Summit County has the second-lowest rate of emergency department visits connected to opioid use in the state. Still, the Health Department is committed to prevention and education as the Wasatch Back grapples with a lack of treatment centers for those struggling with addiction.

“Fentanyl, of all the opiates, is what we’re seeing the most of in Summit County,” said Director of Behavioral Health Aaron Newman. “When we’re looking at fentanyl, a speck the size of a number on a penny is enough to kill someone. … What we’re seeing inundating the community are these counterfeit pills that, frankly, if you’re taking one, you don’t know what else it’s mixed with, and that’s where we see an increased level of lethality.”

Approximately 80% of overdose deaths in Summit County stem from what Newman called “polysubstance” incidents, meaning an opioid was ingested in combination with another drug or alcohol. He said it’s difficult to track how people are obtaining opioids because they can receive a legitimate prescription through a health professional, illegally share medication with others or purchase counterfeit pills online.

However, 92% of all fentanyl pills that Summit County sent to the state for testing were identified as counterfeit.

“There are five key causes we’ve seen when evaluating this and talking with people who are either actively using or in recovery,” Newman said. “We see issues with unstable housing, social isolation, employment issues, a past criminal history and then also another large indicator is living in a rural area.”

Pamella Bello, the Health Department’s director of behavioral health prevention, said the best method to prevent deaths connected to an opioid overdose is to educate families and children on the dangers of the drug. The Health Department often partners with the area’s three school districts to encourage parents to talk to kids about substance use, with Bello adding that strong connections to the community, friends and family have been shown to lower the likelihood of an addiction.

“We all have a role in this, and it’s very important that we cannot just tell a kid, ‘Don’t do this,’” Bello said. “It’s a lot of that relationship with the parents and the parents having those conversations, information that they might get through the schools and public campaigns that we have.”

Bello said the prevention team also speaks to adults about how to properly dispose of their medication in an effort to stop people from using opioids intended for another individual. She also recommended parents start speaking to their children about substance use earlier than they might expect, typically around age 9.

“Some people think that’s very early for kids, and kids may not know what an opioid is, but they might know what alcohol is, and you can start the conversation with alcohol and in a few years talk about opioids,” Bello said.

One of the biggest challenges for Summit County is the lack of treatment centers along the Wasatch Back. Newman said anyone experiencing an overdose or another emergency should go to the Park City Hospital for immediate treatment, but most people will need to travel to the Salt Lake Valley for ongoing care.

“The most effective form of treatment is called methadone, but methadone is a highly controlled substance, and, unfortunately, we don’t have any methadone providers here in Summit County,” Newman said. “But if we have an individual with an opioid use disorder who has a criminal engagement and is brought into the Summit County Jail, we are able to provide detox and medication management to get off that initial addiction.”

The county is expected to receive $1.2 million over 18 years, or $57,000 per year, as part of a settlement agreement involving a nationwide lawsuit against the opioid industry. Newman said the Health Department uses some of the money to create treatment plans for inmates after they’re released from jail, which allows them to have a 30-day supply of their medication.

“We’re also using those funds to help support a transitional housing component for people who have everything with an opioid use diagnosis and who are undergoing treatment,” Newman said. “We provide it for 12 months to help them get back on their feet, find a place to live and find employment because when I go back to those root causes, if we can address those through treatment, the likelihood of someone relapsing is much less than if they hadn’t gone through this type of support, treatment and programming.”

Information on the Health Department’s opioid prevention programs, including the settlement and prescription disposal locations, is available online by visiting summitcountyhealth.org/behavioral-health.

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A Park City Police Department K-9 was transported to an emergency veterinary hospital in Salt Lake City on Tuesday morning after he jumped off the freeway overpass during an investigation into a suspicious package on Interstate 80.

The K-9, named Bruno, sustained “serious injuries,” according to a statement from the department.

“Bruno is more than a police K-9 — he is a partner, a member of our department and an important part of the Park City Police family,” the Police Department statement said. “Our thoughts are with Bruno and his handler as he receives the care he needs.”

