Former Park City Councilmember Alex Butwinski and Park Meadows resident Carolyn Murray both sat on the committee formed in 2008 after voters passed a walkability bond in 2007.
Looking back, Butwinski said pedestrian tunnels they pushed for have drastically improved safety, particularly for Park City School District students.
“Two major successes were the tunnels at Comstock [Road] and at the Rail Trail, both of which people were skeptical of at the time,” Butwinski said. “But you can’t go two minutes without seeing somebody go through there.”
Butwinski said narrowing Holiday Ranch Loop Road and adding pathways in the Park Meadows neighborhood were other major improvements that stand out years later.
Murray, a former KPCW reporter, said a hole remains in Park City’s pedestrian network.
For years Park City has contemplated constructing a tunnel underneath Kearns Boulevard near the Park Avenue intersection. It would connect the Snow Creek shopping center with the Yarrow DoubleTree hotel property.
In April the Park City Council delayed the project once again. The DoubleTree property owner wants to redevelop the area and the architects on that project have said they’re willing to work with the city on the proposed tunnel.
Murray said there is no reason to wait any longer.
“It should have happened two years ago when it was initially redesigned,” Murray said. “Engineers came in, finances were looked at, it was all set to go. And we got a new council and direction changed… I understand that, however, this connectivity is essential and it doesn’t need to wait five years for the Yarrow to be redeveloped.”
Butwinski said the tunnel is the final piece in Park City’s active transportation network.
“Look at the number of e-bikes on the path going back and forth to Kimball Junction,” he said. “Then it gets to this corner (Kearns Boulevard and Park Avenue), which is incredibly dangerous, and it’s just a matter of time, I think, until there’s going to be a major incident there.”
It’s unclear when the Park City Council could consider the Kearns Boulevard tunnel project again. The DoubleTree redevelopment is under review by the city planning commission.
Butwinski, Murray and other members of the walkability community will share more details at a meetup at Offset Bier on Saturday, Nov. 2 at 4 p.m.
