Basin Recreation said in its announcement March 20 that Jones is “leaving behind a legacy of impactful leadership and commitment to the district's growth and development.”
She took the helm of the Snyderville Basin Recreation Special Service District during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in December 2020.
“Now is a good time as any to hand over the reins and and see where the next person can take Basin,” she told KPCW.
Her contract is expiring at the end of the year, so she’ll officially step down Dec. 31, 2025.
Ben Castro, Basin Rec’s board chair, thanked Jones for “her leadership, dedication, and hard work.”
“She's led us through transformation of the organization, growth,” Castro said. “Whoever is the next person is going to have some very big shoes to fill.”
He said the board will form a search committee next month and work with Summit County’s HR department.
Jones will be able to mentor the next district director before departing on her next adventure.
“A friend of mine and I are going to buy a boat, and we are going to do America's Great Loop, which is a big circle that goes all the way up the East Coast, across through the Great Lakes, down the Mississippi, out into the Gulf and around Florida and back up again,” she explained.
Jones loves to travel, and spent four years in a motor home after she retired for the first time from California State Parks, where she worked for 28 years.
But she said it will be difficult to say goodbye to the Basin Rec team.
“I'm just so excited to see where they're going in the future,” she said. “So I think [the next director] would be somebody that maybe somebody that knows the community, if possible, who can help navigate all the growth that's going to be happening. There's some big projects that could be on the horizon.”
That includes finding a place for a potential new fieldhouse and sports fields, and managing the flow of people at Basin Rec’s current Kimball Junction headquarters.
Jones estimates Basin Rec’s budget, staff and programming have increased threefold in the past six years.
Basin Rec said she led the district through a successful truth-in-taxation process, the series of public hearings needed to raise property taxes. A Wanship resident, Jones also served on the board of North Summit Recreation.
During her tenure, the district also completed a master plan, hired Basin Rec rangers, expanded Run-a-Muk and built new parks at Trailside and Willow Creek.
Basin Recreation is a financial supporter of KPCW. For a full list, click here.
