Locals packed the Park City Library patio Tuesday for Park City Municipal’s annual spring projects open house.
It was an opportunity to learn about a range of projects, from Park City MARC pool upgrades to the golf course master plan, bus stop improvements and more.
But many were there to push back on preliminary Bonanza Park site plans, which the Park City Council approved in March. One discussion between Councilmember Molly Miller and a resident got so heated that police were called.
Miller confirmed to KPCW that she was at a table sharing information about the Bonanza Park plans when an attendee came up behind her. After asking a few questions, Miller said the resident expressed displeasure with the plan and “forcefully smacked” her on the arm.
When Miller asked the person to please not touch her, they responded, “I don’t even want to look at you.”
“I did speak to the Park City Police Department about a physical confrontation … and they have referred the case, such as it is, to another agency,” she said.
Miller did not identify the person and said she doesn’t plan to press charges. She said she encourages others to “turn down the temperature” and treat each other with dignity and respect.
Longtime resident Andrea Barros was one of more than a dozen attendees from Place PC, a loosely organized resident group opposed to the plans.
“We're here today because we're proponents for keeping the five acres green,” Barros said. “If they pave that over and they put three and four-story apartment buildings in it, we will have lost that opportunity forever.”
Each Place PC member wore green to advocate for green space on the 5-acre site instead of the planned mixed-use development, which includes 106 residential units, almost 2 acres of open space and underground parking.
Steve Pettise is also part of the group sharing their vehement criticism of the project’s direction with city staff and the developer.
“I am really opposed to it, and opposed to it because the busiest corner in Park City is Kearns [Blvd.] and Bonanza [Drive], and to put all this development in there will just congest this city beyond belief,” he said.
Despite the group’s complaints, the open house wasn’t an opportunity to shift the trajectory of the project. The council’s last public hearing on the 5 acres was in March before it advanced the plans.
Locals will have a chance to weigh in when the Park City Planning Commission considers the proposal sometime this summer. It’s unlikely the plans would change significantly — those decisions rest with the council.
Park City Municipal is a financial supporter of KPCW.
