Sadness or Euphoria in Park City?
One of Billy Joel’s best albums is Turnstiles. On that album, there is a track called Summer Highland Falls. One of these days I will analyze it line by line in relation to PC. However, trust me. It speaks to Park City in these times.
They say that these are not the best of times
But they’re the only times I’ve ever known
And I believe there is a time for meditation
In cathedrals of our own
Now I have seen that sad surrender in my lover’s eyes
And I can only stand apart and sympathize
For we are always what our situations hand us
It’s either sadness or euphoria
So we’ll argue and we’ll compromise
And realize that nothing’s ever changed
For all our mutual experience
Our separate conclusions are the same
Now we are forced to recognize our inhumanity
Our reason coexists with our insanity
But we choose between reality and madness
It’s either sadness or euphoria
How thoughtlessly we dissipate our energies
Perhaps we don’t fulfill each other’s fantasies
And as we stand upon the ledges of our lives
With our respective similarities
It’s either sadness or euphoria
Stay strong. We can make it through this.
in Roads
UDOT posts its top 10 road projects for the year and it doesn’t include anything you’ll care about
UDOT posted its top-10 road projects for the year and you are not included. I suppose that’s a bit presumptuous. Better stated, if you are in Summit County and reading this then you are not included. Sorry.
if you are waiting for UDOT to fix traffic in Summit County, you can keep waiting. The only thing that seems to fix traffic is a pandemic, which doesn’t seem to be the right solution.
If you are interested to see who is getting love, check it out here.
in Virus
The highest percentage of coronavirus cases in Utah are in the 25-44 year-old range.
Statistics on the coronavirus show that the elderly are the most likely to die from the virus. However, that doesn’t mean that younger people don’t get the virus and become sick or pass it on to those that might.
Each day the state of Utah provides updated stats on the impacts. Two of the most interesting are the demographics table and the chart of number of cases versus those tested.
The demographics table below shows that the 25-44 year-old Utahns have the highest percentage of known-infections in the state. That’s followed by 45-64 year-olds. It also shows the rate per 100,000 people in Utah. That allows us to account for the percentage of people by age group. In that case, 45-64 are the most afflicted age group.
The other chart I find interesting is the number of people testing positive and negative each day for coronavirus. For instance today I read that the state of Utah only had 75 people test positive for the virus (compared to the mid 100’s days before). Hooray. Then I looked at the number of people tested. Why is it down so much? Do fewer people get tests on Sunday? Did people leave for Spring Break (even though they are not supposed to)? Are fewer people feeling bad, so they don’t get tested? What I hope to see someday is a huge umber of people tested and a very few number of people testing positive.
If you enjoy this data, it is available at coronavirus.utah.gov. It is updated at around 1 PM each day.
in Schools
Park City School District needs to tell parents and teachers that schools out for summer
It’s been interesting watching the Park City Schools District navigate Sars-Cov-2. My experience at the elementary level, is that it its been very hard for both the teachers and kids. They really miss each other. It’s been tough.
Overall, teachers and Administrators have done a good job given what they have to work with, but it hasn’t been easy.
At Jeremy Ranch Elementary, things will be different after Spring Break. They will be using Google Classroom to electronically teach. Previously to the pandemic, physical packets were prepared that students completed each week. Now, it will be more electronic, which is good. The downside is that most elementary teachers will get about a week to master the software and implement it with their classes. What could possibly go wrong?
Yet, per the Utah Governor, the stated expectation is that in-person school will be back in session on May 1. Given the situation on the ground that is unthinkable. The Governor issued a document last month stating that if on April 30, the total number of cases of Sars-Cov-2 in Utah were less than 1,000 we may get back to normal sometime in May. Yet, we surpassed that number on April 2. As of April 5, we are at 1,605 cases. Things are not going to get back to normal in May.
Then, according to KPCW, “Park City and Summit County’s own economic recovery task force has been working on a plan that mirrors the state’s, which estimates businesses might begin operating normally again come September at the earliest.”
If businesses are not operating normally until September AT THE EARLIEST, then neither are schools. Is even September too optimistic? Maybe.
If you haven’t read the AP column by Tim Dahlberg entitled Virus will make the timeline for sports, too, putting cloud over NFL season, you may want to read it. He highlights what will be needed to get people back into sports stadiums this Fall. “Imagine going to an NFL game in September. Do they scan your forehead when they scan your ticket? Will you have to present evidence of a negative virus test? Do you really want to sit next to a stranger and worry for three hours about what he or she might be carrying?”
He brings up interesting points. What about schools?
