expensive it is to live in the Wasatch Back or how frustrating it is to drive by many other communities where you could be working and continue to drive up the hill from Salt Lake, we’d be in a very, very poor spot from a recruitment standpoint,” Mangano said. “I don’t think we could be competitive in today’s market had we not made the changes that we have.“

Components of an Employee Value Proposition typically include compensation and benefits, time off and flexibility in how work gets done, career flexibility and a focus on improving workers’ skills, and the mission and culture of an organization, according to Aon, a professional services firm that acquired NFP in April.

A staff report says that “while a common practice in the public sector, these programs are somewhat unique in public organizations and help to differentiate employers competing for employees in a challenging local labor market.” 

Park City has used professional compensation studies in the past to determine compensation rates. The last study before NFP’s was conducted in 2019 by Mercer, and it determined Park City was well behind the market and without a valuable or strategic compensation strategy, according to the report.

The Mercer study established individual pay for the city’s 160 unique positions and the city established a compensation philosophy of paying a little above the market mid-point. The COVID pandemic delayed the implementation of the study’s recommendations until fiscal 2021, when inflation skyrocketed and the job market became hypercompetitive, the report says.

The Park City Council has implemented cost-of-living adjustments in three consecutive years — 10.33% in July 2022 for fiscal 2023; 5.5% in July 2023 for fiscal 2024; and 2.25% this month for fiscal 2025 — to help combat inflation and wage competition. But despite the adjustments, Park City and Summit County continue to face challenges in retaining and recruiting talented professionals, the staff report says.

The NFP salary study includes data from 40 Utah cities and counties, resort communities across the country and the private sector and used cost-of-living calculators to produce comparable data between the respondents and Park City. The findings showed a “significant” geographic economic difference between Park City and the other cities.

The information helped create salaries that are now more proportional to the high cost of living in Park City and market competitors, the staff report says.

NFP created 14 “salary bands” that house more than 160 types of jobs and show the minimum and maximum paid to employees within a job level. A separate band was set up for police officers, who are in a hypercompetitive market, the report says. 

“The 14 bands also accounted for internal and external equity, such as having  all administrative assistants in the same salary grade/band instead of several different bands for the same position and duties,” the staff report says.

The City Council voted unanimously on June 20 to approve the budget for fiscal 2025, which began Monday. The councilors also approved an ordinance that set Mayor Nann Worel’s wages at $53,862, a slight increase from her fiscal 2024 salary of $52,806, and their wages at $27,824, up from $27,278.

Mangano said pay is the most tangible piece of the effort to attract and retain workers but other factors — such as vacation policies, healthcare enhancements and tuition reimbursement — have paid off.

“I don’t think one thing pulls the lever,” she said. “It’s everything in conjunction.”

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Construction of Studio Crossing, a mixed-use development that includes the largest affordable-housing project in Park City’s history, is in progress and the developers expect the apartments and commercial space to fill up quickly.

The development at Quinn’s Junction will include 208 affordable housing units ranging from studios to three-bedroom apartments and about 100 market rate townhouses and condominiums. Retail and restaurants also are included in the development.

Crandall Capital, a local family-owned company run by Gary Crandall and his sons Ryan and Matthew, is building the 320,000-square-foot development with private funding only. The company is putting together a waiting list for those who want to live in the units or set up business in the development.

“We have letters of interest on almost half of the commercial space already,” Gary Crandall said.

He anticipates housing space also will be taken soon. There have been initial conversations with large employers that have shown interest in master leases, which would allow them to make the housing units available for their employees to rent, he said.

Workers began digging trenches this month for sewers, electricity and water lines, which will take about three months, Crandall said. Next, the foundations for two retail buildings and two buildings with a total of 104 housing units will be put in.

“By getting the foundations in this year, we’ll be able to work through the winter,” Crandall said.

A groundbreaking ceremony for Studio Crossing, which is next to Utah Film Studios, was held last October. This first phase of the development is expected to be finished in November or December 2025.

Steed Construction is the general contractor and Trent Smith, owner of Salt Lake City design studio Modern Out West, is the lead architect. The townhomes and condos are designed for a variety of residents, including working professionals and seniors who want to age in place.

Studio Crossing affordable housing is available to renters making anywhere from 60% to 80% of the area median income (AMI) in Summit County. Crandall said the workers in each unit will be allowed to earn a combined total of up to 120% AMI without being required to vacate the property for exceeding income limits.

“We’re trying to really help them so they can save that extra money and use it for a down payment on their own unit,” Crandall said.

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Park City could become the owner of a Silver Star mountainside condominium that would help municipal workers experiencing a housing emergency and newly recruited employees who need time to look for a permanent home.

