Park City is considering committing up to $75 million in tourist tax funds to subsidize a mixed-use housing development at Bonanza Drive and Kearns Boulevard. The plan relies on a familiar fairy tale: the magical free lunch in which visitors pay for everything and locals bear no cost.
The fantasy: A tourist pays a room tax, enjoys our mountain town, and fully funds a massive municipal development with zero impact on local resources.
The reality: Tourist-driven revenue fluctuates wildly, and transient room tax collections dry up quickly during economic downturns.
The long-term risks:
- Local Liability: Revenue shortfalls shift financial burdens directly onto local taxpayers, meaning the buck ultimately stops with long-term residents like me.
- Credit Rating Pressure: Underperforming capital projects strain municipal balance sheets and threaten our high city bond ratings.
- Opportunity Cost: Capital funneled into this single five-acre footprint is robbed from other pressing community infrastructure needs.
If a deal sounds too good to be true, it usually is — even in Park City.
Phoebe Hailey
Park City