Will every school screen each child at the door for fever? Will they require proof of a virus test? If a class has a student that becomes diagnosed with coronavirus, will the school be shuttered? It’s too nuanced to work.
No, they will keep schools closed until it is socially acceptable to open them.
Will that be on August 20, 2020? If you are a parent, you are hating me for even writing that. However, it’s not crazy to think that the first day of in-person school will be sometime later in 2020. The truth is that no one knows. However, it is becoming obvious that the date isn’t in less than a month.
It is important that Park City School Superintendent Gildea let Park City’s parents and teachers know school will be “remote” for the remainder of the school year. As parents, we are being forced to make choices by our employers. Those choices are partially based on what the school district is planning on doing. Am I homeschooling through June 4, or should I pick up a full schedule at work on May 1? Any insight on next Fall? Should I be looking for a different job with more flexibility to support my kids going to school?
I can assume teachers are in a similar boat. There is a difference between saying, “plan on getting students what they need for the next few weeks” and “plan on teaching the next six months from your home.” What would a teacher do differently if they were planning on teaching the next year remotely? I bet a lot.
The sooner that the school district announces that schools will be ONLINE-ONLY for the remainder of the school year, the better decisions we can collectively make.
Right now parents are in limbo and that does no one any good. Teachers are in a tough position, too. I hope our district can see where this is all heading and provide some guidance.
All I see is that school is out for summer. Plan accordingly. PCSD, as soon as you know about the fall, please let us know.
in Summit County, Virus
Google data says that Summit County is staying home amid coronavirus pandemic
Google is publishing information about the number of people going to various locations in a community. They are comparing that to their baseline levels before the coronavirus. The good news from a health perspective is that Summit County appears to be way down in visits to locations. That indicates that people are taking things seriously here and staying home.
The bad news is that most businesses in Summit County make money by people visiting there. So, the economy is obviously devastated.
The one glaring omission related to our particular lifestyle is that Google doesn’t seem to track trails. So what we know is that people aren’t going to businesses. What we don’t know is if they are replacing visits to the Alaskan Fur shop on Main Street with overcrowding our trails.
The numbers below as of 4/2/2020 show the decrease from baseline in Summit County, according to Google Mobile Phone information.
in Virus
There’s a lesson for all of us in Basin Rec’s threat to shut down all trails
First they came for the restaurants, and I did not speak out
… because I don’t own a restaurant
Then they came for non-essential businesses, and I did not speak out
… because I don’t work at a non-essential business
Then they came for the dog parks, and I did not speak out
… because I had other trails to walk on
Then they came for the trails — and there was nowhere else to go.
I was in the liquor store a week ago and commented to the employee working there about how civilized the store was. She said, “I think people understand that they don’t want this taken away.” That comment didn’t really resonate until I read KPCW’s article, Basin Dog Parks Closed – Trails Could Be Next.
Basin Recreation District Director Brian Hanton commented on KPCW, “Our trails are still open. We’ve limited a lot of our facilities but we’re inviting people out on the trails we are having some issues at the trailheads. Those will probably be the next [to be shut down] if people can’t abide by the regulations that are in place…”
Imagine the greater Park City area where you can’t go to work, you can’t play pickleball, you can’t go to the gym, you can’t go to any store but a grocer, you can’t go to the dog park, and now you can’t go on any trails. That’s completely miserable, and that’s what’s at stake.
How did we get here? I’m really not sure, but there are lessons to be learned by everyone in our city and county.
So, here’s my list of what we all should have learned by now.
Residents: Stay at home and only venture out if you absolutely need to. Don’t be a jerk.
Medical Professionals: Stay safe by being as careful as you can.
People on our trails: Don’t be a god-damn idiot and get in close proximity to one another. I know you think you won’t get sick and you probably won’t. But your asymptomatic case could kill someone’s loved one. It could also lead to schools being closed next fall. If that happens, damn you all. The best case is you give Brian Hanton a reason to close down our trails. Don’t be selfish. Go be alone and read some Ralph Waldo Emerson.
People in supermarkets: I know you have admired the Seinfeld close-talker episode for years. You want to gather in aisles and spit on each other as you talk… but please stop. Once they close trails, they’ll come for you. They’ll limit supermarkets to one at a time. Don’t be the reason.
Construction Workers: I still don’t see how you can still go to work when most people can’t. But I guess your work is essential to Summit County. Just please don’t take my ventilator when I need it.
Sheriff’s Department: Please don’t post any additional messages saying that “We’re your best friend bro. You can go to work anywhere and don’t really worry about anything ’cause we ain’t going to enforce shit.” People then take the law as a suggestion. That then leads to Basin Rec closing down our trails. I get the caring sentiment and the previous response to people posting incorrect ideas on social media, but now is the time we need enforcement.
