Park City ran a pilot program for microtransit, which essentially operates like a free ride share service, for the first time this winter. It initially only served specific areas, like upper Park Meadows and Thaynes Canyon.
In the final two months of the pilot, city hall expanded the service area to full city limits, and as a result, saw an explosion in ridership.
Microtransit saw 272 rides per day after the expansion, compared to 34 rides per day prior.
The city council will be asked on Thursday to either extend the pilot program, make it a permanent service, or discontinue microtransit altogether.
Shortly after the regular meeting begins at 5:30 p.m., the council will hear from Park City Mountain Vice President and COO Deirdra Walsh and Deer Valley Resort President and COO Todd Bennett.
The pair are slated to review this past winter, which included historic snowfall and a new paid parking program at Park City Mountain.
Later in the meeting, the council could approve a new 5-year lease for Lucky Ones Coffee to operate the cafe space at the Park City Library.
Park City Manager Matt Dias said the lease will remain rent-free for Lucky Ones under the proposal.
“We put out a request for proposals, we only got one response,” Dias said. “I think some of that is likely due to the space. Although we purpose-built the lobby at the library for a coffee concessionaire cafe, it doesn’t have a commercial grade kitchen. And so there are some limitations to what a vendor can do with that space and be successful financially. The previous vendor that we had in there actually terminated their lease early for that very reason.”
Lucky Ones has a unique business model, employing neurodiverse individuals and relying on private funding and philanthropy.
Also at the library, the council has the option to terminate the lease for the Park City Co-op Preschool, which is currently set to run into 2027.
Board chair of the co-op, Anne Evans, said they’re shutting down for a variety of reasons, such as declining enrollment.
Dias said it leaves open the possibility that a new childcare provider could take over the space.
“Maybe one door closes, but there’s another opportunity here to contemplate how to use that space moving forward," he said. "Could it be open more days a week than it has been in the past? Could it provide additional seats for more children in our community? And so really, it’s asking council how they’d like to proceed.”
The council could also approve a new five-year contract with the Kimball Arts Festival Thursday.
The meeting starts with a closed session and is scheduled to open to the public at 4:15 p.m. It is being held in council chambers at the Marsac Building. The agenda and a link to attend virtually can be found here.