The City Council will take public input at a Friday meeting on a potential purchase of the ski-in, ski-out unit, which would be used for temporary housing for municipal employees. The meeting begins at 10 a.m. at City Council Chambers, 445 Marsac Ave. To attend virtually, go to https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85994483159.

The third-floor condo, 1835 Three Kings Drive, #65-9, is a 620-square-foot one-bedroom, one-bath unit. It was built in 2008 and has a deck: parkcity.org/home/showpublisheddocument/74602/638434995126670000

“The city will be able to purchase this beautifully maintained fully furnished unit for the Maximum Resale Price of $308,230 per the terms of the deed restrictions,” a report by Rhoda Stauffer, the city’s housing program administrator, says.

The condo is “in a very desirable area located on transit, and within easy walking distance to several public facilities that provide essential services (3Kings, Police, Public Works, and Transit),” the report says.

The money to buy the Silver Star condo would come from the Affordable Housing Fund, which has more than adequate funding to buy the unit without hindering the municipality’s ability to consider additional acquisitions and partnerships, according to the report. An inspection has already been done and minor repairs have been completed, the report says.

Buying the condo would bring the total of the employee housing inventory to nine units and would be the first one-bedroom option. The other current options are two- and three-bedroom condos and a four-bedroom detached house, the report says.

Park City currently has one employee on the waitlist and three recruitments underway of workers who might need temporary housing.

“All the city’s existing non-transit units are filled or reserved,” Stauffer says in the report. “As of late summer, we will have no available units, and the first availability would be in January 2025. When units are fully occupied, we have no options for employees experiencing housing emergencies and/or for upcoming recruitments.”

Non-transit refers to seasonal transit drivers. The units are available to rent by all city staff who are full-time regular employees and the average length of stay is 12 months.

A committee with representatives from the Human Resources Department, the Housing Department and the executive team review requests for employee units to prioritize needs and what’s best for the organization.  

The criteria for renting the units include recruitment needs, such as when new employees wouldn’t be able to take the job without housing, and a housing emergency or changes for existing full-time regular employees. Essential workers — such as public safety employees and on-call water workers — get priority.

City staff members were informed by the executor of the owner’s estate in December as required by the deed restrictions that the unit was going on sale. Five months later, the condo was still on the market and the executor asked to sell the unit to the city.

The unit had been under contract once, but the buyer canceled and another potential buyer did not purchase the condo because of the lack of storage space, which is characteristic of the affordable units at Silver Star, Stauffer said in the report.

In addition, she said, “I believe applicants are hoping and waiting for interest rates to come back down.”

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Park City is asking for proposals from individuals and firms to build and operate an indoor pickleball facility on municipal property to meet the growing demand for a year-round place to play the sport.

The city is considering entering into a public-private partnership to provide the courts and the municipality would offer a lease of undeveloped city-owned land for its part. In addition, Park City — which has a budget of $0.00 for the project — would possibly make requested contributions that do not cost “a significant amount of investment,” such as a bus stop, a transit route and the sharing of existing parking.

The private partner would be responsible for constructing, maintaining and operating the year-round facility for the length of the lease. Under the terms of the arrangement, daily fees and passes must be available to the public, including reduced fees for Park City residents. The facility could not be a private club or a limited access operation.

A city staff report says while not common, public-private partnerships for recreation facilities “can be a win-win proposition for public agencies and private sector/non-profit partners, delivering cost-effective, high-quality amenities that enhance the health, well-being, and quality of life for residents and
visitors alike.” 

The project site is 15 acres at 675 Gillmor Way, between the Park City Ice Arena and the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association’s Center of Excellence. The parcel was donated to Park City for recreational and open space usage as part of the Intermountain Healthcare Master Planned Development, according to the staff report.

A request for proposals was issued on June 6 and submissions are due by 3 p.m. July 9. 

A $30 million general obligation bond on the ballot in last November’s election would have funded recreation improvements, but Park City voters rejected the measure. City leaders had planned to use the money for projects such as pickleball courts, a refrigerated ice sheet that would have been outside and covered, Nordic skiing upgrades, the expansion of fitness offerings and new lights for sports fields. 

Pickleball — which is a combination of tennis, badminton and ping-pong — is played on a level court with short-handled paddles and a light hollow ball. Two or four players hit the ball back and forth over a net that is 34 inches in the middle and 36 inches high at the sidelines.

According to the 2024 Sports & Fitness Industry Association Topline Participation Report, pickleball is the fastest-growing sport in America. In Park City, officials have struggled to keep up with the demand created by the boom in the sport’s popularity and balance court usage by pickleball players with usage by tennis players.

A selection committee will evaluate the proposals based on the benefits to Park City; the construction plan; the business plan, including the overall business philosophy and the expected approach to managing the facility; and experience constructing or operating a pickleball or recreation facility, among other criteria.

The final design will have to be approved by both the Park City Planning Commission and City Council.

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