County Council: You manage Basin Rec. Don’t let Basin Rec close down the trails. We will be in a world of hurt for so many reasons. People depend on the trails. Many people won’t follow the rules and will still go. People who do follow rules will get belligerent with those who don’t and that will be ugly. The only legal place to walk your dog will be down Main Street. No one wants to walk there these days.
Basin Rec: Don’t close the trails. It’s a terrible outcome for our community. If you are worried about dumbasses congregating, then ask for the County Council’s help. Ask them to put in place an ordinance that gives people three days of warnings. Then, after that, those people congregating WILL BE CHARGED with a misdemeanor that equates with a $100 fine. Then ask the Sheriff to add popular trailheads to the deputy’s normal routes and THEN FINE THOSE PEOPLE violating the law.
If you park one minute over the time limit, the meter maid has no problem giving you a $60 ticket. Shouldn’t our collective health be worth more?
When I first read Brian Hanton’s quote in KPCW, it seemed passive-aggressive. However, maybe that is the only tool Basin Rec has. That said, closing down the trail system isn’t the answer. People doing the right thing is. That requires people to look beyond themself.
Unfortunately, experience shows that many Parkites don’t have the ability to do that.
This mess is going to get worse before it gets better. The only question I have is whether things will get back to normal in the Fall.
in News
It’s time for the Park Record to evolve
I was reading Saturday’s Park Record Editorial that details the Coronavirus’ impact on Park City’s newspaper. Advertising revenue has dwindled, two reporters have been furloughed, and employees have taken a 20% pay cut. They are asking for donations to help make it through. It’s tough times for the newspaper.
I feel bad for the people working there. Getting furloughed or taking a pay cut isn’t easy. However, for the company as a whole, the newspaper business has been a terrible business for over a decade.
Given the Park Record’s editorial, and the recent pandemic, it’s made me think about where I get the majority of my local news. Those sources are undoubtedly the Salt Lake Tribune for Utah-based information and KPCW for local information.
The sltrib.com coverage of the coronavirus’s impact on Utah is up to date, chock-full of information, and wide-spread. In other times, their coverage of the legislature and Utah-wide stories is exemplary. They act as a public watchdog.
KPCW covers issues in many different ways. Their website is up to date with local information. As important, the Local News Hour with Leslie Thatcher has interviews with local leaders that are extremely informative. The level of depth found there is compelling.
I compare that to what I get with the Park Record, and it just isn’t quite the same. The Park Record feels structured for a different, slower time. While articles can appear throughout the week, they are based on a Wednesday and Saturday schedule. By the time I see the article in the Park Record, I usually conclude that I have already read or heard that elsewhere. There isn’t enough information, in a timely fashion, to compel me to HAVE to read the Park Record. It’s usually worth a skim — at least for me.
However, please don’t mistake this for an indictment of our local paper. The Park Record is important for the community. They sponsor the Spelling Bee. They cover local sports as well as anyone in Park City. They have good writers. I like the addition of Alexander Cramer covering the Basin. Bubba Brown has done a good job taking over for Nan Chalat Noaker as Editor.
It just feels like they need to evolve. This became clear to me when thinking about why I enjoy KPCW.
Some may think of KPCW as a radio station, but IT’S NOT. It’s something entirely different. They’ve found a way to take their on-air stories and provide them in a written fashion as well. Whether you want to listen to Rick Brough or read the story Rick Brough created, you can. Do you want to listen to the Local News Hour at 8 AM each morning but can’t? It’s posted online within hours. Do you want to know what happened at last night’s City or County Council meeting but can’t attend? There will be an interview the next morning with important facts.
KPCW is not a radio station. It’s a news service.
If the Park Record wants to compete it needs to be faster, or more in-depth, or more interesting, or more engaging, or more something. For instance, if we put timeliness aside and just go with the sheer volume of stories, they are behind KPCW. During the past week (Mar 21-28), here are the number of stories I counted by each journalist at the publications (in no particular order and forgive me if I spell a name wrong):
KPCW:
David Boyle: 18
Emily Means: 13
Carolyn Murray: 7
Leslie Thatcher: 3-4 interviews per day
Rick Brough: 9
Renai Bodley Miller: 12
Park Record:
Alexander Cramer: 13
James Hoyt: 1
Bubba Brown: 2
Jay Hamburger: 10
Ryan Kostecka: 6
Scott Iwaski: 9
Of course, the number of stories published doesn’t necessarily equate to quality. However, KPCW’s quality doesn’t seem to be suffering. These numbers could be off by a few stories, but they generally confirm what I have often thought. KPCW seems to produce more content. It’s also often more timely.
