Summit in Six

Hey everyone! Welcome back to another week of news here on Summit in Six! The signs of springtime are in the air—The tulips and daffodils are starting to make an appearance. In today’s episode, we are going to highlight an exciting partnership between the Sheriff’s Department and South Summit School District, give details about upcoming speaker series events hosted by the Health Department, cover the latest updates on the Cedar Crest Overlay project in Hoytsville, and go over some important tick awareness and safety tips—remember when temps start to climb, these unwelcome hitch-hikers appear!

Alright, let’s get into the news!

 COUNCIL RECAP – SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER HIGHLIGHT

At this week’s Council meeting, Summit County Sheriff Frank Smith and Chief Deputy Kacey Bates honored and delivered thanks to South Summit School District Superintendent, Greg Maughan for his idea turned into reality— to bring a School Resource Officer into the South Summit School District. Summit County helped make this possible by providing half the funding for the position. Deputy Wes Stewart is the officer making strides in this important role in keeping students and staff safe at South Summit Schools.

CEDAR CREST OVERLAY UPDATE

The Eastern Summit County Planning Commission held another work session related to the Cedar Crest Village Overlay project on Thursday, April 18. 

The primary purpose of the meeting was to hear from the applicant and have an open discussion on their proposed enabling ordinance document, which includes development standards and the community structure plan. 

The applicant is hopeful that the ordinance will receive a recommendation from the planning commission soon. From there, it would be presented to the county council for their final approval. 

To be clear, an approval of the ordinance would not mean final project approval. Basically, the possible approval of this ordinance would provide guidelines for what the applicant’s future land map has to include. 

The Planning Commission had the opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback for the applicant on the ordinance. From here, they will take the feedback and come back for a public hearing. The next tentatively scheduled meeting is on Thursday, May 16 at 6 PM. For more information about the project please visit summitcounty.org/cedarcrest.

HEALTH DEPARTMENT SPEAKER SERIES EVENTS IN MAY

The health of the environment around us has a direct impact on our human health. The Summit County Health Department encourages the public to attend their next session in the Climate Change and Public Health Speaker Series this May 2024 focused on “Health + Our Changing Environment”.

We will be hosting two events with the same topics and format to encourage participation and gather feedback from both the Eastern and Western sides of Summit County.

The details are as follows:

For more info and register visit: summitcountyhealth.org/speakerseries

TRAILS TRASH TUNES

We’ve been talking about this event for the past few weeks on the podcast…but we’re here to spread the good word that The Summit County Stormwater Coalition and the Summit County Planning Department are presenting the THIRD Annual “Trails, Trash and Tunes” event on Saturday, May 11th from 12pm – 4pm at the Wanship Trailhead.

The purpose of the event is to welcome in springtime and celebrate the Earth with some rail trail cleanup, education about stormwater, noxious weeds identification and more.

Registration is FREE and not required, but we would really like to know how many people to expect, so do us a favor and register TODAY to let us know you’re coming at: summitcounty.info/trailstrashtunes24

TICK SAFETY

Tick season has begun. Spending time outside could bring you in close contact with ticks. Ticks live in grassy, brushy, and wooded areas, or even on animals. Many people get ticks in their own yard or neighborhood. Long-sleeved clothing and certain insect repellants can help keep the ticks away. Light-colored clothing also makes the ticks easier to spot.

We want to encourage everybody to take protective action as the bugs come out this season. Here are things you can do to prevent tick and other bug bites:

If you find a tick attached to your skin, remove the tick as soon as possible. There are several tick removal devices on the market, but a plain set of fine-tipped tweezers works very well.

If you get a tick bite and develop symptoms like rashes, aches and pains, and the fever/chills within a few weeks, see your healthcare provider.

VOLUNTEER COMMITTEE OPPORTUNITIES

Apply now through May 1 to serve as a Volunteer on Citizen Committees within Eastern Summit County or  Snyderville Basin. These committees are focused on providing feedback and recommendations to county leadership regarding the County’s Moderate Income Housing strategies for both of these regions.

Hello everyone! Welcome to another week of news here on Summit in Six. We hope you are enjoying the sunshine and crisp air while it’s here. Today we cover an update regarding the Cedar Crest Village Overlay, some history in Summit County and some community engagement opportunities our listeners may be interested in.

