I recently viewed the renderings for the proposed 5-acre Bonanza Park development, and congratulations, Park City — you’ve successfully brought the aesthetic charm of 1970s Eastern Bloc Moscow to the Wasatch Back. Looking at those looming, multi-story structures, I was instantly transported to the golden age of Soviet brutalism. I can only assume our next step is queuing on Kearns Boulevard for a ration of overpriced artisan sourdough.
Let’s look at the facts:
- The 46-foot peak: The proposed plan breaches the local 35-foot height limit. Apparently, the city believes our famous alpine horizons are a design flaw that desperately needs to be corrected.
- The architectural alibi: Brinshore Development claims extra roof gables mimic “historic mining architecture.” Because nothing says frontier mining quite like a monolithic, multi-story concrete block.
- The gridlock special: Cramming 106 units, 32,581 square feet of commercial space, and a new daycare into our most congested intersection is madness. Nothing teaches toddler safety quite like introducing recess to traffic blind spots and exposing developing lungs to idling exhaust fumes.
- The municipal math: Park City bought this parcel in 2017 for $19.5 million. Over nine years of delays, taxpayers have bled funds into maintenance, all while losing nearly a decade of commercial tax revenue. Now updated estimates push total public funding past $83 million — a staggering investment of over $943,000 per income-restricted rental. To channel Inigo Montoya: The city keeps using the word “affordable,” but I do not think it means what they think it means.
I understand our need for workforce housing. However, demolishing zoning codes and blocking mountain views for a multi-million-dollar monument to municipal inefficiency makes zero sense at the gateway to beautiful Park City.
My numbers come from Park City budget discussions in March. I did throw in a couple million for nine years of holding this property empty – maintenance, lost tax revenues, administrative costs, etc.
Phoebe Hailey
Park City