Town Council

MINUTES ALTA TOWN COUNCIL VIRTUAL MEETING Wednesday, January 11, 2023, 2:00 PM Alta Community Center (virtual), 10351 E. Highway 210, Alta, Utah PRESENT: Mayor Roger Bourke Councilmember John Byrne Councilmember Sheridan Davis Councilmember Elise Morgan Councilmember Carolyn Anctil STAFF PRESENT: John Guldner, Town Administrator Mike Morey, Town Marshal Chris Cawley, Assistant Town Administrator Jen Clancy, Town Clerk Molly Austin, Deputy Clerk ALSO PRESENT: Cameron Platt, Legal Counsel Craig Heimark, Treasurer TOWN COUNCIL MEETING 1. CALL THE REGULAR TOWN COUNCIL MEETING TO ORDER AND DECLARATION 00:00:00 Mayor Bourke called the regular meeting of the Alta town Council to order for January 11th. Pursuant to his January 3, 2023 determination Mayor Bourke said that it is in the community’s best interest to hold this meeting virtually without an anchor location. 2. CITIZEN INPUT 00:00:50 Jen Clancy reported that Margaret Bourke submitted a written comment that was forwarded to the council and is attached as Exhibit A to these minutes. Margaret Bourke commented that she wanted to thank everyone that works tirelessly to keep our community safe but she also wants to encourage the Town to think of parking needs not only as individual actions proposed one at a time, but to look at parking in a larger framework. She asked the council to consider the desired result in 5, 10 years. She said UDOT would be presenting a transportation proposal for Little Cottonwood and CWC is working on a visitor study to help inform decision makers. She doesn’t see discussion of any of these topics before the town council, but she believes that analysis is important. Margaret stated eliminating roadside parking is worthwhile but raised a number of questions about the proposal. She encouraged the Town to explore an overall parking plan as opposed to a piecemeal approach and coordinate with other stakeholder jurisdictions. 3. ALTA SKI AREA UPDATE Alta Town Council Meeting January 11, 2023 1 00:06:50 Mike Maughan expressed appreciation to Mike Morey and his team for help in getting the ski area open today with a straight-line. He reported that business wise they are about even with last year, even though they opened a week earlier. He attributed that to the storms and less volume. From a snowfall standpoint they are way ahead of last year and if the snowfall keeps up at this pace it could be a record year. Mike said the storms have impacted the construction of the new Sunnyside lift but all the chairs are on and they are preparing for load testing. There will be a torchlight and fireworks on Saturday to celebrate Alta’s 85th anniversary. In regards to their parking request, they have talked with UDOT and the Town Marshal extensively about how to close roadside parking. They reviewed the concept two years ago so much of the work has been done, regarding proximity to water resources. At this time they are looking for a letter of support from the Town that supports the concepts of replacing the roadside parking with parking in the wildcat lot. Mike reported that ICON visits are off last year a little bit, while neighbors are ahead. He said they are in discussion with UDOT, Snowbird, and the USFS regarding roadside parking. Allowing parking along the canyon road increases parking in the canyon which is in conflict with the USFS’s position against increased parking in the canyons. He received news from Catherine Kanter that the County will supply funding to provide bus service where old route 953 was. The four cottonwood canyon ski areas have also put some money into the pot. In total it’s about half a million dollars to run the service. 4. APPROVAL OF CONSENT AGENDA: DECEMBER 14, 2022 MEETING MINUTES, TREASURER’S REPORTS, AND STAFF REPORTS 00:18:05 MOTION: Mayor Bourke motioned to approve the consent agenda including the December 14, 2022 minutes, and Elise Morgan seconded. VOTE: All in favor. The consent agenda including the December 14, 2022 minutes was unanimously approved. 5. MARSHAL’S REPORT ON RECENT INTERLODGE EVENT 00:20:10 Mike Morey explained that from December 28th through today we have had a long series of heavy and dense snowfall periods that have lead to numerous road closures and the Town being put into interlodge. Some highlights include interlodge closure violations. He reported compliance with interlodge has generally been good, but there are certainly telltale footprints around. During this interlodge streak there have been calls for mental health crisis and disorderly conduct. The deputies were able to de-escalate the situations without making any arrests. There have also been a number of ambulance evacuations. Mike reported several ski area employees had been caught in avalanches, one with minor injuries. One rental property was evacuated due to high concentrations of carbon monoxide during interlodge which Alta Town Council Meeting January 11, 2023 2 underscores the need to maintain furnace exhaust vents. He told the story of a couple forcing the avalanche gates open and driving up canyon. Mike reflected on not liking interlodge, he said he doesn’t like restricting the freedom of travel about and assemble. When it comes to restricting travel, decisions don’t come lightly and are done with a lot of consultation with the snow safety people in the canyon. He explained that since the pandemic there are less facilities for the public to go into in the morning to wait out the mitigation work. The deputies are often out driving under slide paths, they are also responding to more and more calls at the lodges where people are under emotional distress. Now that we have more complex calls, we are having to staff up beyond one officer