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Letters, Sept. 9-11: Help save the East Canyon Creek


Save East Canyon Creek

East Canyon Creek runs along I-80 through Kimball Junction. This was once a blue-ribbon fishery and home to the Bonneville cutthroat trout.

Over the past 30 years I have watched as this waterbody has declined. It dried up in 2003 and we are close to that once again.



The water levels are at a critical state for fish to survive at this point. I would like to thank Glenwild golf course officials and Mountain Regional for stepping up when calls for help have been sent out. They have stepped up over the years and so much more needs to be done to save this body of water.

Water rights in Utah will allow a stream to be drained. If water passes through your property, it does not give you the right to pull from it. It requires a water right.



Over the years rights have been transferred to families that may not be aware of those changes and continue to use the water that has been used over the years which they may not have rights to anymore. Or the property has been sold and the new owners are unaware of the water rights the property may or may not have. It is difficult to tell how much water people are using. We meter our homes. We should be metering all water if possible. This is a critical asset to our survival and to those creatures who depend on it for life.

If you suspect an illegal diversion, please contact Dennis Marchant.

Mary Perry

Friends of East Canyon Creek


Trump does not respect soldiers

Trump denies having referred to the almost 2,000 Marines killed in the World War I battle of “Belleau Wood” as “suckers” for getting killed. Even the enemy, Germany, respected those Marines, naming them “Teufelshunde” (Devil Dogs). Their sacrifice turned the tide in favor of the Allies.

Trump’s history of similar conduct supports his smears of the dead solders to be fact. His denial is worth about as much as his more than 20,000 lies, all fact checked.

Trump’s disdain for military members wounded or killed in action has been public knowledge. In 2015, Trump publicly attacked Sen. John McCain, saying “He’s not a war hero, I like people who weren’t captured.” On Twitter, Trump called McCain a “loser.”

Upon McCain’s death, Trump reportedly told his senior staff “We’re not going to support that loser’s funeral.” Reportedly, Trump fumed when he saw flags on half-mast after McCain’s death.

Trump showed utter heartlessness towards Captain Khan, a Muslim American soldier, and his parents. The captain died protecting his fellow American soldiers.

Finally, Trump marked George H.W. Bush, a “loser” for being shot down during World War II.

I can only wonder what it will take for his followers to open their eyes!

Maria Roberts

Jeremy Ranch


Which is it?

In a letter to the editor published in the Sept. 2 edition of The Park Record, Chuck Haggerty indicated that he obtained copies of proceedings of the City Council between June 25 and July 9 and found no evidence that the council voted to approve the Black Lives Matter and other “social justice” messages splattered across Main Street on the Fourth of July. In the lengthy article published in The Park Record on Aug. 22 written by Jay Hamburger, he reported that “City Hall quickly said it provided a grant valued at approximately $15,000 to the Arts Council Park City and Summit County for the murals …” Which is it? Did the City Council vote on this grant and the murals or was it just the political whims of the mayor’s office?

In that same Aug. 22 article, or the inset that accompanied it, Jay Hamburger stated twice that out of 120 “correspondences” directed at City Hall, the number of messages that were in clear opposition to the murals (or the squandering of $15,000 of taxpayer money to paint them) “outstripped those that were sent in support.” Our mayor claimed that “more than 70% of the messages sent by people inside Park City or in the Snyderville Basin … were in support of the murals.” Which is it? The last time I checked Snyderville Basin was part of Summit County and not in Park City. Surely the mayor didn’t arbitrarily include responses from Snyderville Basin residents to mislead anyone. But I wonder how many of all those non-supportive messages that he claimed were sent from “outside the community” were sent by residents of neighborhoods like Pinebrook, Jeremy Ranch, Newpark, Bear Hollow, etc. Those communities, while not in the city itself, consider themselves to be a part of Park City. Or did you choose Snyderville Basin, which is not in Park City, in your misleading statistic, Mr. Mayor, because it happened to provide false support to your political agenda? Repay the taxpayers’ $15,000 out of your pocket, Mr. Mayor, and then have a council vote on spending it on something worthwhile, such as providing rent subsidies to those who are suffering the most from the pandemic.

