Mission statement could lead to lower development densities

(Park Record) With growth in the Park City area spilling over into rural eastern Summit County a new mission statement and rewrite of the planning goals for the East Side has advanced to the Summit County Council.

"We wanted to make sure they were in alignment with where the county is now," Eastern Summit County Planning Commissioner Diane Foster said.

The East Side Planning Commission ended a process that took several years Feb. 3 when it voted 6-0 in favor of the mission statement, goals and objectives. Planning Commissioner Mike Brown did not attend the meeting. The Summit County Council must vote on the document before it is approved.

Goals of the Planning Commission include: protecting the rural environment, promoting a mix in housing types, establishing expectations about levels of service that are compatible with the county's ability to serve remote areas and planning policies that promote proper stewardship of natural resources. Some residents want housing on the East Side of Summit County to be affordable.

"We won't force people to farm and ranch, but if they want to farm and ranch, we want to give them certain abilities," Foster said.

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