So, how could the Park Record change? If there was a sure-fire answer to that question, newspapers wouldn’t be dying across the country. Yet, I think our small, tight-knit community does offer opportunities. There’s a place for an online community in lieu of Next Door or Facebook that is more useful and privacy-focused. The Park Record could be the home page for our community. They could be the place where people come to talk, listen, and learn. It could be the place where each of us starts our mornings.
It could be more audio and video-based while retaining the written-side. It could use those new mediums to highlight the artists, film-makers, and other people that make our community great. They could dig deeper into interviews with local politicians. They could be more investigative.
The Park Record has the chance to make our community more interesting and engaging by bringing us together and making it easier to hear, read, watch, and talk about what’s happening. Create must-see content. Don’t be a paper. Be a community.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m under no illusion that this would be easy. It may require a different skill set than currently is demonstrated at the Park Record; however, they have it in them. They can transform. They have in the past.
If you need any further proof about the state of the newspaper in Park City, look no further than the Salt Lake Tribune. Their Utah Jazz sportswriter, who doesn’t have much to do, has written the most detailed, interesting, and stats-filled newspaper story about Summit County and the Coronavirus to-date. Yes, an out of work sportswriter from Salt Lake has written the best article on Park City and the Coronavirus. It shouldn’t be that way. Go read Andy Larsen’s story now at the tribune, if you haven’t. Brilliant.
Yes, I do realize that the Park Rag is just a blog. And what do I know about running a “real” paper? That’s true. I don’t have answers; I really only know what would make it more compelling for me as a consumer. For that matter, The Park Record may be happy being who it is. Or maybe they don’t have the money to invest in being different. There are always constraints. It just seems it could be so much more.
The Park Record has been around for 140 years and needs some help. So, if you like what they are doing, click here to donate to them via their web page. They can use every penny.
That said, if they want to go on, I believe they need to change. There will always be economic downturns and advertising dollars will decrease. Yet, if the Park Record can reinvent itself with a slightly different approach, it will have a better chance to increase subscriptions, broaden subscription revenue, and enhance advertising dollars.
The one truth is that the traditional newspaper business ain’t what she used to be. It’s no different for our local paper.
in Buses
Visualizing the coronavirus impact on Park City buses
I’m a fan of Park City’s bus system. When I am going skiing or coming downtown, I tend to take mass-transit. While sometimes the bus is full (4th of July, Miner’s Day, early ski mornings), often-times I am riding with few others.
Given the recent pandemic, I wondered what the impact was on Park City buses.
It turns out the impact is large.
During the winter, Park City Transit has about 30 buses on the road at any given time. During the period of February 15 until March 15, 2020, there was an average of 8.7 riders per bus, according to publicly available Park City Transit data. That’s fairly normal.
Since then there is an average of 2.2 riders per bus. If you look at this week’s data there is an average of 1.1 riders per bus. Ridership is plummeting. Due to this, the Park City Transit system has implemented spring schedules and then further cut back hours.
In the graph above, the blue area is the number of buses running each hour. The green line is the average number of riders per bus each hour. The Y-axis is the number and the X-axis is the date from 2/15 until 3/25. Click here for a larger graph. You can see that about 30 buses were on the road until March 18, when the system abruptly went to a spring schedule. You can also see the drop-off in riders per bus on March 17, once the resorts (and restaurants) closed.
It’s frankly not surprising. Park City Mayor Andy Beerman noted in December that the bus system was “mostly for tourists.” There aren’t many of those folks left.
What’s left are likely the people whose jobs remain and need the bus. It’s not many, but it is important to those that depend on it. Also, keep in mind from an environmental standpoint that the rule of thumb is that you need about 9 people on a diesel bus to make it environmentally break-even.
So, it’s likely some hard decisions need to be made. If the tourists are going to be away for the next 6 months, do we need another approach for those who need to get to work? Can we use the Kimball Junction Circulator? Can we use the special needs buses for point to point travel? Are there other options?
If that’s too much to contemplate during these trying times, I would suggest you take the bus if you can. There will likely be only two people on the bus — you and the driver. It shouldn’t be hard to get six feet apart.
in Virus
Governor’s plan indicates when Park City’s schools and businesses can reopen
On Tuesday, Governor Herbert’s office released a plan called, Utah Leads Together. This fourteen-page coronavirus plan attempts to identify where we are as a state both from a health and economic perspective. It also details the stages that the state will move through as we escape the pandemic and the measures that will guide the state government to ease restrictions.
