Summit County staffers are continuing to build off the long history of the Historic Union Pacific Rail Trail State Park by taking the next step in a collaborative plan that they hope will create meaningful connections that enrich the community’s future.
The project, known as “The Corridor,” strives to create a cultural, recreational and tourism hub along the nearly 30-mile Rail Trail. Staff members have been developing a master plan that shapes a vision and goals based on what residents want to see.
“We really want to take what we’ve heard and what we’ve learned throughout the community engagement process thus far, and figure out the focus we want to take and how we want to get there through this plan,” said Madlyn McDonough, a Summit County planner.
County staff is preparing to present their proposal during another open house event, from 6 to 8 p.m. on Monday, March 14, at the Trailside Conference Room at the Basin Recreation Offices across from Trailside Elementary, where residents are encouraged to engage in the process and provide further feedback.
McDonough said there will be hands-on informational sessions for participants, and that the event is a chance for people in the community to make their opinions heard.
“We want the community to feel truly represented in this plan. There’s a lot to consider and a lot of ways to approach this,” she said. “We heard a lot, but there’s more that we want to know.”
Their efforts began with a community survey in November that asked residents what they hoped to see along the popular recreation trail. Many responses indicated the need for more restrooms or easier access to water. McDonough said that after working through the list, staff held an open house the following month to gain more specific feedback.
Around 45 community members attended the event, and the county was able to identify individuals who wanted to be more involved in the process. They created three focus groups with 22 participants that began meeting in February to discuss the most requested topics related to economic opportunity, use and accessibility, and environmental stewardship and sustainable tourism.
McDonough said county staff took the information they gathered and began creating a draft for the plan as well as a vision statement and specific goals for improving the Rail Trail. She said they heard a lot of great ideas for the corridor, but it can be tricky thinking 10 to 20 years in the future based on assumptions about the community’s change and growth.
One of the main goals is to focus on communities that are already established near the Rail Trail like Coalville and Hoytsville. Development plans in these areas would be focused on encouraging business or improving infrastructure.
The rail line was completed by Union Pacific in 1869 and abandoned by 1989. Later, the railroad corridor was converted into a recreational trail, and became the first non-motorized rail trail in the state. The Historic Union Pacific Rail Trail State Park was dedicated in 1992 when Utah State Parks took over management.
In 2010, the park was inducted into the national Rails to Trails Conservancy Hall of Fame. Locally, a focus on the trail and surrounding land began around five years ago, according to McDonough.
Students who are in the Centers for Advanced Professional Studies program at Park City High School have also contributed to the plan. Those with a focus on architecture and engineering designed a possible sensory garden and a community center, while others focused on business solutions have helped market the project on social media. Graduate students with the University of Utah who study city and metropolitan planning are also involved in the effort.
The staff’s vision is for the corridor to be embraced as a way to connect Summit County to Park City while enriching the character of the community and enhancing the experience of people who use the trail for walking, biking, running, horseback riding and cross-country skiing.
Moving forward, county staff plan to hold another round of focus groups — which they invite residents to participate in — before they release a draft of the plan in mid-May. Then, the county will make changes as necessary before it’s adopted.
For more information on the project or to find ways to get involved, visit railtrailsummit.weebly.com.