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PRESS RELEASES
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PARK CITY TAPS MURPHY, PEEK FOR PLANNING COMMISSION
December 3, 2007 – The mid-term resignations of Park City Planning Commissioners Jim
Barth and Mark Sletten created two unexpected vacancies on the Park City Planning
Commission. Barth has served since July 2001 and Sletten since July 2005. The City
received applications from seven Park City residents interested in fulfilling the remaining
term for these seats. Mayor Dana Williams and the members of the Park City Council
interviewed all the applicants.
Mayor Williams, with the advice and consent of Council, plans to appoint Rory Murphy
and Richard Peek to fill the current vacancies on Park City’s Planning Commission.
Both appointments will expire on July 1, 2009. In making the selection, Mayor Williams
cited both Murphy’s and Peek’s “demonstrated commitment to Park City, their
knowledge of the City’s General Plan and Land Management Code, and their ability to
make sound decisions based upon the code.”
Richard Peek is a past member of the City’s Historic District Commission. He is a
general contractor by profession and currently serves on the Park City Museum’s
Building Committee. Peek cites the “preservation of the City’s historic district as an
economic and cultural cornerstone for the City” as an issue of prime importance,
together with mitigating the “impacts of developments in the past and future on the
workforce” through public transportation, park and ride lots, affordable housing, and
walkability improvements.
Rory Murphy is a partner in Paladin, LLC, which is developing the Silver Star project. He
is a member of the Rotary Club and Treasurer of the Park City Historical Society.
Murphy considers affordable housing as “Park City’s most important issue by far,” along
with sensitive lands protection and controlling the “impacts of traffic and encouraging
public transportation whenever possible.”
Regarding his appointment of Murphy, Mayor Williams explained that “the role of the
Planning Commission is to interpret and apply the Land Management Code.” Mayor
Williams responded to a concern raised by some community members that Murphy,
who is a real estate developer, shouldn’t be appointed to the Planning Commission.
“Rory has been through every stage of the development process in Park City. His Silver
Star development was widely supported by the surrounding community. His first hand
knowledge and experience with the City’s Land Management Code makes him
extremely qualified for Planning Commission.”
The Mayor and the Park City Council are expected to take formal action to fill the two
vacancies on the Planning Commission at its regular meeting on Thursday, December
6. The meeting begins at 6:00p in the City Council Chambers at 445 Marsac Avenue.
In recognition of Park City & Summit County’s innovative community transportation programs over the last five years, the Utah Transit Authority Rideshare Department honored them with their 2007 Commuter Vision Award.
These transportation efforts include: a major expansion of transit services from Park City into the Snyderville Basin (as a result of this effort over 2 million passengers utilized the transit system in 2006); a conversion of all transit buses & Park City diesel vehicles to bio-diesel; thejoint City/County funding of regional transit plans; planning of a soon-to-be constructed regional park & ride facility to alleviate daily commuter traffic into Park City; and the formation of a standing transportation committee which has sponsored a number of alternative transportation events including Car-less Fridays, Bike to Work Week and supported bicycle & pedestrian initiatives in the region.
The Utah Transit Authority Rideshare Department established the Commuter Vision Awards in 1997 as a means of recognizing individuals, businesses & agencies that have made significant contributions in establishing & maintaining alternative transportation programs.
For Additional Information contact:
Myles C. Rademan
Director of Public Affairs and Communications
435-615-5200
Park City Becomes Utah’s Second EPA Green Power Community
3.7 percent of residents and businesses sign up for Green Power
Park City, Utah; April 16, 2007 -- The community of Park City has been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as an EPA Green Power Community for purchasing 3.7 percent of its electricity use community-wide from green power resources. The world-renowned resort town is now Utah’s second EPA Green Power Community and the largest in the state. EPA extends the honor to communities that show their environmental commitment by voluntarily purchasing green power in amounts that meet or exceed EPA purchase requirements.
Simultaneously, city officials announced that they surpassed the 5 percent Green Power Challenge target announced on November 12, 2003. More than 9.4 percent of Park City residents and businesses are now purchasing Blue Sky Renewable Energy. The Park City Council partnered with the Utah Clean Energy Alliance's Utah Wind Power Campaign and Rocky Mountain Power to increase community participation in Rocky Mountain Power's Blue Sky® renewable energy program. The Community’s Clean Energy Challenge still continues with a new goal of reaching 15 percent of Park City residents and businesses purchasing Blue Sky Renewable Energy.
