Beginning at 4:45 on Thursday, Ryan Dickey will be sworn into office as Park City’s newest councilor. Dickey was appointed by the council earlier in January to serve out the remaining two years of Mayor Nann Worel’s term.
After Dickey takes office, the council will dive into a work session to discuss soliciting proposals for indoor pickleball courts and other recreation options at the PC MARC. The council will also look at a master planning process for outdoor pickleball courts and other facilities at the Park City Sports Complex.
Pickleball has exploded in popularity in recent years and Park City Manager Matt Dias says the growing number of people taking up the sport and limited options for it in Park City have led to friction between residents in town.
“For lack of a better term, we’re experiencing some conflict," Dias says. "There’s such a great pent-up demand in this community that we’re having individuals that feel that they’re a taxpayer and they’re entitled to any court time, whether it’s in the gymnasium, or whether it’s on our tennis courts, and we’re really trying to dissipate that friction. The fact that we have interest in recreation and sport and exercise and wellness, that’s something we’ve always embraced as a community, and so to the extent we can accommodate that, we’d love to.”
If the council chooses to pursue more pickleball courts in Park City, the city will issue a formal request for proposal and collect offers to construct new facilities. Dias says he is reluctant to pin a dollar amount to a pickleball project before seeing proposals, but adds that a budget item could be ready when the city begins its 2023 budgeting process this summer.
The council is also slated to discuss the city’s platform for this year’s legislative session, and review plans for the upcoming 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and 20th anniversary of the 2002 Salt Lake City Games. Some of the scheduled events include a big screen on Main Street, “learn to skate” programs at City Park, and an Olympian homecoming parade on Main Street.
Later on the agenda, the council will see a staff communications report on incentives for people serving on the city’s public boards and commissions. The report comes after the council discussed the long hours required to do the job and low compensation last November. People who serve on public boards cannot make more than $90 per meeting per state law, but are often required to do many hours of prep work before the meetings even start.
Dias says the city is looking to get creative with other incentives.
“Some of the things that we've talked about is expanding our recreational benefits to those individuals who are serving, and for their families," he says. "Things that that include are discounts at our golf course, discounts at our summer camps for their children, discounts at our ice rink. We have a myriad of incentives like that to try and help people out, show them our gratitude, but we are somewhat restricted by state statute.”
The council will also consider approving temporary tents and outdoor structures in an effort to help business operations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thursday’s meeting will take place virtually. A link with details on how to participate and the full agenda can be found here.