ROAD SAFETY OPEN HOUSE:

On Tuesday, April 16 from 4:30 – 6:30 PM at the Sheldon Richins Auditorium in Kimball Jct., they are hosting a Roadway Safety Open House to share information about where in our community the greatest number of crashes take place, what’s causing them, and how Mountainlands Association of Governments and our local leaders plan to lower the number and impact of serious and fatal crashes in Summit County.

The agency’s Safety Action Plan is part of a national grant project giving $5 billion in funds to communities for projects that improve transportation safety. So far, the plan has identified “high injury” networks where numbers of serious and fatal crashes are greatest and developed a potential list of projects that will improve conditions in these areas. Once the plan is complete this spring, Mountainlands or local governments may apply for funds to build the identified projects.

Visit their website to learn more about the project and how you can get involved: www.mountainland.org. 

There will be LIVE music from Pixie and the Partygrass Boys, presented by Mountaintown Music.  There will be food for purchase, a beer garden with brews for sale by local brewery Offset Bier for the 21+ crowd, a “Kids Corner” for the younger ones thanks to the Summit County Library with activities such as coloring, books and games.

The event is sponsored in part by Big-D construction and Blue Sky Ranch. We are encouraging event goers to bring water and an umbrella or hat for shade. We will have some seating available, but picnic blankets, camp chairs are welcome. Carpooling and biking/e-biking to the venue is highly encouraged.

HISTORY SEGMENT

What better way to celebrate the beauty of spring than by diving into National Garden Month! National Garden Month encourages people of all ages to dig in the dirt, connect with nature, and experience the joy of gardening. But National Garden Month is about more than just growing plants—it’s about fostering a deeper connection to the natural world and reaping the countless benefits that gardening brings. Research shows that spending time outdoors and engaging in gardening activities can reduce stress, boost mood, and improve overall well-being. Plus, growing your own fruits, vegetables, and herbs empowers you to make healthier food choices and reduces your carbon footprint. For some helpful gardening tips this month follow the Summit County Health social media @SummitCountyHD on instagram and Facebook.

In today’s episode, we cover Summit County’s revised proposal to Dakota Pacific Real Estate, an upcoming Rocky Mountain Power Outage, a Zero Food Waste Compact the County signed this week, and International Dark Skies Week. Alright, let’s get into the news!

On Thursday, April 4, Summit County presented Dakota Pacific Real Estate, or DPRE, with a counterproposal to DPRE’s request to modify the development agreement that governs the land commonly referred to as the Park City Tech Center.

Highlights of the revised proposal include: 

You can view the entire revised proposal on the homepage at summitcounty.org under the news item titled: Summit County’s Revised Proposal to Dakota Pacific Real Estate.

So what happens next? DPRE will take time to formally react to the counterproposal. No date has been set for another work session. Stay tuned on summitcounty.org and @summitcountyut on all social media channels for more information as it becomes available.

> RMP OUTAGE

> ZERO WASTE FOOD COMPACT

For some context, the Park City Community Foundation announced a goal to achieve Zero Food Waste by 2030 last April. They’ve since released a comprehensive strategic plan that serves as a roadmap for reaching that ambitious goal. The plan focuses on three main objectives and outlines steps to engage businesses, local governments, nonprofits, residents, and visitors in an effort to reduce food waste and divert food waste from Summit County’s Three Mile Landfill.

Summit County’s Solid Waste Superintendent, Tim Loveday, said of the compact:

Andy Hecht, PCF’s Climate Fund Manager, noted in the presentation that these efforts could save $1.47 million per year. If you’d like to read the Zero Food Waste Compact, please visit: summitcounty.info/zerofoodwaste.

> INTERNATIONAL DARK SKIES WEEK

To help save Summit County’s night sky, all outdoor light bulbs in Park City Municipal and unincorporated Summit County must be 3,000 degrees Kelvin or less, and all outdoor lighting fixtures must be fully shielded and down-directed by December 31, 2024.

Wondering what all those fancy dark sky-compliant words and phrases mean? Visit: summitcounty.info/darkskies to see examples that help illustrate!