There have been talks for 15-plus years about the future of a swath of Park City now known as Bonanza Park.
The community will need to wait for at least six more weeks before a key vote regarding the development prospects of the ground is cast.
The Park City Council on Thursday night delayed a decision on the zoning of upward of 70 acres. The elected officials pushed back a vote that if approved, would create a new zoning district and move the acreage into that district. The City Council indicated it wants to return to the discussions Aug. 26.
The land has long been seen as ripe for redevelopment. There have been various efforts to press ahead with major work in Bonanza Park with mixed results.
A private sector developer, as an example, earlier envisioned an ambitious project on the land stretching inward from the southwest corner of the intersection of Kearns Boulevard and Bonanza Drive. The Bonanza Park partnership, though, ultimately sold the ground to City Hall after making only modest progress in talks about a development. The difficult discussions about the location of The DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Park City — The Yarrow have also been linked to the future of Bonanza Park.
The proposed new zoning district, broadly, is meant to steer development toward the community’s overall vision for Bonanza Park. The current discussions are being held after earlier talks about that vision highlighted an interest in a variety of sorts of development in Bonanza Park, including residential and commercial.
There were also desires for businesses that are owned locally, workforce or otherwise restricted affordable housing and a mobility network that includes options for transit, pedestrians and bicyclists.
Some of the talks covered the potential of allowing increased development if a project provides enhancements taken from a tiered list of possibilities, such as restricted affordable housing and child-care facilities.
The City Council vote to delay a decision was cast toward 10:30 p.m. and after a lengthy agenda of unrelated matters. The elected officials received 26 minutes of testimony prior to the vote.
The speakers touched on a range of issues like the future of rentals available on a nightly basis, the impact on businesses, and the amount of open space.
Craig Elliott, an architect with a background in Bonanza Park dating to the 1990s, cautioned against existing buildings becoming obsolete as a result of the proposed changes. Elliott currently is working on the future of the Holiday Village shopping center, which would be impacted by the zoning.
Greg Friedman, who lives in the Bonanza Park district, expressed concern about the possibility of a prohibition of rentals on a nightly basis in existing residential units.
Clay Stuard, a former member of the Park City Planning Commission, urged caution and said developers could take advantage of the situation.