Severini is filling the mayor’s seat through the end of this year after former mayor Phil Rubin stepped down in April due to health issues.
When chosen as interim mayor, Severini stated his intention to run in November. He told KPCW he wants residents to have consistent leadership.
“In the commercial world, in six months, you’re barely getting your job underway,” he said. “I would be doing a disservice to the town if I didn’t go for the four years.”
Severini is a longtime business leader, most recently with New York-based Amazon Web Services.
He served on the planning commission beginning in 2018, soon after he moved to Hideout, and he’s been on the town council since October 2020, when he was appointed to fill a vacancy. He ran uncontested to keep his seat in 2021.
As a town councilmember, Severini said he has advocated for Hideout’s annexation of 350 acres of open space in Summit County. The annexation went all the way to Utah’s Supreme Court when Summit County protested the legality of Hideout’s move.
Town leaders have said they envision primarily commercial development on the land.
“I spearheaded the town’s referendum, which put Richardson Flat on the ballot in 2021 or 2020,” Severini said. “Fundamentally, I want to create more involvement.”
He said other top priorities include planning mixed-use and community spaces on Ross Creek, 10 acres of open space along the Jordanelle Reservoir, and promoting fire safety.
Severini said his experience in business and local government will inform his leadership style if voters keep him in office.
“Some of the leadership principles I’d like to bring in are earning trust and being customer-obsessed,” he said. “We have a kind of motto at work – there’s no compression algorithm for experience.”
He said he also wants to be “reasonably frugal” with the town’s finances and find new ways to get residents engaged in the town.
Also running for Hideout mayor is Councilmember Chris Baier.
Residents will choose the town’s next leader, along with two new councilmembers, in the municipal election Nov. 4.
