Highland Flats Reignites Park City Affordable Housing Debate
Highland Flats Park City
Another patch of open space in Park City, another battlefield over development. This particular parcel, a 40-acre spot near the intersection of US-40 and I-80, is the potential future home of a development called Highland Flats, which like all potential new development has spurred heated debate in Park City. There are signs about it visible along Old Ranch Road, highlighting the displeasure of certain local factions just as there were with regarding the ongoing Hideout saga. The proposed development is for 410 residential units, a third of which would be designated as affordable housing for primary residents making between 30-80% of the average medium income.
“The times have changed and we must make some serious decisions about how to best move forward to protect and enhance this beautiful area we call home,” writes Park City resident Linda McReynolds.
Summit County Planning Commission votes down plan for affordable housing
Adam Breen via Salt Lake Tribune
Renderings of the proposed Highland Flats housing development in Park City
and last updated 2021-03-10 15:58:09-05
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A plan to rezone Highland Flats for affordable housing received a negative recommendation from the Summit County Planning Commission after receiving extensive comments in opposition from the neighborhood, despite a plea from its developers of the public need.
Rezoning for the area was first considered in a February 23 hearing, where public comments expressed concerns about crime, overcrowding, and a decline in property values. A follow-up presentation to the Commission on March 9 by developer representative Wade Budge did not sway the commission, despite their praise of the project s concept and the need for it.
A problem of excess
Regarding the proposed Highland Estates development: Several letters published by The Park Record are opposed to the project while acknowledging a need for more affordable housing. I, too, am opposed but for a very different reason: We do not have any housing shortage, affordable or otherwise. Instead, there is an excess of people who wish to live here but who have not figured out how to make it work with their personal situation.
Let’s be clear: An excess of people who wish to live here does not mean we have a shortage of housing. All it means is there is an excess of people who wish to live here, period. Neither the city nor the county have any obligation to accommodate people who don’t currently live here. Let’s do a thought experiment: Let’s say we polled everyone who lives in Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and New York City and asked them, “Would you like to live in Park City if it were affordable?” and d
“An excess of people who wish to live here does not mean we have a shortage of housing,” writes Phil Palmintere. “All it means is there is an excess of people who wish to live here, period.”