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New member appointed to the Basin Planning Commission

Ryan Dickey will fill the term left vacant by Colin DeFord

Ryan Dickey, who lives in Park Meadows, was appointed to serve on the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission last week. Dickey replaces former member Colin DeFord on the seven-member board.
(Courtesy of Ryan Dickey)

A new person was appointed last week to the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission after former member Colin DeFord unexpectedly resigned.

The Summit County Council selected Ryan Dickey, owner of a local community association and business management company, to serve on the seven-member board. His term will expire on Feb. 28, 2018. Dickey was chosen over Jason Travis, John Kucera and Tim Nemeckay. Another candidate, Debra Usher, withdrew her application because she does not live in the western part of the county.

Dickey will join fellow commissioners Bea Peck, Canice Harte, Chuck Klingenstein, Thomas Cooke, Joel Fine and Malena Stevens. His first meeting will be in August 8. The agenda will include public hearings about an amendment to the Silver Creek Village Center Development Agreement and a request to plat the Colony at White Pine Canyon Phse 3D Dream Peak.

Dickey, who lives in Park Meadows in Park City, said he did not have a political agenda when he applied. Instead, he added, he wants to help “shape this place and protect it.” Dickey had previously interviewed with the County Council for openings on the Basin Planning Commission. He was not selected.

“I had previously applied and when I wasn’t appointed, County Council members encouraged me to join this committee on remote parking. I did spend nine months on that commission and I learned some things and decided to come back and apply,” Dickey said.

Dickey moved to Summit County about seven years ago and lived in the Basin for several years before buying a townhome in Park Meadows. He runs a HOA management company called Model HOA and mostly manages properties in the Basin and Park City. He is also a licensed realtor with Jess Reid Real Estate.

“I have never done anything like this before, but I keep up with real estate and what is happening in the Basin. This is more of a personal interest than anything else,” Dickey said. “My wife and I just had our first child and I want to be part of helping shape this place. I want to be involved.”

Most of his professional career Dickey has spent as a management consultant, he said, adding “that’s more applicable than what I do now.” Dickey said he would work with companies to formulate strategies to solve a variety of issues and interests.

“You would try to learn a lot in a really short period of time,” Dickey said.” As a consultant, you almost never did the same thing twice. I think just applying those things to the planning commission because you will have applicants who may get told ‘No’ and they have to feel like they had a fair hearing and were listened to. And when you say ‘Yes’ you have to be able to support that decision.”

Dickey said, in his opinion, the most important issues facing the Basin community is affordability, economic diversity and climate change. However, he added, “If you ask me today I’ll probably give you a different answer than I would have yesterday.”

“Affordability is the biggest to me. If Park City becomes Aspen I will be on the first plane out,” he said. “But economic diversity is equally important. And, paired with that, is climate change. I think it is important and a really big, understated threat. As a community we have to be prepared to maintain our character more than just putting skiers on the mountain.

“The General Plan that was updated a few years ago, I think it is really, really good and they (planning commissioners) are really trying to implement the spirit of the General Plan and I think that plan really nails it,” he said.

Dickey said one of the perks of his job is it allows him to interact with different segments of the community and homeowners.

“I feel like I work with a lot of different people that feel differently about our community. People with different points of view and it’s interesting because you may never have contact with them otherwise,” he said. “I just really enjoy the challenges of the job and am looking forward to trying to be fair to people.”

Commissioners serve on a volunteer basis and are responsible for making recommendations to the County Council regarding zoning, amendments to the respective development codes and application reviews.

Summit County


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