The Snyderville Basin Special Recreation District can begin using the funds from the district’s $25 million bond for facility projects and open space acquisitions.
According to District Director Rena Jordan, the funds from the bond were made available to the district on March 11.
The bond was sold on Feb. 25 at an interest rate of 2.8 percent, which is less than the initial projections, Jordan said. Over the life of the bond the lower interest rate will translate to approximately $743,800 in savings in total interest to the county, Jordan said.
“It’s great for the community that we were able to monetize that,” Jordan said. “The district is looking forward to utilizing the new bond proceeds to obtain further open space, as well as construct recreational facilities.”
Of the $25 million bond, $15 million is committed to open space acquisitions. The remaining $10 million is earmarked for other projects, such as the expansion of the Basin Field House and the Park City Ice Arena, and $2 million is earmarked specifically for trail improvements and a State Road 224 trail crossing.
Construction is slated to soon begin on multiple trail improvements in the Snyderville Basin, Jordan said. In two weeks, pavement of the Millennium Trail from the Liberty Peak Apartments to the State Road 224 underpass is scheduled to take place.
Jordan said the Basin Open Space Advisory Committee is beginning to study potential purchase recommendations and will meet twice next month to discuss them. In addition to the $15 million available from the bond, the district also has an additional $5 million it is putting toward the land purchases.
The Fieldhouse expansion and the possibilities for a second sheet of ice are in the works. The district is working with Park City Municipal to study designs and location possibilities at the Quinn’s Junction complex for the second sheet of ice. The target date to have the studies completed is by the first of July.
District officials also met with the Summit County Council on Wednesday, March 4, to discuss the feasibility of a pedestrian crossing on State Road 224.
More than 70 percent of residents in area code 84098 approved the bond in November. A primary resident in that zip code in the Snyderville Basin will pay approximately $19.25 per year more in taxes, per each $100,000 of a primary home’s market value, according to information from the Snyderville Basin Special Recreation District.
“We have only received positive support for this bond,” Jordan said. “And at the end of the day, through all of the nervous moments and hoping, here we are sitting with $25 million in the bank.”