The plan highlights the path to recovery using three phases.
Right now we are in the Urgent Phase. It started on March 16 and includes measures like social distancing, limiting group sizes, closing schools, closing restaurants, economic stimulus, and limiting travel. The goal of Utah is for this phase to last from 8-12 weeks. If we meet that goal, it would mean some restrictions would be lifted around May 11 to June 8.
The Stabilization Phase includes social distancing but it is more targeted at specific groups. High-risk populations stay at home and telecommuting is still in place for some. In-restaurant dining rules would be reviewed at that point and short-term layoffs would continue. Interestingly it says, “hourly workers would find new opportunities.” That piece doesn’t sound encouraging. This phase is expected to last 10-12 weeks. If we are able to exit the Urgent Phase in early June, we would exit this phase in early September.
Then comes the Recovery Phase. Most limitations would be lifted, hourly and seasonal workers would return to normal work, and the tourism industry is supposed to recover. The goal for this final phase is conveniently timed for November.
The question I had is how do we know when we are able to move from Urgency to Stabilization. In other words, when do schools open back up and some of Summit County’s workers get back to work? Believe it or not, the Governor has an answer for that, and it is enlightening.
Once the Covid-19 transmission rate is below 1.0 for one week, the state will likely move out of the Urgency Phase. The transmission rate, or what the scientists call R naught (R0), basically means for each person infected, how many more people does that individual infect. The World Health Organization places the R0 for Covid-19 at 2 to 2.5 across the globe.
The method for determining R0 levels is beyond me to calculate. However, the Governor’s report says that if the total number of Utah infections are less then 800-1,000 by April 30, then it’s possible to have an R0 less than 1. Likewise, the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget will be setting up a dashboard to track this. Once, that is running, the Park Rag will track official numbers.
So, the good news is that there now is a metric to guide us. Whenever the average, infected patient infects less than one more person, and that stat holds for a week, things will start to normalize. Some businesses will be able to reopen, and if it’s not summer, schools too. There will be a dashboard to tell us what the number is — so we can start to plan our future a little better.
It also tells us that the state government has set a magical date of April 30 to focus on. Don’t expect changes before then. Hopefully, if we can keep the number of infections down statewide (especially with the increased number of tests), we will get to R0 sooner rather than later.
That said, it appears we are in this for the long-haul. Even under the best-case scenario, this summer is going to be hard for local employees and families with children.
Good luck out there.
in Government
The coming fight over social distancing in Park City could be a battlefield
I never thought I would hear President Trump agree with Thomas Friedman of the New York Times. Both are worried about the economic effects of shutting down the country. In the words of both, “the cure can’t be worse than the virus.” They have a point.
Then you have Governor Herbert who, today, shut down Utah schools until May 1. That is the opposite signal. While some parents are fortunate to be able to work while their kids stay home, that’s not the case for many of us. If our kids are home-schooled for over a month, our jobs are impacted — if we can keep them.
Yet, unless the Washington winds shift direction, it is likely that within a week that the Federal Government will direct people to get back to work — damn the social distancing. That could be good for much of Park City’s economics. Vail would open back up. Alterra could ramp up work on Snow Park Lodge renovations. Restaurants would reopen. Non-essential services would come back online. People could get back to work.
Yet, at what costs? The economics would change for the better, at least in the short-term. Would health impacts get worse? I think most health professionals would say yes.
That sets up an interesting argument. Should Utah schools reopen early if Washington declares the country is open for business? Probably. Many of us can’t get back to business as usual if we are playing Laura Ingles Wilder.
Yet, if decisions to reopen are based on economics, and not health, is that in the best interest of our children and teachers? Probably Not.
A friend and I had been debating before the Corona Virus whether Park City is too big to fail at this point. His point was that while we may have crashed a few times in the past, it couldn’t happen again.
He’s probably right, but I would point out that Vail has a lot of debt. Alterra is a VC company, which aren’t typically completely stable. Two-thirds of Park City (proper) homes and one-third of Basin homes are second homes. Second homes get liquidated first.
Depressions do funny things.
If the White House says “get back to work,” does the Governor agree? If the Guv says “go back to school and work”, does the Park City School Board and Superintendent stand up and say “no”? Or do they agree with him that the economics are more important? What about the teachers’ union?
What does the Summit County Health Department do? Do they keep restaurants closed for safety or do they defer to a higher power? Do they enable businesses to be cranked up or play it cautiously?
I have no idea how this will play out, but regardless of your opinion on the subject, it will tell us a lot about those who lead us. What do they value? It should be really interesting to watch.
Parkrag
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