Jim Helfand

Park City


We must live with COVID-19

Let’s review the facts. COVID-19 is an affliction that is mild and self-limiting in ~95% of people who contract the disease. The vast preponderance of the 26 million people worldwide who have been diagnosed with COVID-19 have recovered in about two weeks, many without any symptoms. The most vulnerable patients often require hospitalization and the infrastructure is now in place to treat severe patients due to efforts to “flatten the curve.”

Vaccines are on the horizon that will mitigate the impact of COVID-19. Indeed, there are 176 companies in the hunt for a vaccine, 33 vaccine candidates are in human clinicals and five are already in late-stage (Phase III) studies. And while vaccines will conjure up another debate, a high percentage of people will opt to be vaccinated, pushing us toward herd immunity.

In the interim, we cannot keep denying people access to address other health care concerns such as cancer, heart disease and mental illness that take a much larger toll on our community. We have to recognize the economic and quality of life impact of overly restrictive measures. We have to make educated and informed choices and not pander to fears, driven by myths. Mandating masks is the proper safety protocol to protect teachers, staff and students since we know respiratory droplets are the primary mechanism of transmission.

I run a global medical device company. We make exceptions for employees that are “high risk” or that live with relatives that may also be in that category. The vast majority of my team is functioning at a high level, coming into our offices and routinely flying to visit clinics. Park City should adopt a policy that accommodates “high risk” teachers and staff members in a similar fashion since we cannot diminish the personal anguish that is felt by some. But at the end of the day COVID-19 is here to stay and we have to learn to live with it.

Dan Lemaitre

Snyderville Basin


Path to perseverance

I dare you not to smile when you ride or walk the short new path that connects Jeremy Ranch Elementary School under the interstate to Pinebrook and beyond. I dare you not to feel like a kid once you have used it, especially on a bike. It’s a safe path for children of all ages. It has tunnels, curves, water. No crossing of any streets. No traffic. Lighted tunnels. For all this we must thank Jennifer Terry, who advocated for this years ago when her children were at the school. They are long gone now from JRES. But Jennifer’s tenacity helped push this wonderful project through many obstacles. Jennifer’s vision now serves children other than her own. Good things take time to happen. They require energy. Jennifer’s perseverance, with the help of others, made this happen. Thank you, Jennifer.

Jeffrey Louden

Jeremy Ranch


Gratitude for masks

We wanted to express our sincere thanks to Linda Haessler. I received a call from a friend that Linda has been making masks and wanted to donate them to teachers. Thirty amazing masks were left on my doorstep and I have given these to each staff member of the Park City School District Preschool Program.

They are so well-made, comfortable and darling. With all of the craziness going on with the pandemic and politics in our country right now, it is such a breath of fresh air to know there are amazing and caring people out there like Linda!

We sure appreciate you and we love the masks (and so do our darling preschool students who comment on the fun patterns that include dogs, bikes, flowers, etc.)

Stay safe, everyone — and thanks again, Linda!

Kathy Anderson on behalf of Park City School District preschool staff


Outpouring of support

When our Park City Rotary Club made the decision to cancel our Miners Day activities, we felt a sadness — not just to lose this day of community pride, but the inability to raise funds for our nonprofit grants. So we had this crazy idea to conduct Running of the Balls in the early morning hours and broadcast it on Park City TV. Thanks to our great friends across Park City, it worked. And we were able to raise over $30,000 that will go directly to local causes this fall.

We owe a special thanks to Park City Municipal for working with us to film on Main Street and to the Park City High School cheerleaders for some socially spaced cheers. Our local media including Park City Television/Deerfield Media, KPCW and The Park Record went above and beyond to spread the word.

We had tremendous support from sponsors and donors. Our friends at Park City Twilight also got into the act, conducting a Virtual Bark City 5k.

Most of all, we want to thank the tremendous outpouring of support from the generous buyers of our 300 balls, helping us to sell out days in advance. We will think of you this fall when we award grants to nonprofits who help make Park City such a great place to live.

Happy Miners Day.

Corrie Forsling

Park City Rotary Club president

Letters

School district must lead

Park City School District is being investigated by the federal Office of Civil Rights for persistent and ongoing violations. It’s a very big deal that has a lot of our community on edge.



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