The Police Department thanked medical personnel on scene, Life Flight, the Utah Highway Patrol, “and everyone who stepped in to help” assist Bruno after the accident.

“We know our community cares deeply about Bruno, and we will share additional information about his condition when we are able,” the statement said.

The Utah Highway Patrol closed portions of I-80 and U.S. 40 because of a “suspicious item,” which led to a lengthy morning commute for those traveling in the Snyderville Basin.

As of 10:45 a.m., Sgt. Skyler Talbot with the Summit County Sheriff’s Office said the suspicious item, which appeared to be a battery for an e-bike, was cleared and “is no longer a concern.” The roads have since reopened.

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The Summit County government started what will likely be a multi-year process to restore wetland habitats on a portion of the 835-acre Ure Ranch property known as “The Swamp,” which was previously drained to accommodate grazing cattle.

“The beauty of wetlands are that they’re natural recharge areas for groundwater,” explained County Lands and Natural Resources Director Jess Kirby. “From the wildlife perspective, thousands and thousands of birds use wetlands every year as migrating stopover spots. We have the sandhill cranes that come through every year and so many other species that utilize these spots as they migrate.”

The Swamp covers approximately 20 acres of the overall Ure Ranch site, but only 3.5 acres are involved in the restoration process. Kirby said the Ure family, who owned the property before the county purchased it in an open space acquisition last year, built ditches to drain the area so it would be usable for grazing cattle.

“There is still a portion of that property that is ungrazable because cows just sink into the ground,” Kirby said. “When we took ownership, (the family) told us about The Swamp and the issues that we were going to have keeping it dry, so that caught our attention. It’s a wet meadow, so why would we want to keep it dry?”

Ecological studies of the property showed the presence of an unusual soil type called histosol, which contains 20% to 30% more organic matter than regular soil and is often found in wet or cold conditions. Histosols are commonly found in Canada, Russia and northern Europe, with the Florida Everglades serving as the best example of the soil type in the United States.

“We started thinking, ‘Well, wouldn’t it be great if we could bring this back as a native landscape?’” Kirby said. “What’s happened over time is a particular grass, which is not noxious but is not native, took over the entire Kamas Meadows. It’s called reed canary grass … and it does choke out a lot of the native species because it covers everything.”

Kirby said the restoration efforts could look concerning to those unfamiliar with the project because trucks and other equipment are on site. However, she reaffirmed the equipment is being used to remove reed canary grass, plant native species and fill ditches that were previously draining the wetlands.

She said there are currently no development projects on the Ure Ranch property, and the purchasing agreement only allows for the construction of a single-family home, an educational center and recreational trails.

“There’s a possibility we can still flash graze it once it’s established, but we need to take a couple years off to let everything get established,” Kirby said. “We haven’t done anything like this that’s so visual, and it’s a big project. It’s going to be over the next five years. It’s not instant, and stuff like this takes time to grow.”

The county hired water consultants to help with the project and protect neighboring properties’ water rights as the restoration progresses. But Kirby said restoring the wetlands should increase the area’s overall water quality.

“It’s counterintuitive because it seems like we’re holding back water, but we’re holding it longer in the system so that it slowly trickles out,” Kirby said. “Wetlands are also great for cleaning water because they let water trickle through different sediments in the ground, so they can really purify (it). It’s not only water quantity but water quality that they enhance.”

Bio-West, a Logan-based environmental planning and consulting firm, and WestWater Research, an Idaho-based economic firm focused on the water market, are also partnering with Summit County on the project, Kirby said.

Summit County acquired the Ure Ranch property in December 2025 for $25 million. The area is divided into five separate pieces, each with its own conservation easement: Ure North Meadows, Ure Homestead, Ure Recreation, Ure South Meadow and The Swamp.

Kirby previously said she expects the Ure Ranch to open to the public by the summer of 2027.

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Matthew Maddison, a Summit County resident and former USA Climbing coach, will spend up to 15 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to possessing sexually explicit videos involving children.

