Elected Officials Please Don’t Spread False Information
While I know most elected officials try to get it right, when they don’t, and you know they don’t, it calls into question all of the decisions they make. The most recent example was this morning on KPCW. KPCW’s Leslie Thatcher was interviewing Park City council members about yesterday’s city council meeting on Round Valley as an off-leash dog area. The topic of electronic collars came up and one of the city councilors said that there was a concern that the collars were too expensive to require everyone to have one. A council person then said they cost $150 on Amazon and $250 in local stores.
That shocked me, since I bought mine on Amazon for under $40 and it works great. Don’t believe me, here is a search for electronic collars on Amazon. Ninety percent of these collars are under $70. One with 4.5 stars out of 5 stars, with 370 reviews is only $25. Now, whether everyone should be required to have one is a completely different argument or whether $25 is too much money is another… but please don’t spread bad information about these collars costing hundreds of dollars.
It’s the same sort of issue I have seen in school board meetings where members will talk about the “bad” water at Treasure Mountain, with one of the school board members saying on the public record that she won’t let her kid drink the water there. Is the water pristine, like drinking filtered Perrier, probably not… Is the water toxic per EPA standards? No. Another comment was made about the toxic soil in the air ducts at Treasure Mountain. Has some dust/dirt spread into the vents coming from outside the building (where some of that dirt may contain lead)? Yes. However, first I still ask the question is that lead bio-available (meaning, is it actually harmful to humans). Second, does any of the air coming out of the ducts hundreds of feet away (you know, where it is actually breathed in) have any lead in it and has that been tested? No. If it was, and it was dangerous, the school would be shut down.
If it’s not a real problem, don’t say it.
Our elected officials need to be held to a higher standard. For the most part, when they talk, we listen. However, when they talk, and WE KNOW THEY AREN’T RIGHT, it strains their credibility. The natural progression of that is to ignore what they say because if they are wrong on A, B, and C… they are probably wrong on D, too. That’s not a good place for anyone to be. The School Bond process showed us what happens when trust and credibility is lost, and I don’t think anyone really liked how that worked out.
in Environment
Save $20 to $40 a Month on Your Electric Bill
Most people are looking for ways to cut back and not waste money. While some people may be aware of a strategy for cutting your electric bill, I stumbled into this one during Christmas.
We put our heat tape on our house (keeps the ice dams from building up on the north side of our roof) on the same timer we used for Christmas lights. So, it ran for about 5 hour a days (5-10PM), instead of the 24 hours a day it usually runs.
What was the difference in performance? Almost nothing. No ice dams formed and the snow melted off. However, if we calculate the energy difference it is huge. Before, our heat tape was running about 2800 hours a season (December through March, 24 hours a day) and now given the timer it will run about 600 hours. I have about 100 feet of tape running and this webpage estimates the cost. It likely costs about $65 per month to run it 24 hours a day. My five hours a day costs about $20.
Further research shows there is a more effective strategy than running the heat tape at night. It appears running heat tape during the day is actually more efficient. Our own Summit County Power Works has a page on using heat tape effectively. Park City and Summit County have dropped into 6th place for the Georgetown Energy Prize. Adding a timer to your own heat tape setup may be an easy way to contribute to the effort and try to push us back to the top.
Of course, any time your are dealing with electricity (especially when it’s used to heat up a wire that you are attaching to your house), you should use caution. You would want to choose an appropriate outdoor timer for your heat tape and ask a professional (or perhaps the Summit County Power Works) for advice.
That said, it’s a solution I stumbled into, and looks to be an easy way to curb energy use during the winter months in Park City and Summit County.
in Olympics
Why the U.S. Should Never Host Another Olympics
Remember the 2002 Olympics? A lot of people felt that was the moment that put Utah on the world map. Fourteen years later, with traffic woes and population continually increasing, many people probably wish we’d flew a little more under the radar. Yet, it looks like state leaders are ready to champ at the bit again. Governor Herbert in July said, “We are capable of hosting the Winter Olympics again. In fact, I would say we are the best place, not only in North America, but maybe the best place in the world to host a Winter Olympics again.” right before signing resolution that says Utah is ready, willing, and able to host the Olympics again. Jeff Robbins, Utah Sports commission president and CEO said, “Ready, willing and able is our motto. We’re in a great position should a winter bid become available.” And if you don’t think the Mountain Accord’s train concept up Little Cottonwood isn’t tied at all to an Olympic bid, I think you’re missing something.
