The Snyderville Basin Special Recreation District plans to put bonds on the November ballot to build new facilities.
That includes fieldhouses on the Summit County-owned Cline Dahle property next to Jeremy Ranch Elementary School and on land in Silver Creek Village.
District Director Robert Parrish said the buildings been talked about for years and now the district is “getting serious.”
“We're at the point where we're making a decision; we're moving forward,” he told the Summit County Council June 17. “We're taking a little bit more public information, some input from our residents as to what they want.”
Some of the urgency is based on how Basin Rec expects the area to grow.
Summit County’s population has been flat — or shrinking — since its pandemic-era boom, but growth is projected to resume.
Parrish said he and county planners reviewed every development that has been proposed or approved in the Snyderville Basin and found there could be 4,600 units of housing in the next decade.
“We're going to start to see a large amount of growth coming into Basin [Rec] very soon, and we need to be able to account for that,” Parrish said.
Plus, the existing fieldhouse in Kimball Junction will reach capacity next year, according to Basin Rec’s calculations. Parrish acknowledged that many residents already find it overcrowded during peak hours.
Parrish was not ready June 17 to tell the county council how much large the district's bonds would be. He plans to have more information for councilmembers July 15, including building renderings and architecture.
In keeping with previous proposals, Basin Rec still plans for an aquatics facility in Silver Creek. It would be located along the Pace Frontage Road across U.S. Highway 40 from Highland Estates.
The Cline Dahle facility is slated to include indoor climbing and sports courts.
In the run-up to November, county councilmembers urged Basin Rec to clearly communicate bond financial details to residents.
Parrish agreed. He predicts individual residents’ bond payments would shrink over time as other debt is paid off and the county tax base grows.
He also noted that federal income tax would shrink if more of that income goes toward property tax.
Summit County is a financial supporter of KPCW.