Last week, Third District Judge Richard Mrazik determined Maddison should serve prison time for the second-degree felony charge. Maddison will receive credit for the 137 days he has spent in the Summit County Jail, but he is required to spend at least one year in prison before petitioning for parole.

Multiple people submitted letters to the court in support of Maddison attempting to reduce the severity of his sentence. The letters praised Maddison’s involvement as a father and said he has “fully committed to taking responsibility and making positive changes.” His wife also testified during the sentencing hearing.

Prosecutors in May charged Maddison, 37, with 10 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, a second-degree felony, and three counts of aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor, a first-degree felony. However, 12 of the 13 charges were dismissed in July after Maddison pleaded guilty to one second-degree felony count of sexual exploitation of a minor.

Detectives had been investigating Maddison for weeks at the time of his arrest in April, according to court documents.

A probable cause statement said a social media company filed a report with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in March, claiming an account on the website had uploaded and distributed sexually explicit materials involving children. The information was forwarded to the Utah Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

The task force identified Maddison as the account’s owner because of its connection to his USA Climbing email address, court records said. However, USA Climbing, after the arrest, said Maddison’s charges “appear to be unrelated to his coaching responsibilities.”

Law enforcement officials executed a search warrant at Maddison’s Summit County home, and Maddison reportedly admitted to owning the account, its associated email address and the explicit materials.

He also allegedly told law enforcement that he knew the files were illegal to possess.

Maddison was held without bail in the Summit County Jail because prosecutors described him as a “flight risk.” They said Maddison is a citizen of the United Kingdom and didn’t have solid ties to Utah. They also claimed he presented “a danger” to the Summit County community due to the nature of his charges.

“He works with youths and has unfettered access to them as a coach and in a position of authority,” the indictment said. “Additionally, the defendant has a young child who lives in his home. The defendant has successfully surrounded himself with children who are around the same age as the children in the (explicit) files he possessed and distributed, which makes him a direct threat to all children in the community, as well as his home.”

Maddison worked as a strength and conditioning coach and speed team manager for USA Climbing, and the organization confirmed his employment was terminated shortly after the arrest.

USA Climbing, in a press release, also emphasized the safety of its athletes as the organization’s highest priority.

“We are fully compliant with policy and compliance requirements through the U.S. Center for SafeSport, and all (USA Climbing) employees undergo mandatory background checks,” the press release said. “We are cooperating with law enforcement as they conduct their investigation.”

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An information technology administrator employed by the Park City School District was arrested last week after an investigation in the United Kingdom allegedly uncovered his participation in multiple incidents involving the sexual exploitation of a minor.

Utah County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested Garrett Harmon, 29, on Friday and listed 10 potential charges tied to the sexual exploitation of a minor in a probable cause statement. The arrest documents mention Harmon’s work as an IT systems administrator with the Park City School District.

District officials released a statement over the weekend saying law enforcement notified them of the arrest. They said the district “immediately took appropriate action under district policy” but did not clarify whether Harmon is still an employee.

“The individual’s primary job responsibilities involved working with district staff, and their role did not include direct interaction with students,” a district spokesperson said. “Due to the fact that this involves an ongoing law enforcement investigation and district personnel, we’re limited in the information we can provide.”

The investigation into Harmon started in June 2025 when law enforcement officials in the U.K. arrested and charged a U.K. citizen with offenses related to child exploitation, according to court documents. European investigators seized and reviewed a phone as part of the arrest, and encrypted conversations between the U.K. citizen and a Utah resident reportedly indicated both men “identified themselves as adult males with a sexual interest in children.”

The conversations allegedly included an admission that Harmon had previously sexually abused minors, “including his younger sibling and his younger sibling’s friend.”

“In January 2025, the Utah-based suspect stated he had recently inappropriately touched several boys during a camping trip involving approximately 30 boys between the ages of 11 and 18,” the probable cause statement said. “He described an activity at a lake where he helped boys get back into kayaks and admitted to touching them in a sexual manner while attempting to make the contact appear natural and avoid drawing attention.”