The question is, does the average Utahn want another Olympics? I realize the Governor does, so he can tout the economic benefits that may (or may not come). I realize those with businesses (or work for businesses) that would benefit from tourism might want another Olympics. I would guess government agencies that would get an infusion of cash to improve infrastructure would probably be all for another Olympics. However, what about you… would it be good for you? Personally, I’m not sure what benefit it would bring me or my family? Most importantly, I can see the downsides.
With that as a backdrop, Outside Magazine has just published an article entitled Why the U.S. Should Never Host Another Olympics. It’s an interesting read that begins with how Boston dropped out of the running for the 2024 Summer Olympics (due to potential costs), touches on the bribery that took place in getting the 2002 Olympics in SLC, and speaks to how petulant the IOC acted when Norway said “No thanks” to the 2022 Winter Olympics due to IOC member demands and the financial cost. Yet, it provides a number of other arguments:
- Olympic building and hosting processes damage the environment.
- “The Games overrun with 100 percent consistency. No other type of megaproject is this consistent regarding cost overrun,” concluded a 2012 study by Oxford University economists Brent Flyvbjerg and Allison Stewart. Think about that for a moment. Every Olympics, from 1960 through 2012—and that doesn’t even count the massive Sochi boondoggle of 2014—has run over budget. And not by just a little.
- With an average cost overrun in real terms of 179 percent—and 324 percent in nominal terms—overruns in the Games have historically been significantly larger than for other types of megaprojects, including infrastructure, construction, ICT, and dams…
- The IOC insists that hosting is a huge honor for any city. The Games, it argues, lead to all sorts of wondrous economic, social, and athletic miracles . This isn’t true. Stephen Billings, an economics professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, who has studied the economic impact of hosting the Games… he says having an Olympics in your city is, at best, “a wash.”
- Even that best-case scenario turns out to be bad for a city and country. When economists James Giesecke and John R. Madden of Monash University looked at the Sydney 2000 Games—with a view toward asking what would have happened if the money had been spent in other ways—they found that “in terms of measurable economic welfare, the Sydney Olympics came as a cost to Australians, reducing the present value of real private and public consumption by $2.1 billion.
- The only Olympics in modern times that officially didn’t lose money were the 1984 Summer Games in L.A. Despite cost overruns, chief organizer Peter Ueberroth sold the hell out of them to TV and corporate sponsors, and L.A. bragged that it made more than $200 million on the deal. But that’s creative accounting. When city organizers tally up costs versus income, they conveniently leave out the government’s—that is, taxpayers’—share.
- They estimate costs for security at the 2022 game in LA will at least cost $1.5 Billion.That money could be used to install solar on 150,000 Los Angeles area homes.
The best quote of the article comes at the end… “Let them [Other countries] have it. Let them build white-elephant stadiums and Potemkin villages. We’ve got schools and bridges to raise, teachers to pay, parks to create and maintain. The United States doesn’t need the Olympics.”
I’ve heard through the grapevine that some of the “powers that be” think Utah may be able to host an Olympics for the “paltry” amount of $1 billion, since a lot of the infrastructure from 2002 still exists. I’ll believe that when I see it (and also remember that every Olympics goes over budget). I’ll also remember that $1 billion is ONE BILLION DOLLARS. Somebody is going to pay for it…and there will likely be a lot of Utah tax dollars in there.
Of course, I never want to speak for everyone. Perhaps the majority don’t care about spending tax dollars on two weeks of Olympic fun, think the benefits will outweigh, or just think it would be neat. Fair enough. What I do hope is that before Utah commits to throwing our hat in the ring, they do a public vote to make sure the people agree. If not, a whole lot of people are going to be on the hook for something they may not want at all.
in Wildlife
A Message from Wild Aware Utah
A representative from Wild Aware Utah reached out to us with information related to the recent shooting of the Cougar in Summit Park. If you are interested in the topic, you may want to give it a read:
Hi Park Rag Readers!
I wanted to let everyone know about our collaborative, state-wide wildlife awareness and safety program called Wild Aware Utah.
With some Park City residents worried about the recent sighting and then shooting of a cougar in Summit Park after it killed a family dog, it is more important than ever to get wildlife safety tips out to the community.
The goal of the Wild Aware Utah program is to create awareness throughout Utah that will foster new attitudes towards wildlife and motivate behavior changes in people, resulting in minimizing conflicts with wildlife.
Utah’s Hogle Zoo founded the Wild Aware Utah (WAU) program in 2009 with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR), and Utah State University Cooperative Extension (USUCE). Wild Aware Utah partners and affiliates work together to develop tools to educate individuals and communities about how to live, work, and recreate safely in wildlife habitats in Utah.
