Two Summit County officials spent a week in Italy to observe the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, studying key behind-the-scenes logistics to help plan for the 2034 event in Utah.
County Manager Shayne Scott and County Councilor Tonja Hanson flew to Cortina d’Ampezzo on Feb. 10 as part of an observers program organized by the International Olympic Committee. The program is designed to bring leadership teams from future host cities to the Games to speak with local officials and organizers about their planning process for the international event.
“When we would go into different sessions, there would be people from Brisbane because they’re having the Summer Games after Los Angeles. There were people there from the French Alps because they’re having the next Winter Games, and then there was us,” Hanson said. “It was to learn how Italy was executing the Games, what they were doing that we could learn from and what we could do differently.”
The Summit County duo was accompanied by Utah Olympic Park leadership, Park City Mayor Ryan Dickey, Park City Councilor Tana Toly and Park City Chamber/Bureau President Jennifer Wesselhoff. Dallin Koecher, the executive director of Heber Valley Tourism, also participated in the program, as well as city officials from Ogden and the chief operations officer of the Utah Transit Authority.
The Utah contingent attended multiple seminars as part of the program, each with a focus on a key aspect of the Games, such as transportation, credentials and the spectator experience, in addition to visiting venues and speaking with local officials.
“Cortina was kind of special because it’s such a small community, so I think the Games really overwhelmed them, and that’s a risk that we run, too, when we’re trying to accommodate thousands and thousands of people,” Scott said. “We stayed 45 minutes away for that very reason, and there was a bus system that got people around, but Cortina was a fun, smaller mountain town.”
Scott said the location of their hotel was beneficial because it forced the group to wait for the bus and travel into Cortina d’Ampezzo using public transportation, which gave them the perspective of a spectator attending the events. However, Hanson said buses were often delayed, making travel a challenging experience.
“I think they waited too long to organize (transportation). That was the takeaway I had from that session,” Hanson said. “They used a lot of contractors to provide transportation who were not necessarily engaged in the process, so things fell through the cracks in a big way. We would wait over an hour for a bus, and the bus schedule said it should be there, and it would never show up.”
Hanson was not on the Summit County Council when Salt Lake City hosted the Games in 2002, but she was involved in the event through her work with Park City Mountain. She said transportation in 2002 wasn’t a major issue during the Games, but there will be challenges for 2034 because the layout of the venues has changed.
Summit County is already ahead of the curve when it comes to transportation planning, Scott said. The County Council recently greenlit a $92 million bond to tackle traffic congestion issues in Kimball Junction.
“Kimball Junction will be very different than it is today, and I’m hoping the county can have an event or animation here in Kimball’s Junction so you don’t have to go into Park City or you don’t have to go to Salt Lake,” Hanson said.
She added that she wants to prioritize engaging the East Side in the Games as well, which didn’t happen in 2002.
“What can we do to ensure everyone in our county can participate in 2034?” Hanson said. “I really wanted to look at that, and it was helpful because of where we stayed since it was 45 minutes away. The only signage for you to know the Games were going on in this small community was one sign when we walked out of the hotel. … Can we make sure there are opportunities for families who aren’t necessarily involved in winter sports to be able to attend World Cup events because we will have those leading up to the Games.”
Scott and Hanson went to a few Olympic events while in Cortina d’Ampezzo, which also gave them first-hand experience as a spectator. While it may not be as exciting as building an Olympic venue, the placement of bathrooms, concession stands and other amenities for sports fans will be key to the flow of the Games.
“When I thought about it before, I was like, ‘Oh, this will be fun to get to go to an event,’ but I had a lot of takeaways from going to an event as a fan,” Scott said. “For luge, we walked through mud for hundreds of yards, and then within a day or two, they had woodchips down. It was good to see that from a fan perspective, not just behind the scenes, because I got to actually see it just like everyone else.”
The county is still working on how it wants to approach planning for the Olympics, but Scott said he hopes to meet with Park City Municipal on a regular basis beginning this year in addition to exploring infrastructure improvements.
“Can we wrap our heads around what it might cost, and is there funding available to move those projects ahead of the Olympics to make sure we have those things completed?” Scott said. “We’d like to start having that conversation and getting into a regular cadence. … I think it will really start to ramp up. These Games were a good opportunity to kick that into motion.”
Hanson said she was grateful to the International Olympic Committee and the Utah Organizing Committee for the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games for the opportunity to observe the international gathering in Italy because of how it will benefit planning on the local level.
“Behind the scenes, the information that we’re able to bring back to planners and other people involved in organizing the 2034 Games is great,” she said. “Even if I’m not in office, I’m talking to those people now and sharing my takeaways on things they might not be aware of.”
Scott similarly said the trip was a great way to indicate the county’s commitment to the Games, too, ensuring local officials will have a seat at the table as 2034 inches closer.
“People don’t understand that when you get off Kimball Junction, you’re in Summit County until you get to the white barn,” Scott said. “The Canyons, the UOP, that’s all in our jurisdiction. That’s not Park City. … It’s easy to say Salt Lake City, Park City and Ogden are these big host cities, but Summit County is going to have a major role in these Games, and we want to make sure we’re in the right rooms and have these relationships. We’re Summit County, we’re here and we’re taking this very seriously.”