on duty. Thankfully we have experts with the UDOT snow safety crew and the things they often need to do to protect highway 210 also protect our village. Interlodge is tricky with a lot of moving parts. Interlodge is about accountability, the Marshal’s department needs to know that everyone is safe and indoor particularly when doing overhead artillery work. Mike offered that being outside is contagious, another reason for strict accountability is people self-dispatching themselves outside when they see someone else outside not realizing that person has clearance and is performing an emergency function. Substantial delays occur when shoot stops and interlodge violators have to be chased down. Mike pleaded for compliance during interlodge. He noted that the interlodge ordinance hasn’t been updated for quite some time, things are done differently now, and he’d like to work with legal counsel to draft some language and consider hold harmless liabilities. Lastly, interlodge doesn’t happen without community support and he feels we have that. 6. QUESTIONS REGARDING DEPARTMENTAL REPORTS 00:37:35 There were no questions. 7. MAYOR’S REPORT 00:37:35 Mayor Bourke welcomed everyone to the first meeting of 2023. He reported former Mayor Sondak had suffered a cervical spine accident but was at home recovering after a successful surgery. He mentioned being vigilant about COVID-19. Mayor Bourke stated we submitted a request to house and then display a decommissioned Howitzer and have heard that our application was approved. He reported he had met with Bekee Hotze of the USFS and that she is supportive of having a year-round public restroom toward the end of the paved road. She also shared that Ben Kraja, the local USFS person working in this canyon is moving to USFS headquarters in Washington which will be quite a loss for us. Mayor Bourke report in light of UTA cutting of 70% of our bus service that we pulled together a local service to fill the gap. Chris provided a brief overview of the three different shuttles transporting passengers around Alta. He offered that it’s unclear if any of these services will operate next year since many of the funding commitments were one-time. Tom Schneider of Alta Shuttle would be asked to attend the next meeting and present updated numbers. John Byrne suggested we consider setting up a non-profit in the future which could receive federal funding and grants for equipment. Alta Town Council Meeting January 11, 2023 3  8. FRIENDS OF ALTA UPDATE – KODY FOX 00:59:35 Kody was unable to attend the council meeting and requested an opportunity to present at next month’s meeting. 9. 2003 COMMUNITY CENTER DESIGN RECAP – JOHN GULDNER 00:59:35 John Guldner opened by saying that there really wasn’t any place for folks to go early in the mornings and that we have talked about the community center as being a gathering space for emergencies. He reflected that we had just completed a big study on a community center for a 1.19 acre parcel just west of the fire station and learned a lot for that study that will help us move forward even though there was not support to move forward with that building. He stated that there was a 2003 study in the location of the existing community center. The team that did the study no longer exists but he found one of the principles (Craig Elliot) that did the study and he was very excited to revisit it. Craig came up with a 3- million-dollar current cost estimate for that exact building. John cautioned that that was promising even though we know we won’t be able to build a 10,000 square foot building for 3 million dollars. He asked for the council’s approval for a few thousand dollars to dive deeper into a better cost estimate and see how the building fits onto the land the town now owns. John Byrne suggested the study include some evaluation of parking needs and commented that new information about the building site would be helpful. In general, the council was supportive of gaining more information. 10. DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION TO ADOPT RESOLUTION 2023-R-1 AUTHORIZING THE EXTENSION AND AMENDMENT OF THE INTERLOCAL SERVICE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE TOWN OF ALTA AND SALT LAKE COUNTY SERVICE AREA #3 01:16:45 Keith Hansen of Salt Lake County Service Area 3# introduced updating the contract for two more years for operating the Town of Alta water system. Keith referenced increased complexities with the system and with the division of drinking water as the basis for raising the base cost of the contract from $2,300 to $3,000 per month. Keith expressed he thought it was a fair and equitable way for the Town to operate. Keith also shared that Kasey Carpenter would be taking over for him when he retires on July 1. MOTION: Mayor Bourke motioned to approve Resolution 2023-R-1 authorizing the extension and amendment of the interlocal service agreement between the Town of Alta and Salt Lake County Service Area 3#, and Sheridan Davis seconded. ROLL CALL VOTE BY JEN CLANCY: Mayor Bourke – I, Councilmember Anctil – I, Councilmember Byrne – I, Councilmember Davis – I, Councilmember Morgan – I. All in favor. Resolution 2023-R-1 passes unanimously. 11. OPEN PUBLIC MEETING ACT TRAINING, Q & A – POLLY MCLEAN 01:24:00 Alta Town Council Meeting January 11, 2023 4 Mayor Bourke requested this agenda item be moved the end of the meeting, and tabled until next month if there wasn’t enough time today. 12. DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION TO RESPOND TO ALTA SKI AREA’S REQUEST FOR A LETTER OF SUPPORT FROM THE TOWN OF ALTA TO THE US FOREST SERVICE REGARDING THE SKI AREA’S PROPOSAL TO REASSIGN THE WILDCAT SHOULDER PARKING 01:26:00 Mayor Bourke explained this was about a statement from the Town Council saying yes we like the idea of removing roadside parking and allowing an equal magnitude of spaces in an expansion of the wildcat lot. Mayor Bourke said he wasn’t sure if the numbers worked out to be a perfect exchange. Mike Morey said the wildcat shoulder is problematic for public safety. Additionally, he explained it was difficult to get an accurate count of spaces from west of the wildcat shoulder/entrance west to the bypass road because parking in that area is so situational. When asked if the Town had teeth to prevent people from parking on the road Mike explained that with appropriate signage and an enforcement campaign they could get there. He said there had been some internal conversation about maintaining about 10 spaces on the eastern side of the wildcat shoulder for public uses like access to the Town Office and OLS. Mayor Bourke said he thought the wildcat shoulder was probably used by backcountry skiers, he asked if ASL prohibits entry into the wildcat lot before 8am are they blocked out? Mike Morey responded the current practice is for early morning reservations to start at 6am in the south flagstaff lot. In his experience he hasn’t seen the 6am parking reservations maxed out. Mayor Bourke asked for a sense of where each council member was. John Byrne said he was in support of giving them this letter because it’s a good safety decision and is being a good partner. He added his support was predicated on there being no increase to the net space. He felt some of the other big list of parking concerns being raised are suited for a master plan review. Elise said she felt we are getting choked by Snowbird, and that its really hard to ask Snowbird and UDOT to look at their roadside parking unless we are taking that step. She also reminded everyone this is going to go through the USFS for approval, and in their plan they don’t allow for parking expansion so they will look closely at the number of spaces being exchanged. She said we are just lending our support not providing approval. Her biggest concern is public safety. Sheridan said philosophically she is in support of a one for one exchange, and liked the idea of setting an example. She’d like to see the accounting of the spaces. Mike Maughan clarified that the USFS’s position in their existing master plan doesn’t allow for the expansion of parking and that it all has to be a trade. The ski area has to prove to them it’s a one-to-one arrangement. Mike also brought up that they have not yet addressed the parking lost since the installation of the median on the south side of the road. Polly McLean asked the council to consider that the parking on the wildcat shoulder is outside the ski area’s special use permit (some is in the Town’s special use permit) and would be traded for parking spaces inside their permit. Mike explained there was no revenue from parking on the wildcat shoulder because there is no mechanism to know that someone with a parking reservation parked there. This is part of the reciprocal agreement with the ski area. Alta Town Council Meeting January 11, 2023 5 Mayor Bourke summed up the conversation by stating that elimination of a considerable part of the roadside parking on the wildcat shoulder and area west to the bypass road in exchange for expanding the parking in the wildcat parking lot of an equal amount is something the town would favor and all councilmember present agreed. He said they would put the letter that reflects that together. 13. DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION TO COMMENCE A CLOSED DOOR SESSION FOR DISCUSSION OF THE CHARACTER, PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE, OR PHYSICAL OR MENTAL HEALTH OF AN INDIVIDUAL AS AUTHORIZED BY UTAH CODE SECTION 52-4-205(1)(a) 01:54:00 MOTION: Mayor Bourke motioned to commence a closed door session for discussion of the character, professional competence, or physical or mental health of an individual as authorized by Utah code section52-4-205(1)(a), and Joh Byrne seconded. ROLL CALL VOTE BY JEN CLANCY: Mayor Bourke – I, Councilmember Anctil – I, Councilmember Byrne – I, Councilmember Davis – I, Councilmember Morgan – I. All in favor. 14. NEW BUSINESS 01:57:20 Elise commented she was unhappy about the dumpster in front of the Snowpine and was glad it was moved. John suggested the concept of a retreat for the council where they can talk about a broader set of issues informally to build consensus. 15. MOTION TO ADJOURN 02:04:15 MOTION: Mayor Bourke motioned to adjourn, and John Byrne seconded. VOTE: All in favor. The meeting was adjourned. Passed this 8th day of February, 2023 _____________________ Jen Clancy, Town Clerk Alta Town Council Meeting January 11, 2023 6  MAYOR TOWN OF ALTA ROGER BOURKE P.O. BOX 8016 ALTA, UTAH 84092 TOWN COUNCIL CAROLYN ANCTIL TEL (801) 363-5105 JOHN BYRNE (801) 742-3522 SHERIDAN DAVIS FAX (801)742-1006 ELISE MORGAN TTY 711 Exhibit A Written public comment for the 1/11/2023 Town Council meeting Table of Contents: Page Contributor Date Received 1 Margaret Bourke January 9, 2023 Exhibit B TOWN OF ALTA Closed Meeting Sworn Statement Required by UCA 52-4-206 I, Mayor Roger Bourke, swear as the person presiding at this closed meeting on January 11, 2023, that the sole purpose for closing the meeting is to: ☐ X Discuss the character, professional competence, or physical or mental health of an individual. ☐ Discussion regarding deployment of security personnel, devices, or systems. SWORN to and executed this 14th day of January, 2023. Town of Alta: By: _______________________________ Presiding Officer (Mayor) Attest: ___________________________________ Alta Town Clerk