A lodging property proposed to be developed at a high-profile Park City intersection may climb to a height that is taller than normally would be allowed at the location.
The firm that wants to demolish The DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Park City – The Yarrow and then rebuild on the land is seeking an exception to the City Hall rules regulating the height of buildings.
The exception sought by the developer, Chicago-based Singerman Real Estate, was one of the topics broached during an open house on Tuesday centered on the project.
The underlying City Hall zoning at the location limits the height of buildings to 35 feet. Park City officials are processing the proposal as what is known as a master planned development. Under the rules of that sort of application, a developer is allowed to seek an exception to the height limits. That decision would be based on an analysis specific to the location.
A representative of Singerman Real Estate at the Tuesday event said the developer wants such an exception to the height restrictions.
The project involves a height of slightly less than 45 feet at the corner of Park Avenue and Kearns Boulevard, stepping up from 35 feet that would also be part of the design at the corner. The designs envision certain other locations to reach 43 feet along Kearns Boulevard.
The Park City Planning Commission holds the authority to approve an exception to the height limits.
The open house, which was held at the hotel, provided an opportunity for the public to learn about details of the project as an important Planning Commission meeting approaches. Upward of 25 people were in attendance. The crowd studied renderings of the project and spoke with representatives of the development. Some of the people appeared to be interested in the height of the proposal.
The project that is before the Planning Commission involves a condominium hotel, a large bloc of units of restricted workforce or otherwise affordable housing and a restaurant with a rooftop bar. Retailers and restaurants are slated to occupy space on the ground floor.
The project entails:
- 174 condominium-hotel units
- 60 units of restricted affordable housing
- 5,935 square feet for restaurants or bars
- 2,543 square feet of retail space
- 6,500 square feet of office space
The developers also intend to build a 12-foot-wide pedestrian-bicyclist pathway just off Park Avenue and Kearns Boulevard on the edge of the project, something Singerman Real Estate says will increase the connectivity in the Bonanza Park area.
The proposal has garnered attention with the location being so important to the community. The intersection of Park Avenue and Kearns Boulevard is one of the busiest in Park City, with many people headed to the mountain resorts and Main Street driving by the location. It is the first heavily developed intersection inbound drivers on S.R. 224 reach inside Park City.
The location is also important since it is critical to the broader Bonanza Park district, an area of Park City that is seen as having significant redevelopment possibility. Some see a project like the one pursued at the site of The DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Park City – The Yarrow as being a catalyst for the wider redevelopment of Bonanza Park.
“We’re designing for the future,” Craig Elliott, a Park City architect tapped by Singerman Real Estate for the project, told the crowd.
Peter Tomai, a Park City-based development partner with Singerman Real Estate, spoke to the attendees about how he sees the project as reflecting Park City leaders’ hopes for the future of Bonanza Park. Tomai also said the location could someday be a place to mark the legacy of the 2034 Winter Olympics, which were recently awarded to Salt Lake City with the Park City area holding a key role. The land is across Kearns Boulevard from the Olympic Welcome Plaza, which celebrates the community’s role in the 2002 Winter Olympics.
The people at the event inquired about a range of issues, including parking that will be incorporated into the project and the architectural designs. One speaker told Singerman Real Estate the project resembles a commercial building rather than a hotel, with a hope the final architecture appears more like what is seen in mountain towns. Another person was concerned about whether there would be enough parking for a project like the one proposed. The Singerman Real Estate side described plans for 300 parking stalls and said that number was sufficient.
The gathering on Tuesday occurred eight days before the Planning Commission is scheduled to address the project.
The project has not garnered widespread interest, but there was recent testimony at a Park City Council meeting about the location. Mark J. Fischer, who once held ambitious plans to redevelop a swath of Bonanza Park, outlined his support for the proposal in an appearance before the elected officials. He described that it would be a setback for the broader Bonanza Park if the project is rejected.