At the annual Park City Leadership Symposium on Friday, Park City Mayor Ryan Dickey set up a conversation with Sen. John Curtis by giving his thoughts about increasingly polarized U.S. politics, which he said was often focused on arguing rather than finding solutions.

“In local government, we don’t have the luxury of leading like that. … Every day we’re here to solve problems and bring people together,” Dickey said. “No one cares if the mayor is a Democrat or a Republican when they want to go to work in the morning and the streets aren’t plowed or, God forbid, if they want to get pickleball time and the tennis players are there. These are real issues. The pickleball party rises above partisan politics.”

When Curtis came onstage, Dickey asked whether the senator had observed an increase in political polarization.

Yes, he agreed, polarization has increased over the past decade, particularly due to social media.

“I could post how much we love puppies on my social media, and somebody would say, ‘See, I told you he was an idiot,’” Curtis joked. “It sadly drives a lot of the narrative in Washington, D.C.”

But he also said that polarized narrative overshadows the bipartisan problem-solving that does occur.

“If I could just literally transport all of you into Washington, D.C., into a day in my life … you would see that most Republicans and Democrats actually like each other, that we get along. We travel together. We eat together. We do things together. … In any given week, I’ll bet I hear four or five times, ‘Let’s find a bill to work on together,’” he said. “We’re kind, and we like each other’s personalities. And that, obviously, is boring, right? And it doesn’t make social media.”

Curtis pointed to the Fiscal Commission Act as an example of bipartisan collaboration. He introduced the legislation with the sponsorship of four other Republicans, four Democrats and an Independent this week. The Fiscal Commission Act would create a bipartisan commission focused on finding legislative solutions to decrease the national debt, which now exceeds $38 trillion, according to Curtis’ website.

Climate change is another way Curtis has pushed bipartisan collaboration. He founded the Conservative Climate Caucus in 2021 to address climate change from a Republican perspective.

“If you can flip climate to be a bipartisan issue, we can flip about anything. And I think that’s one of the things that I’m really proud of, is getting Republicans to actually say the word climate,” he said. “The reality of it is, look, we’re Utahns, and every Utahn, in my opinion, cares deeply about this Earth and leaving it better than we found it. Now, all of a sudden, that’s a basis for a conversation.”

He pointed to artificial intelligence as one way conversations around energy have changed in recent years. 

“Years ago, we were talking about 1, 2% growth in energy,” Curtis said. He believed that made it easy to have conversations about which power sources were best. 

Due to advances in artificial intelligence, “We’re really in a world right now where we need every electron we can get,” he said.

“And this challenges both sides of this debate,” he continued. “We’ve got the current executive branch trying to undermine wind and solar. … And some of my colleagues that have been traditionally against the fossil fuels are realizing themselves, ‘Wow. We’ve got to think about this.’”

He believes changing the narrative to focus on energy growth rather than the sources it comes from will lead the market to naturally “take control” and provide energy that is clean, reliable and affordable.

Water conservation is another issue Curtis believes is an issue that must be addressed at all levels of government and by individuals, particularly after the 2034 Olympics.

“There’s zero question in my mind that we will pull off the best Olympics in the history of the world,” Curtis said.

He said Utah must prepare for growth that may occur as a result of the 2034 Olympics. It’s something he observed after the 2002 Olympics, when people across the globe increasingly realized Colorado wasn’t the only state worth skiing in. He said that growth will create a need to address issues ranging from water conservation to transportation and infrastructure.

Wrapping up the panel, Dickey asked for advice from Curtis, who was Provo mayor from 2010 to 2017, about how to approach his first term as Park City mayor.

Firstly, Curtis recommended adapting the format of town hall meetings. When he was Provo mayor, he allowed public commenters to use their allotted time to meet with him one-on-one instead of speaking in front of a crowd. 

“It totally changed the dynamic of the information I was getting back,” he said.

Secondly, Curtis relayed something he’d heard recently from Brett Hart, the president of United Airlines — a leader is responsible for culture. He said the same is true of a mayor. Whether it’s how police officers treat residents or whether a pesky pothole gets filled, the mayor takes responsibility for everything that happens in their municipality. Similarly, the mayor is responsible for ensuring every resident feels heard.

Finally, Curtis told Dickey to enjoy it. 

“I’m now eight years away from being mayor. Nobody in Provo cares about what the tax rates were when I was mayor. You know what they care about? They will tell stories of the day you showed up at the elementary school in your pajamas to read stories to the kids,” he said. 

Dickey’s final question for Curtis was whether he had any advice about how to address Park City’s parking woes. Dickey said Curtis was spotted on Main Street during Halloween in a past year, dressed as SpongeBob Squarepants, rushing to his car, which was seconds away from being towed. Sadly, Dickey did not provide any photo evidence of Curtis dressed as the cartoon sea sponge. 

Curtis didn’t have any specific advice about parking, but urged Dickey to “figure it out.”

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A Summit County ski mountaineer has launched a bid for the Democratic nomination in the contest to succeed the retiring Sen. Mitt Romney in the upper chamber of Congress, outlining a campaign that will stress issues like environmentalism.

Caroline Gleich lives in Silver Creek and is best known in the Park City area for her extensive career in ski mountaineering and environmental activism. She is one of three Democrats competing for the party’s nomination. The plans by Romney, a Republican, to retire, meanwhile, have triggered a clash for the GOP nomination. The Republican who emerges with the nomination will be heavily favored to win the seat.

“As I start this climb towards the U.S. Senate, I carry with me the lessons learned from reaching mountain peaks and navigating life’s terrain. My commitment is unwavering — to empower, to protect, and to advocate for a brighter future,” Gleich said in a prepared statement announcing the campaign. “I’ve been an underdog my whole life with skeptics questioning my height, strength and bravery for scaling the world’s tallest mountains. Yet I’ve summited Everest and Cho Oyu. I’ve broken records and defied limits. Running for the United States Senate to represent the people of Utah is undoubtedly an uphill climb, but I’m no stranger to overcoming challenges.”

The announcement also said she is “answering Senator Romney’s call for ‘a new generation of leaders.'” It said, “Gleich’s vision for Utah is rooted in a commitment to creating positive change, with a focus on advocating for people and the planet, social and environmental justice, and elevating critical issues such as air quality, gender equity, climate action, and more.”

The official launch of the Gleich campaign is planned shortly. It is likely the candidate will provide additional details about her platform at that time.

The presence of Gleich as a candidate suddenly makes this year’s Senate election more notable for people in Park City and surrounding Summit County. It is extraordinarily rare for a local person to seek a seat in the Senate even as there have been repeated attempts by people from Park City or elsewhere in Summit County to win a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Although Gleich’s platform, which is expected to be heavily influenced by her environmentalism, will likely draw broad interest in Park City and Summit County, she will need to convince voters elsewhere in the state her agenda is the best for Utah. Park City-area candidates who have sought a seat in the lower chamber of Congress in the past 20 years won support from local voters but were overwhelmed by ballots cast in other, more conservative parts of the district in landslide Election Day losses.

There are two Park City-area candidates for Congress this year, adding to local interest in the elections. Glenn Wright, a Democratic stalwart and former member of the Summit County Council, is the only person from the party campaigning in the 3^rd Congressional District. He will likely perform well in Summit County on Election Day and struggle elsewhere in the conservative district, which the Republicans are expected to hold.

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