The court document said Harmon also mentioned he was married and that he and his wife were attempting to have a child, with subsequent statements “describing his intent to sexually abuse a future child.”

“In total, the Utah-based suspect distributed approximately five images he claimed depicted himself and approximately 18 files depicting what appeared to be minors, including infants, engaged in sexually explicit content,” the court document said.

U.K. investigators used facial recognition technology on a photo of Harmon to identify him. The photo matched images of Harmon on his social media accounts, and Utah real estate records showed he lived in Eagle Mountain.

Harmon is being held without bail in Utah County. The Utah County Attorney’s Office has not yet filed official charges in the case.

The Park City School District directed anyone in need of resources to the Utah Sexual Assault Helpline, which provides 24-hour support to those who call 801-736-4356.

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Temple Har Shalom’s sign on S.R. 224 was vandalized over the weekend in what synagogue leaders are calling an antisemitic attack days before the Jewish community’s most important holidays.

Rabbi Jeff Dreifus said a synagogue administrator noticed the property damage on Monday and speculated the incident happened late Saturday night or Sunday. He said the sign’s letters had been ripped off and the Star of David was destroyed.

“It’s very disheartening because Jews have been part of Park City’s history and Park City’s community for so long and are so active in making this community better,” Dreifus said. “We call our synagogue our Jewish home in the mountains. For your home to be defaced by someone who clearly wants us not to feel comfortable and not feel safe in this community, it’s really sad.”

Temple Har Shalom President June K. Volk said the incident was additionally upsetting because it happened before Rosh Hashanah, one of the Jewish faith’s most important holidays. But the start of the High Holy Days, which begins with Rosh Hashanah on Friday night and will culminate with Yom Kippur toward the end of September, is also providing comfort in the wake of the vandalism.

“During these days, we do a lot of introspection, reflection, and we think about ways to make our world stronger and better,” Volk said. “We call that concept ‘tikkun olam,’ and that means ‘repairing the world.’ We look not only inward, but outward to do better for the coming year.”

Dreifus said the vandalism is “unfortunately not unexpected or surprising” considering the current political environment in the United States and the rise of anti-semitic conflicts over the past few years. His parents’ synagogue in Michigan, his cousin’s synagogue in Mississippi and his hometown synagogue in Tennessee have all been threatened with violence, which Dreifus said showcases the pervasive intimidation the Jewish faith is experiencing.

“This act was done by a person who doesn’t want us to feel safe in this community, but the Jewish faith and Jewish people are a people of joy and of finding meaning in life and of making the world a better place,” Dreifus said. “We’re not going to let this person’s act intimidate us or detract from our joy, especially in this season of the Jewish High Holy Days.”

Summit County Sheriff’s Office deputies are present for every synagogue event, and the building itself has cameras and security measures in place, Dreifus said. He emphasized Temple Har Shalom’s commitment to keeping the synagogue and its visitors safe, adding that more cameras will be installed to monitor the sign when it’s replaced.

“We have received so much support, and I think it’s important to keep that perspective,” Dreifus said. “Maybe there are a small few who want us to feel intimidated, but the vast majority of the people in Park City and the people in America and the people around the world are good neighbors and good friends and have love in their hearts. … We have a vibrant Jewish community, and we should be proud of that.”

Sgt. Skyler Talbot with the Sheriff’s Office said the department is investigating the vandalism, but it’s too early in the process to determine if there will be hate crime enhancements to any potential charges.

“Summit County is better than this,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a statement Friday morning. “Intentionally damaging another person’s property is unacceptable, and targeting an individual or group because of their religion makes the conduct even more concerning. Every member of our community should feel safe and respected. The Sheriff’s Office will not tolerate acts of intimidation, harassment or discrimination directed at members of our community.”

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A proposal for a mixed-use neighborhood intended for residents 55 and older is moving to the Summit County Council for final approval after the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission unanimously forwarded a positive recommendation on Tuesday.

The 8-acre Silver Creek property is slightly southeast of Silver Creek Village. It is currently zoned as community commercial, but Bridgwater Consulting Group, which is helping develop the project alongside the property’s owners, requested a change to the neighborhood mixed-use zone to accommodate the project’s residential units.

