Park City purchased the 1,300-plus-acre Bonanza Flat using a $38 million bond in 2017. Three years later, a conservation easement was established on the Guardsman Pass property through Utah Open Lands.
The agreement requires a review of the plan every five years — the first of which was presented to the Park City Council Thursday.
Utah Open Lands Executive Director Wendy Fisher said the plan is working well.
“We're really proud with the progress that's been made, especially from where we've started,” she said.
Utah Open Lands has put thousands of hours into conservation efforts on Bonanza Flat, including restoring habitat, removing unofficial “social” trails, restoring the Bloods and Lackawaxen lakes, adding new signage and removing thousands of pounds of trash.
Fisher said Utah Open Lands did the work in concert with experts, including a botanist, who found three rare plants on Bonanza Flat, and a conservation coordinator, who made an invasive species map.
One of Utah Open Lands Director of Conservation Emily Ingram’s favorite wins was rescuing a fledgling flammulated owl, which is named in the easement as an important species to protect.
The Wildlife Center of Salt Lake rehabbed the owl and happened to have two more fledglings.
“We had a successful release of three fledgling flammulated owls,” Ingram said. “I think that is a beautiful thing to talk about today … there are fun, good, meaningful, engaging things happening on Bonanza Flat.”
But there have also been tough moments. There was a violation of the easement in June 2022 when a nearby private landowner graded half an acre of land to maintain access to area cabins.
Ingram said the team had to intervene. After reaching a $250,000 settlement, Utah Open Lands went to work on restoring the area.
“Our team was able to come in, assess the damage, look at it, and in a very holistic manner,” she said. “We look at everything from soil health to vegetation health to even air quality.”
In just three years, the area is green again.
Another big part of the Bonanza Flat plan was parking. Park City Parking Manager Johnny Wasden said there are fewer cars parked illegally on the road and fewer queues than in 2024.
That’s due in part to the expanded 9 Purple bus service, which goes to the Bonanza Flat and Bloods Lake trailheads on weekends. The service averaged over 1,350 riders per week during the peak season, with double the ridership on weekends.
The team has also implemented a paid parking pilot program to incentivize single-occupancy vehicles and reduce congestion.
“I have had so much positive feedback from the community, and it's honestly been overwhelming,” Wasden said. “There's a recognition of our strategy and all of the benefits that have come about from it, as well as the recognition that we've taken charge of preserving a special place.”
Parking revenue also more than paid for the transit cost. The city used the extra $91,000 from summer parking to start a winter shuttle pilot.
Because of the overall success of the Bonanza Flat plan, Utah Open Lands and Park City staff recommended no changes to the plan.
Paid parking and the 9 Purple expanded service will be back for the 2026 peak season and beyond, and work to restore and preserve Bonanza Flat will continue.