The Wild Aware Utah program does not take positions on wildlife issues or policies. The materials are designed to be fact-based, neutral and applicable throughout the state. Our free materials provide simple guidance and direction for Utah communities through these three main messages:
- Be Aware of the wild: Learn about wildlife.
- Share the wild: Respect and change behaviors.
- Care for the wild: Take action, coexist safely and help wildlife stay wild.
WAU program relies on grants and donations to develop materials so that all our resources can be offered free to communities desiring to use them.
Why is such a program needed?
As the human/wildlife interface expands through housing and other developments throughout Utah, rural areas are becoming more urbanized. And with outdoor recreation becoming increasingly popular, there is an increase in the number of citizens concerned about how to be safe in these areas. As Utah continues to grow, and as humans and wildlife compete for space, the number of conflicts will increase. Various non-profit organizations and state agencies have recognized the need for awareness and safety education.
Wild Aware Utah is an Educational Tool:
WAU materials are available for Utah organizations and agencies to distribute and use throughout their communities. Local Utah groups are invited to use Wild Aware Utah materials to train their own volunteers from their community to spread Wild Aware Utah messaging.
Website:
WAU website provides wildlife identification tools, coexistence and safety tips as well as wildlife emergency contact information. We have links to our partner’s and affiliates websites, and other organizations throughout Utah. Check it out at:
Wild Aware Utah representatives can provide free presentations to community, school and youth or scout groups. If anyone is interested in hosting a presentation please send us an email at
in Schools
“Eats Park City” Campaign for Healthier Food in Park City Schools
If you are concerned with the school lunches at Park City schools, you may want to check out their Hungry for Healthy Campaign. They are trying to get the following 7 types of ingredients eliminated from Park City School District school lunches:
- Trans Fats and Hydrogenated Oils
- High Fructose Corn Syrup
- Hormones and Antibiotics in beef and other animal products where possible
- Added and Artificial Sweeteners
- Artificial Colors and Flavors
- Artificial Preservatives
- Bleached Flour
If you’d like to learn more, you can check out their website. If you’d like to lend your signature to their campaign, you can sign their petition by going to their Petition Page.
in Vail
Like Chair Lifts Falling From Heaven
We know the opening of Park City Mountain wasn’t great, but we do have one thing to be thankful for… at least our chairlifts didn’t fall out of the sky.
It appears that on Sunday, at Vail’s Heavenly resort in Tahoe, a chair lift did just that. SF Gate reports that “Nearly 70 people were evacuated from a ski lift at Heavenly Mountain Resort Sunday after one of the chairs suddenly fell, prompting operators to shut down the aerial conveyor.”
In the aftermath of operational problems during the last snow storm in Park City, Vail’s Park City Chief Operating Officer Bill Rock said, “Snow safety is something we’re never going to sacrifice,” he said. “Guest and employee safety is important for us.” Much like in Park City where Mr Rock said that 40 minute lift lines were not due to understaffing, we’re pretty sure that Vail’s Heavenly resort would say something like… “Guest safety was never sacrificed… it was an EMPTY chair that fell to the ground.”
In all seriousness though, things do happen, and everything carries a risk. So is this something to worry about at our Park City resorts? Probably not… but it does bare watching.
h/t to a friend of the Park Rag who gave us the heads up on Heavenly
Stocks Versus Snow
Yesterday on KPCW, Ski Utah (a group representing our ski resorts) was talking about the season with Leslie Thatcher. They were talking snow. The point Ski Utah made was that SNOW is the key to booking visitors at our resorts. I’m sure, in some ways, that’s true. If the snow isn’t flying, neither are the people.
Yet, equally as important is the stock market. If retirement accounts are tapped… if people perceive their wealth is decreasing… if the stock market is down… people may disregard their feeling about snow and care more about their financial condition.
It’s not something we have really seen since the financial crisis. With the market down a good 3% in the first few days of the year, it should be interesting to watch. A three percent decline is really nothing in the scheme of things… but if the decline accelerates, locals may get their wish.
More fresh tracks in February isn’t a bad thing for most people.
in Wildlife
With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility
I have a sixteen year old dog. Every night, in the dead-middle of the night, she needs to go outside. As a “good dad”, I let her out and faithfully wait at the door for her to come back in. Each night I listen carefully for any signs of trouble. I live on the edge of open space, and it’s not uncommon for 20 elk to bed on our yard. If those elk are there, it’s likely the pack of coyotes are occasionally close too. It’s also likely the mountain lions are out there. Given this year activity, it’s even likely a bear has wandered through. Yet, I still let her out and listen for any signs of trouble (like I would actually probably hear a thing). I’m just plain stupid — and not just for the likely time she’ll not come back… but for the entire set of repercussions that will follow.