The proposal includes plans for 74 residential units, with 30 of those earmarked as affordable housing. All units would be for sale rather than for rent, and the market rate units would be priced “consistent” with the Summit County and Park City area, according to the Bridgwater Consulting Group.

The consulting firm did not cite a specific price point for the affordable units, but the development team emphasized the community intends to serve residents 55 or older. 

The developers said they couldn’t legally restrict who moves in based on an applicant’s age, but the development’s marketing materials would target an older demographic. Bridgwater Consulting Group representatives said the neighborhood will provide older adults with an opportunity to downsize and stay in Summit County as they age.

In addition to housing, the proposal includes 6,300 square feet of commercial space and 5,600 square feet for indoor amenities. The development team is also coordinating with the county and High Valley Transit to install a transit hub to encourage residents to use public transportation, and trail connections would allow pedestrians and bikers to travel to Kimball Junction without a car.

The market rate units would have subterranean parking, while the affordable units would have surface parking. The developers said the difference in parking is due to the site’s layout and that expanding the underground garage would be too expensive and likely inconvenient for the affordable housing residents because of its location.

Developers also plan to build a park and amphitheater on the property, as well as a geothermal system underneath parking lots and walkways to melt snow in the winter and prevent residents from needing to shovel.

County planner Amir Caus said the county already contacted the Utah Department of Transportation about the development’s potential traffic impacts.

“We personally took UDOT on the tour of the entire Basin, but more particularly that entire neighborhood,” Caus said. “They’re taking into consideration resolving the current traffic issues, which we know are great, but also future projects as well, including this project.”

Planning Commissioner Spencer Young praised the developers’ decision to offer for sale affordable housing. Young said he supported a residential development in an area of the county dominated by commercial businesses, which was a concern Planning Commissioner Heather Peteroy raised.

“I actually think bringing a little bit of diversity to that area of the Basin isn’t a bad thing,” Young said. “It’s actually a healthy thing, so I don’t have a problem with that. The focus on mass transportation and active transportation seems really well thought out, and it is going to be helpful to the residents that live there, especially the residents they’re targeting. … I think the positives by far outweigh any negatives that would bring.”

The County Council will decide whether to rezone the property and approve the master plan development document, but a discussion had not been scheduled as of Thursday afternoon. If the County Council supports the project, staff will work with the development team to draft a legally binding development agreement.

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Developers with projects in the Snyderville Basin may soon be required to submit a traffic impact study if the proposal is expected to generate more than 25 trips during peak hours.

The code amendment, which the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission forwarded to the Summit County Council with a unanimous recommendation, would mandate that developers provide a traffic impact study if the project will generate enough “trip ends” during peak hours.

Peak hours are typically from 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m., but planning commissioners requested a change to 7 to 10 a.m. and 3 to 6 p.m. They cited ski traffic and the county’s large commuter population as reasons to expand the window.

The county uses the trip end metric to determine the impact of a project and how much a developer will need to pay in impact fees. Trip ends refer to a driver’s final destination, not any ancillary stops. For example, if a driver leaves their home, stops at a gas station and then goes to a retail store, the trip end is the retail store, not the gas station.

Developers with large projects in the Basin typically submit a traffic impact study, but county planner Ray Milliner said those submissions have been a courtesy, not a requirement.

“Currently, there’s nothing in our code that requires them to do a traffic study, so if a developer were to say, ‘I just don’t want to do it,’ we don’t have any teeth in our code to make them do it,” he said. “Generally, they just do it because they feel like, ‘Well, it’s probably in our best interest,’ but what we’d like to do is say, ‘OK, this is required at this level, and it’s in the code, and you have to do it,’ and off we go.”

Summit County Transportation Planning Deputy Director Eva de Laurentiis said the proposed code amendment would require developers to hire a third-party engineering consultant and prepare a traffic impact study if the project is estimated to generate 25 or more trip ends during peak hours. The developer would be responsible for funding the study in addition to hiring an engineer.

