Councilmembers Ed Pargian and Bill Ciraco said at Thursday’s meeting they joined striking ski patrollers on the picket line Jan. 5.
Parigian said several union members told him they’d like to live in Park City, but can’t afford it.
“I support our local service workers earning a decent, livable wage,” Parigian said. “On Sunday, I woke up at my usual mid-morning time thinking of maybe going to ski in the afternoon, but then I saw all the news and photos of the madness on the hill the previous day, and I felt like I had to do something. So I made a sign and I went and stood on the picket line for most of Sunday afternoon.”
Ciraco said he brought a jug of hot chocolate and stood with Parigian and the striking patrollers.
“What I’d ask the people here in Park City is let’s look towards resetting the narrative and starting fresh and trying to work with both of those partners, both our workforce and the resorts, to see if we can turn things around and bring Park City back to where it should be,” Ciraco said.
The day after the two councilors joined the picket line, Park City Mayor Nann Worel and the city council issued a joint statement calling on Park City Mountain owner Vail Resorts “to take immediate action” to end the strike, citing “confusion and disruption” around town.
The strike ended late Wednesday night when union members voted to ratify a new contract with the company.
Councilmember Ryan Dickey said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” Friday he had visitors who came to ski over the holidays while patrollers and safety staff were on strike.
“They saved their money to buy Epic passes and come here and ski, and didn’t have the vacation of a lifetime that they count on every year, which is what we always deliver,” Dickey said. “They didn’t really care who was at fault. What they cared about was that they came to Park City and didn’t have the experience that we can always deliver. And you expect people like that will reconsider coming next year, so there could be a lag effect from that.”
But Dickey said he’s optimistic the community will move forward together.
At Thursday’s meeting, Councilmember Jeremy Rubell criticized the Park City Chamber and Visitors Bureau for a lack of communication during the strike.
“The chamber was silent through this, at least publicly, which was really frustrating to see, knowing that there could be an impact and likely will be an impact on our small businesses in town,” Rubell said.
Park City Chamber CEO Jennifer Wesselhoff told KPCW the organization was engaged with businesses during the strike.
“The chamber has been actively engaged behind the scenes, monitoring the situation, communicating with business owners and strategizing on how to best mitigate potential economic impacts,” Wesselhoff said. “Our primary focus has always been on supporting our business community, even when our efforts are not immediately visible. We appreciate all of the work our lodging community did to minimize cancelations during the ski patrol strike period.”
She said skiers and riders who left the mountain likely went to local businesses instead during the strike.
“Anecdotal information suggests that many skiers and snowboarders who were dissatisfied with the mountain experience may have actually spent more time on Main Street and at ancillary off-mountain experiences, including spas and recreation outfitters during those impacted days,” the chamber CEO said.
Wesselhoff said the chamber is analyzing sales and lodging taxes to quantify the financial impact of the strike.
“Our tracking of future bookings, starting with the Sundance Film Festival later this month, suggests strong hotel reservations pacing ahead of last year that extend through the spring ski season,” she said. “The resolution of the strike has been widely reported nationally, giving our guests reassurances as the prime booking window for Presidents’ week and spring break are upon us.”
Wesselhoff also said the chamber intends to work on a long-term recovery plan “that keeps Summit County’s tourism industry on a healthy pace.”
