Record editorial: Park City’s new leaders inherit a slate of challenging issues

A new era has dawned at City Hall.
Nann Worel was slated to be sworn in as Park City’s mayor on Tuesday afternoon after dethroning the incumbent in November, completing her rise to City Hall’s top political post. Joining her in taking the oath of office are a pair of new city councilors, Jeremy Rubell and Tana Toly, while a third is expected to be selected later this month to take Worel’s vacated seat on the City Council.
The changes mean that only two of the elected officials at City Hall, Max Doilney and Becca Gerber, will not be new to their roles. While the roster of elected officials will be dramatically different, the issues they’ll be tasked with confronting are familiar: deciding the future of the planned arts and culture district in Bonanza Park, settling on a permanent solution for contaminated soils and increasing the affordable housing stock, to name a few.
Parkites opting for fresh faces instead of the incumbents in November’s election, however, indicates that residents are hoping for a new approach to those old problems. Primarily, it seems, judging from the politicking last fall, they desire an increased level of public engagement and a sense that community input, above all, is guiding the decisions made in the Marsac Building.
But the elected officials will likely find the job of appeasing Parkites to be difficult. Regardless of how Worel, Rubell and Toly approach the job — and there is no doubt that they are smart and well qualified — the challenges awaiting them are formidable. And the job of governing is not as easy as it looks on the campaign trail. There’s a reason topics like road congestion and affordability have to varying degrees flummoxed Park City’s leaders for years. It will be intriguing to see how this new group tackles the key issues and how much they are able to achieve at a time of such rapid change in our community.
One thing is for sure: We all ought to be behind them. Parkites, understanding how important the next four years are to the future of the town, expect big things after delivering Worel, Toly and Rubell overwhelming victories in the fall. We wish the three of them — and the other person who will be selected to serve on the City Council — wisdom and foresight as they step into their new roles.
It is a new era, indeed, at the Marsac Building, and a challenging one. May it ultimately be, for the sake of Park City, a bright era as well.

Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism
Readers around Park City and Summit County make the Park Record's work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.
Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.
Each donation will be used exclusively for the development and creation of increased news coverage.