“Our goal with this is then to put a form on the website that outlines what is expected out of an impact study and creates clear guidelines for that so that we have some uniformity in the studies,” de Laurentiis said.

If a traffic impact study determines the development needs mitigation because of the amount of traffic, the developer would be responsible for funding and constructing that infrastructure, such as installing a new traffic light or building a roundabout.

De Laurentiis said 25 trips may sound small, but it’s a standard in the transportation industry and the same benchmark Park City Municipal uses. She added that the county didn’t want to mandate a study for fewer than 25 trips to help local businesses, as traffic impact studies often cost between $20,000 and $40,000 to conduct.

“We’re not going to require that small businesses or even mid-sized businesses or retailers do these (traffic impact studies) for the most part unless they’re going to a large space,” de Laurentiis said. “It’s really for the larger developments that are going to have an immediate transportation infrastructure impact to our community. … We don’t want to be a barrier to entry for them to expand their businesses.”

Developers would also need to include information on traffic changes throughout each phase of a project to give county officials an idea of how infrastructure will be affected as construction progresses.

The Planning Commission immediately expressed support for the change, with Planning Commissioner Tyann Mooney saying the board has “been begging for this for a while.”

The County Council will have the final say in whether the code amendment passes, but a vote has not yet been scheduled as of Thursday afternoon.

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Eric Mainord, a Summit County sheriff’s deputy who briefly ran for sheriff in Wasatch County, had at least three formal complaints filed against him during his previous employment with the Heber City Police Department, according to documents provided to The Park Record through a public records request.

Outgoing Wasatch County Sheriff Jared Rigby, who lost the primary election this summer to Wasatch County Director of Emergency Services Jeremy Hales, contacted Summit County officials in January to express concerns about Mainord’s involvement in the Kouri Richins trial. Mainord withdrew from the race on May 27.

Mainord announced his candidacy for Wasatch County sheriff on Jan. 7, and Rigby met with Summit County Sheriff Kacey Bates the following day. Rigby, now under investigation in Summit County for allegedly interfering with a criminal case, brought a list of 13 claims he said would damage Mainord’s credibility, all of which reportedly stemmed from his employment with the Heber City Police Department from 2013 to 2019.

The Park Record obtained documentation of complaints filed against Mainord while he was employed by Heber City through a Government Records Access and Management Act, which showed he was disciplined and placed on probation at least three times while a member of the Heber City Police Department.

On Tuesday, Mainord declined to comment on the complaints filed against him or the ongoing criminal investigation into Rigby’s actions.

A letter from the Police Department dated Aug. 3, 2015, said Mainord had acted in “an abusive manner” toward a citizen and called his behavior “angry, unprofessional (and) rude.” It also said Mainord threatened to cite or arrest the citizen for an incident “that did not occur” and that he “had insufficient evidence for charges.”

Three supervisors within the department investigated the complaint and determined Mainord had acted inappropriately, according to the letter.

“We are surprised and concerned over the anger you exhibited in the video and concerned with your personal wellbeing and potential stressors that may be aggravating your wellbeing,” the letter said. “We find also that the allegations are sustained and a violation of, or in conflict with, various policies and procedures.”

One policy infraction included a failure to read the citizen their Miranda rights, which inform people of their constitutional rights during a police investigation, the letter said. He also reportedly failed to activate his body camera as required by the department when a situation “becomes adversarial.”

The letter said department supervisors were concerned about Mainord’s behavior because of two previous incidents that caused him to be verbally reprimanded in 2013 and 2014.

Specifically, the document said Mainord cursed at a member of the public at a farmers market in 2013 and was “verbally counseled and warned to correct the behavior.” In 2014, he was again verbally reprimanded for arguing with a Wasatch County employee, according to the letter.

Mainord was asked to comply with a “fitness for duty examination” and follow any recommendations in addition to attending a required anger management class. He was also suspended from participating in special assignments, such as the SWAT team, and barred from receiving overtime unless approved by a supervisor for six months.

