The Park City municipal government could tap someone to lead the planning for the 2034 Winter Olympics, but it is unclear when that may occur.
The new Park City manager, Adam Lenhard, addressed the Games efforts in an interview, speaking about the prospects of creating some sort of staff position that would be assigned duties related to the preparations for 2034. Lenhard did not provide details and cautioned that leaders have not discussed the topic in any depth.
The mayor and Park City Council would be expected to ultimately decide the timing since the elected officials would need to consider budgetary matters related to a new post within the municipal ranks. A decision like that would be a high-profile one and would likely encompass talks about the overall direction of the planning for the Games in addition to the potential role of a staffer. Lenhard acknowledged the mayor and City Council have not authorized him to move forward with a staffing strategy.
It seems that such a discussion could occur as the municipal government’s annual budget is crafted in the spring and early summer. The topic was not addressed in the budget talks that recently unfolded, and it would be unusual for the elected officials to reopen the discussions later in a fiscal year for a topic like Games planning.
“The Olympic Games deserve an incredible amount of care and attention, and we want to get that right. I’m going to be looking for somebody who likely has direct experience with previous Winter Olympics,” Lenhard said. “This would be a position that would have a very prominent position in our organization, and I think we ought to give it the resources it deserves.”
Lenhard added: “We’re going to want to dedicate resources towards positions, right, whatever it takes, within reason. I mean, we’ll be sensitive to our budget position and things like that, but … this will be one of our absolute top priorities going forward.”
He said there are skilled staffers at the municipal government and people in the community with experience from the 2002 Winter Olympics, saying “we do have incredibly talented individuals who had prominent roles in the 2002 Games” remaining in the community.
“I have a feeling we are going to find some incredible, talented people to apply and potentially fill that position. I wouldn’t make any presumptions about who that individual would be, but I bet we’ll be pleasantly surprised when we get there … This is something that deserves so much thought to get it right. How do we organize it? Is it an entire department or just one person … It’s going to be a huge effort, is what I would say, and we’ll continue to think about that. But I think we’ll be … all over it,” he said.
The city manager said there are also talks ongoing between the staff as the municipal government prepares for upcoming Games-related steps.
“For us as professionals, I think the chance to be involved in something like that, we’re going to have our moment to shine, and it’s our goal to be ready. We are asking that question internally: How do we meet the moment of the Olympics? 2002, I think, is widely viewed as a success. We saw the community come together. We actually have a lot of that institutional knowledge still here in our community, and we’ve been having conversations with many of those people. And those will, the frequency of those conversations, will increase,” he said.
Lenhard also spoke about Mayor Ryan Dickey’s spot on the Games organizing committee, talks with Summit County officials regarding the Games and the work of the organizing committee.
“One thing I think is very interesting is right now the Utah Olympic committee is taking the lead role, and they’re communicating with us as their partners and stakeholders in the Olympics … I think very clearly the Utah Olympic committee right now is in the process of actively establishing those timelines where the city participation becomes more formal.”
He added: “We’re not going to wait for that. We’re obviously already thinking about how can we be prepared? How do we meet the moment?”
The work toward the Games will eventually become one of the key tasks for the municipal government. The Park City area is poised to have an outsized role in 2034, as was the case during the earlier Winter Olympic era. Park City Mountain, Deer Valley Resort and the Utah Olympic Park have been identified as competition venues. The community will also play a key role in the transportation, security and celebration planning.
It seems almost certain leaders will research the strategies used during the work before 2002 as they craft their own ideas for the 2034 efforts. The earlier group of officials opted to create a full-time municipal staff position dedicated to Olympic planning. The police chief at the time moved into that role and the second-ranking member of the Police Department became the chief. The creation of the Olympic-planning post was eventually seen as an astute decision as the Games work became more intense.
The Winter Olympics of 2034 were awarded on an earlier timeline than those of 2002, providing a lengthier lead up to the event. The additional time has provided an opportunity to discuss high-level topics and visions for the event before the various institutions in the Games region move toward the detailed planning.