I was reminded of that fact yesterday when reading “Mountain lion killed after attacking Utah family’s dogs.” It seems a women in Summit Park let her dogs out at night and they didn’t come back. One of her dogs was luckily found alive with puncture wounds. The other dog was not so lucky. It’s neck had been snapped by a mountain lion looking for food. When the blood trail was tracked, they found the cougar lying on top of the dead dog.
Utah Division of Wildlife Resources killed the mountain lion with a shotgun.
BAM.
Every way one looks at this story, it’s horrible: The loss of a family member, Maizy, the Australian Shepherd… the killing of the mountain lion … the reminder of the conflict that happens when humans encroach on wildlife.
Since I heard the story, so many thoughts have run through my mind. I first blamed the woman for letting her dogs out at night. “How could she be so foolish as to let her dog out in the middle of the night!,” I exclaimed. Then I realized I do the same stupid thing (every night). Then I blamed the Division of Wildlife resources for killing the cougar, but it seems that if wildlife kills a domesticated animal, they will then kill that wildlife. It’s their policy for a number of reasons.
The only thing I can come up with is that with great power comes great responsibility. When I let my dog out at night, I may not realize it, but I hold great power. I hold the life of not only my dog, but any wildlife that my dog comes into contact with, in my hands. In addition, wildlife is part of what makes the Park City area such a great place to live. If my actions then eventually cause that wildlife to be harmed, I’m not only taking the soul from that animal but a little bit of the soul of our community.
I feel absolutely horrible for the woman from Summit Park, her dogs, and the cougar. If it’s any consolation to her, at least her loss has caused my behavior to change – and hopefully others’ too. I will not let my dog go out alone at night. It’s just not worth the potential outcome and everything that will follow. Its unfortunate that it took this terrible incident to drive the point home.
Our thoughts are with the woman from Summit Park for her loss.
Another Day … Another Carmageddon
It sounds like this morning that the traffic light on Highway 224 at Ute Boulevard (by the McDonalds) isn’t working. This is causing traffic to backup onto I-80:
A couple of weeks ago there was a wreck at the Canyons intersection that caused huge delays on 224.
The more these things happen, the more it seems we just have a very fragile system. If one of a million different things happen on 224, 248, or downtown, there are huge impacts.
In technology, the answer to a fragile system is redundancy. No one problem should take you down.
I’m not sure how we get that redundancy in our transportation system.
in Environment
Chamber of Commerce Should Consider Turning Off Night Time Videos
Over the past few years, Park City and Summit County have worked hard on sustainability. They’ve achieved semi-finalist status in the $5 million Georgetown Energy Contest. They’ve initiated group purchases of solar panels. They’ve made anti-idling ordinances stronger.
I think our collective governments have made a great start at changing behaviors in our community, so much so, that now when you see something egregious and wasteful in our community, it often sticks out.
A case in point is the Park City Chamber of Commerce’s Visitor Center on Highway 224 across from Kimball Village. The Chamber has space where visitors can come, ask questions, grab a cup of coffee, and learn about Park City. From most accounts, the people staffing the location do a good job of promoting Park City. That would be during the day.
Then comes the night.
At night, the Visitor’s Center isn’t open but it’s still shining bright. I had heard stories of how the Chamber was projecting videos on its walls all night long. People had joked that the number of accidents would likely rise because people would get distracted looking at twenty foot images of Park City being projected on the walls as they drove by.
Last night, I saw it for the first time … and is seems like a complete waste. It does appear that at least one projector (and maybe more) is shining images across the walls, so that they are somewhat visible from the road. The initial problem is that while driving, even when stopped and looking in the building, it’s hard to discern what the pictures are. The real problem is that every minute images are being projected on walls, it’s wasting energy — valuable drops of energy that our community is working hard to save elsewhere.
To be fair, I understand that the Chamber of Commerce’s job is to sell Park City businesses. That’s why I’m not advocating shutting off the various TVs in the Visitor’s Center, that run all day, every day, selling Park City to visitors. There is at least the argument that there is value in that.
However, what’s the value of images being projected inside a building, that can’t really be seen by cars driving by? Perhaps if there were many pedestrians walking by there would be some merit but there are few of those. Perhaps most importantly, if it doesn’t present any actionable outcome (i.e. what benefit does it provide), but just uses energy, it’s a waste.
While many in Park City are working hard to conserve energy and the police are cracking down on idling, having the Chamber of Commerce contribute by shutting down what appears to be a wasteful display would make a difference. Perhaps those in charge of our efforts to win the Georgetown Energy Prize could even use this as another example of how our community is working to conserve energy.
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