He violated the department’s corrective action plan less than two months after the first letter was issued, according to the document.

On Oct. 1, 2015, Mainord was reprimanded for a second time after he allegedly failed to follow orders, “used inappropriate force” and “acted unprofessionally in the presence of the general public by using unnecessary foul language.”

The letter said Mainord was asked to protect an underage girl during an “undercover takedown operation” involving an individual suspected of an inappropriate relationship with the minor. Mainord was ordered to stay with the girl while other officers apprehended the adult individual outside of a restaurant, but Mainord allegedly entered the establishment and contacted the suspect before he left the building.

“You drew your weapon on a suspect who was not posing any threat, whose arms were occupied with a package, and there was no specific information available indicating that there would be a threat,” the letter said. “While your weapon was drawn, you physically engaged the suspect without holstering your weapon while other officers were available to physically take the suspect into custody.”

The document said Mainord also “used foul language in front of uninvolved restaurant patrons and employees.”

Mainord’s supervisors wrote that he violated the city’s personnel policy by refusing to “comply with lawful instruction” and engaging in “insubordination” in addition to violating the Police Department’s procedures surrounding reasonable force and professionalism.

“The violations are further aggravated by recent discipline where mistreatment of another member of the public was addressed,” the letter said. “Because these types of incidents are continuing, a pattern of poor relations between you, the general public and neighboring agencies continues to bring discredit to the Heber City Police Department.”

The second incident led the department to place Mainord on probation for one year, which meant he was ineligible to participate in specialized or out-of-state training, as well as specialized assignments. He was removed from the SWAT team, and the active period for his corrective action plan was extended until May 2016.

Mainord was denied a merit pay increase for the year, too.

The department also mandated Mainord meet with a supervisor “bi-monthly” to “concentrate on (his) attitude and feelings pertaining to the general public, surrounding agencies” and the Heber City Police Department. The supervisor was responsible for documenting Mainord’s work performance and providing him with “coping mechanisms in dealing with stress and deescalating situations.”

Mainord was disciplined for a third time in 2017 after he was involved in a “verbal altercation” with a Utah Highway Patrol trooper, according to another letter in Mainord’s personnel file. The document said the trooper was removing debris from U.S. 40 when Mainord drove by and allegedly passed the trooper “too close,” which caused the trooper to make a rude hand gesture at Mainord.

Mainord then pulled over to talk with the trooper, but the “discussion quickly turned heated and generated a complaint” from the Utah Highway Patrol, the letter said.

Mainord’s supervisors wrote he “unnecessarily” stopped to interact with the trooper “who was obviously hostile” and chose to engage in an argument instead of apologizing, de-escalating the situation or ignoring the trooper. Mainord also cursed at the trooper and reportedly taunted him, based on body camera video the department reviewed.

“The altercation became so heated that (the trooper) called for backup units,” the letter said. “Regardless of our opinion of (the trooper’s) choice, this caused multiple emergency resources to be deployed unnecessarily to a ridiculous situation that you had every opportunity to avoid.”

The letter said Mainord showed a “continuing pattern of conduct” that is “further degrading relations” between Mainord, the public and other law enforcement agencies.

“This discredit has now become so pronounced that when the Wasatch County sheriff was called to testify on a legal action against you, his testimony was damaging,” the letter said, referring to former Wasatch County Sheriff Todd Bonner. “This despite the case being defensible in every other way.”

The document said Mainord was told to take days off with pay and “analyze (his) desire to remain with the department.” He was asked to provide a corrective action plan to his supervisors but failed to do so, which the letter said was “discouraging.”

Mainord was suspended without pay for five days and reassigned as a code enforcement officer and bailiff. He was placed on probation for one year and denied a merit pay increase.

The department also mandated that Mainord meet with a supervisor once a week to discuss his feelings about the job and learn coping strategies. Mainord also received another body camera, which he was directed to activate “anytime a contact becomes ‘adversarial.’”

Mainord appealed the disciplinary actions associated with the Utah Highway Patrol incident, but former Heber City Manager Mark Anderson upheld the department’s findings after reviewing statements from Mainord and the state trooper, body camera footage and internal city reports.