The businesses and residents are collectively purchasing nearly 8.7 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of Blue Sky clean energy annually, which accounts for more than 3.7 percent of the total community electricity load. Based on national average emissions rates, the U.S. EPA estimates that Park City’s community-wide green power purchase of nearly 8.7 million kWhs is equivalent to reducing the same amount of CO2 emissions associated with nearly 1,200 passenger cars annually. This purchase is also the same amount of electricity needed to power more than 700 average American households each year.
“I am proud to be the Mayor of a community committed to clean energy and sustainability,” says Park City Mayor Dana Williams. “It makes sense for Park City to support energy resources that do not contribute to global warming and air pollution – this community thrives on the quality of our environment.”
Park City will officially celebrate the EPA recognition during the city’s first Sustainability Week which goes from Saturday, April 14 through Sunday, April 22.
To date, Park City is only one of seven communities in the nation to receive EPA Green Power Community designation. EPA encourages municipalities and organizations to voluntarily purchase green power as a way to reduce the environmental impacts associated with conventional electricity use. As part of its recognition, Park City received two colorful street signs reading, “Welcome to a Green Power Community. We exceed EPA guidelines for buying clean, renewable energy.” The sign will be posted at a high visibility location at the base of the stairs from Main Street leading to Park City’s City Hall.
Green power is generated from renewable resources such as solar, wind, geothermal, biogas, biomass and low-impact hydro. Green power is considered cleaner than conventional sources of electricity and has lower carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, a greenhouse gas linked to global climate change. Purchases of green power help accelerate the development of new renewable energy capacity nationwide.
Park City was named recently the recipient of a Blue Sky Renewable Energy Project Grant funded by Blue Sky program participants to pursue community-based renewable energy projects on various sites in Park City. Park City is looking at multiple ways to promote the City as a "Sustainable Community". On November 7, 2003 the Park City Council adopted a resolution declaring Park City's interest in taking a leadership role in promotion of sustainable energy by promoting both energy efficiency and renewable energy for Park City Municipal and the community.
About Park City, Utah
Park City, located in southwestern Summit County, is an internationally recognized four season destination resort. Once the second largest silver producing town in the United States, Park City with its three world famous resorts (Deer Valley Resort, Park City Mountain Resort & the Canyons Resort) is home to the United States Ski & Snowboard Association, the Sundance Film Festival and numerous other yearly events. As a major mountain venue for the 2002 Olympic Winter Games, Park City's reputation for hospitality and sports continues to grow. Park City is widely recognized for pioneering many innovative planning, conservation and artistic endeavors, and stands at the forefront of preserving open space, creating trails, working on affordable housing, and its historic preservation efforts.
About the U.S. EPA’s Green Power Partnership
EPA’s Green Power Partnership encourages organizations to purchase green power as a way to reduce the environmental impacts associated with conventional electricity use. The Green Power Partnership currently has hundreds of Partners voluntarily purchasing billions of kilowatt hours of green power annually. Partners include a wide variety of leading organizations such as Fortune 500 companies, small and medium sized businesses, local, state, and federal governments, trade associations, as well as colleges and universities.
For a full listing of EPA’s Green Power Partners and information about buying green power, and becoming a Green Power Community, visit the Partnership’s Web site at http://www.epa.gov/greenpower/
About Blue Sky
Blue Sky is one of the most popular renewable programs in the nation, consistently ranking in the top five for the number of customers enrolled and megawatt-hours sold. In Utah, more than 20,000 Rocky Mountain Power customers buy renewable energy and encourage additional renewable energy development through the program. There are 52,000 residential and business customers who buy Blue Sky in the western United States. The energy for Blue Sky comes primarily from western wind farms, and is sold in 100 kilowatt-hour increments for $1.95 each, in addition to a customer’s regular bill. For more information or to sign up for Blue Sky, call 800-769-3717 or e-mail bluesky@pacificorp.com. Customers can sign up online at www.rockymtnpower.net/bluesky.
About Rocky Mountain Power
Rocky Mountain Power is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, and provides electric service to more than 950,000 customers in Utah, Wyoming and Idaho. It is a division of PacifiCorp, one of the lowest-cost electricity producers in the U.S., providing approximately 1.7 million customers in six states with reliable, efficient energy. For more information, visit www.rockymountainpower.net.
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Contacts:
Alison Butz
Park City Municipal Corporation
435-615-5151
Jeff Hymas
Rocky Mountain Power
801-220-2340
For Additional Information contact:
Myles C. Rademan
Director of Public Affairs and Communications
435-615-5200
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