Park City leaders are continuing to receive opinions about the possibilities for municipal acreage in Bonanza Park, hearing on Thursday from people with different ideas from the one officials are pursuing.
There has been a push in recent months from people who want Park City to radically revise the vision for approximately 5 acres of land stretching inward from the southwest corner of the intersection of Kearns Boulevard and Bonanza Drive.
The municipal government acquired the land nearly a decade ago with the intention of creating an arts and culture district with the Sundance Institute and the Kimball Art Center as the anchors. The Kimball Art Center instead opted for a location in the Snyderville Basin and Sundance moved the festival to Colorado, leaving a district without the two anchors.
Park City has crafted a different concept with a 106 units of affordable housing development, restaurant space and arts studios. There would be 2 acres of open space as well. The project is before the Park City Planning Commission now.
The the City Council on Thursday heard more comments about the future of the land.
One of the speakers, Jimmy Weinberg, argued for a new City Hall to be put on the land, alongside green space.
Betsy Wallace, an Old Town resident, noted there is other land close to the acreage where housing has already been developed or could be located. She listed places like the EngineHouse Apartments, Deer Valley Resort-controlled land along the Bonanza Drive corridor and Vail Resorts land. She also questioned the financial feasibility of a development like the one Park City is pursuing.
Wallace, who is involved with the opposition group known as PLACE PC, suggested temporarily creating a park on the land for an unspecified amount of time as the community learns how other nearby parcels are developed.
Kelly Pfaff, who is also involved with PLACE PC, suggested Parkites are not aware of the plans for the land despite years of coverage, and in recent months as the council shaped the plan with Brinshore Development before sending it to the Planning Commission.
Other speakers touched on topics like a desire for a greater ratio of open space to be included in a development, concerns about traffic at the Bonanza Drive-Kearns Boulevard intersection and the benefits of creating park space at the location. The idea of creating a park has received particular attention in recent months.
The elected officials were not scheduled to address the topic as a formal agenda item.
City Councilor Tana Toly, though, said there is misinformation circulating about the concept. She emphasized the concept is a mixed-use development rather than a housing project.
There have been various visions for the land over the years, but only limited progress has been made on any of them.
The private sector owner who sold the land to the municipal government encountered deep-rooted questions about a development proposal in the time before the sale. That concept, from a decade ago, involved residential square footage, office space, a hotel and commercial space. There were concerns at the time about the height of buildings and traffic.