Ellen’s formal comment to WFRC
RE: Wasatch Front Regional Council (WFRC) including funding within their 2050 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) for a UDOT-built $1.4 billion dollar gondola system for Little Cottonwood Canyon
Dear WFRC friends,
As the elected representative of the City of Cottonwood Heights District 4, I am reminding the WRFC that the City of Cottonwood Heights passed Resolution 2022-55 stating the city’s preference for “utilizing regional intermodal hubs at locations geographically removed from the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon (and make) practical, less invasive transportation strategies, such as parking management (apps) technologies, multi-passenger vehicle incentives, tire traction requirements and regionally-placed mobility hubs, the City requests UDOT eliminate the Gondola Alternative from consideration in the final ROD.”
As you know, the City of Cottonwood Heights, the Town of Alta, Salt Lake County, Salt Lake City, as well as Mayor Zoltanski of Sandy City, have documented their formal opposition to the UDOT preference for a gondola solution within the Little Cottonwood Canyon Environmental Impact Statement (LCC EIS) .
According to a formal audit of the 2022 UDOT comments by Friends of Little Cottonwood Canyon, 85% of Utahns oppose a gondola and its associated 2500-stall garage near the mouth of the canyon.
Additionally, as the elected representative of the municipal district in which UDOT proposes to build the gondola base and garage and construct a severe widening creating highway speeds through a residential community, aka “Wasatch Boulevard Expansion”, which falls within their current FEIS, I stand opposed. By UDOT’s own data, there is no sufficient commuter traffic on SR 210’s 2.6 mile stretch within Cottonwood Heights, to support “projected 2050 “5-lane” preference with a “Phased-in 2-lane Imbalanced design”.
I favor a new study be conducted every ten years to see if traffic levels have risen to require a road widening. In the meantime, there is a desperate need to have the 2.6 mile residential strip made safe for all users before motorist, cyclist and pedestrian fatalities occur. The widening, by UDOT’s own data, is to support the building and operation of a 2500-stall garage associated with the gondola and a private commercial development, “La Caille Ski Village” (see April, 2020 EIS comment submission by Chris McCandless/CW Management, LLC).
The WFRC was formulated to meet the needs of its communities. On behalf of my 7500 constituents, I ask that WFRC not recognize UDOT’s request to include a $1.4 billion gondola project within your Draft 2050 RTP.
In community, sincerely,
Ellen Birrell
Council Member, City of Cottonwood Heights
2277 E. Bengal Blvd
Cottonwood Heights, UT 84121
385.910.5942