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This year marks Summit Land Conservancy’s 20th Anniversary as Park City’s local land trust–- 20 years of saving the landscapes that are the heart of our community. The first 20 years of forever…
To honor the places we have protected, we will highlight and share some of the stories about these precious lands and how the Conservancy has grown over the years.
Located just south of Park City on the eastern slope of the Wasatch Range, Empire Canyon consists of four separate easements containing 1093 acres of higher elevation forested slopes. The Empire Canyon site is a historic mining area that contains an intermittent stream that flows through Park City and into Silver Creek. The property possesses natural, scenic, open space, and public recreation values and is crossed by numerous mountain bike and hiking trails. A variety of birds and mammals including eagles, hawks, owls, mule deer, elk, moose, red fox, black bear, mountain lion, bobcats and porcupines call the canyon home.
Named for the Silver King Mine which is located in the western-most portion of the 143 acres, this mine operated for over 60 years and was one of the most productive mines in the Park City area. Some mine buildings that were once part of the mining operations still remain. The area around the Silver King mine is visited by many hikers and sightseers throughout the seasons. To learn more about Empire Canyon, join our Hops Hunters Hikes, Nature Bathing Hikes, and other programs that explore this beautiful protected open space.
"Anyone who lived in Park City in the late 1990s will remember the contentious public debates surrounding the “Flagstaff Annexation Proposal.” This proposal involved between 1350 and 1650 acres of land “up Daly.” In those days the land beyond the end of the road in Daly Canyon was Park City’s collective back yard. Most people still lived in Old Town, and we’d hike up Daly to ski, walk our dogs, ride our proto-mountain bikes, and give blood to the mosquitos.
The development that proposed to create hundreds of homes, condos, and ski resort development was not universally popular. Rich Wyman organized some friends to protest and we were joined by many others including Dana Williams, Dave Staley, Liz Hoey and more. We called ourselves Citizens Allied for Responsible Growth.
Planning Commission meetings were so crowded they had to be held at Parley’s Park Elementary. Our little town had a lot of difficult meetings and conversations. In 1999, the Flagstaff Annexation Proposal was finally signed. The developer agreed to restrict development of the Daly Chutes, Prospect Ridge, Richardson Flat, and the Enchanted Forest, but in exchange was awarded the right to build Empire Pass.
When the agreement was finally signed, we thought it was a done deal, not perfect but something everyone could live with.
But no.
Just a few years later the landowners were back asking for additional density. In the end they agreed to place 143 additional acres under conservation easement and promised to put an easement on about 2,500 acres of the Park City Resort ski lease land when the lease expired.
The Flagstaff Annexation process had been pretty hard on our small town. Neighbors were often deeply divided about the proposal. Few of us thought that anyone would dare to reopen the agreement. But development pressures are intense. The Conservancy agrees to take easements on the public open spaces offered by developers as a way of insuring that if and when development agreements come back for changes or modifications, those open space benefits are truly protected."
Learn more about the Conservancy’s work and how you can save the lands and waters you cherish at www.wesaveland.org.
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