“As I contemplated what a fair outcome would be, the issue that I have to grapple with is the fact that there is a documented pattern of confrontational behavior that has caused harm to the Heber City Police Department’s reputation and enhanced potential liability/risk to the city,” Anderson wrote. “As we discussed, the public is more likely to file suit against the city if the officer involved in an incident has a history of documented aggressive behavior. The risk is increased if other law enforcement agencies view the officer as a problem officer that is difficult to work with.”

Anderson added that he was “confident” Mainord had “the work ethic to be very successful in code enforcement” and encouraged him to view the reassignment as a way to “have a huge positive impact on the appearance of our community.”

“Lastly, Eric, please be aware that the city acknowledges that you have made progress in this area, and that you have solved several high profile crimes through tenacious work effort and … good judgment in many instances,” Anderson said. “The city also appreciates your continued loyalty you have shown. I hope that you will address the issues identified by police leadership, as you have the potential to make a big difference in the department and the city.”

Rigby in a statement to The Park Record through his attorney said the disciplinary records “corroborated Heber City’s findings” that Mainord “used excessive force, was insubordinate and unprofessional in his conduct with citizens and other law enforcement agencies.”

The statement said Rigby “had a duty under Utah law” to report Mainord to Bates since she was the newly appointed sheriff.

“Sheriff Rigby met with Bates in order to protect Wasatch County citizens from potentially being subjected to Mainord’s excessive use of force and unprofessional conduct,” the statement said. “Mainord was expected to soon be part of the Wasatch Back Major Crimes Task Force, which, as a member of, Mainord would potentially investigate serious crimes in Wasatch County. … Sheriff Rigby’s discussion with Bates concerning Mainord’s disciplinary history was consistent with his statutory duty and professional accountability.”

Editor’s note: This article was updated to include a statement from Rigby.

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The Summit County Council unanimously approved the redevelopment of Junction Commons into a residential and commercial hub on Tuesday, which marks the first use of the Snyderville Basin’s neighborhood mixed-use zone since its creation more than five years ago.

“We’re really happy and impressed that you’re able to use that NMU zone,” County Council Chair Canice Harte told the developers after the vote. “We’re excited to see what this brings. The blend of residential mixed with the enhanced commercial experience is something that I think the community will benefit from.”

Singerman Real Estate purchased the outlet mall in 2018, three years before the County Council created the neighborhood mixed-use zone. The neighborhood mixed-use zone accommodates projects with at least three land uses, such as commercial, residential and recreational areas. It also requires at least 50% of the development’s housing units be earmarked as affordable.

The approval this week authorized a rezone of the Junction Commons property from the town center zone to the neighborhood mixed-use zone. The County Council also voted in favor of a master plan development document, which will be further refined as the county government and Singerman Real Estate work to draft a legally binding development agreement before construction begins.

The proposal to redevelop the outlet mall outlines plans for 370 residential units, 220 of which will be earmarked as affordable housing. Of those affordable units, 188 will be priced around the 80% area median income, or AMI, mark. The remaining 32 units will be priced around the 60% AMI mark.

The developers said they plan to use a system that averages the AMIs of the affordable units, allowing for more flexibility. For example, if a resident in an affordable unit receives a pay raise, their AMI would increase, and the rent payment would rise in proportion to their new salary. This permits the developer to lease the next affordable unit at a lower AMI, according to Singerman Real Estate representatives.

The project also reduces existing commercial space on the property by approximately 56,000 square feet. The residential units, which are a mix of townhomes and apartment buildings, will be integrated into commercial spaces.

The site plan for the Junction Commons redevelopment has been downsized since it was first presented to the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission. The original proposal included 433 residential units, with 205 units set aside as affordable housing.

However, the County Council expressed concerns about the project’s density and traffic impacts, especially in combination with other Snyderville Basin developments, such as Altus Park City or the Utah Olympic Park expansion.

The reduction in units amounted to a 14% decrease from the original proposal.

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