Gondola is a Waste of Taxpayer’s Funds: A Climber’s Perspective
Gondola is a Waste of Taxpayer’s Funds: A Climber’s Perspective
In 1976-77 I served an internship at Salt Lake City Hall−Ted Wilson was Mayor. I learned he was an avid climber and a former ranger in the Tetons. We bonded over our shared interest in the mountains and climbing. Eventually I was promoted to Recreation Programming Supervisor for the City. Since that experience I have been a strong advocate for protecting the canyons that nurture our valleys.
I’m sharing these memories to illustrate the long history of Wasatch canyon protection that stretches back to the original pioneers. This protection started with the love of the outdoors and this sacred place. Now is not the time to compromise this protection. If anything, we need to adopt the great examples of former political and environmental leaders–bipartisan in their approach–in preserving the canyon and opposing the Little Cottonwood gondola.
Ted was devoted to his home range, the Wasatch. He was instrumental in supporting and preserving wilderness areas, a key player in the establishment of the Lone Peak Wilderness (1978), the first designated wilderness area in Utah. (Mount Olympus Wilderness and Twin Peaks Wilderness were added in 1984.) He solicited my support in 1982 in preventing the construction of a proposed massive condominium and new home project on private property at the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon. This land extended up to and beyond the popular Gate Buttress climbing cliffs.
A creative solution, through a trade agreement, devised by the Mayor, Zions Bank, The Trust for Public Land, the Forest Service and landowners road-blocked this development scenario. Every member of Utah’s Congressional delegation went on public record supporting the land transfer: Representative Dan Marriott, in whose district the canyon lay wrote, “I am in support of the proposed land transfer to make possible the public acquisition of 536 acres of private property in the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon…In addition to its watershed value, the land ranks high in aesthetic value;” The Salt Lake Council of Governments also got on board passing a resolution in support of preservation; Senator Jake Garn expressed his support stating, “The area in question is extremely important to the Salt Lake Valley’s watershed protection efforts. As the former Mayor of Salt Lake City, I am fully committed to protecting that watershed and the environment of Little Cottonwood Canyon.”
The proposed project (at a cost approaching a billion dollars!) has gained steam. Huge towers and thick cables cutting through a largely undeveloped landscape will forever mar spectacular scenery, threaten wildlife and impair the experiences of canyon recreationists including hikers, climbers, back-country skiers and tourists. This is a waste of tax-payer funds, especially with other considerably less expensive options, including more extensive use of public transportation. Home and condominium development was thwarted in the 80’s, now an absurdly expensive gondola…what’s next?
Today, with the threat of construction straight through this tract, these individuals and organizations would be shocked. Here they thought they had preserved this acreage in perpetuity, only to be usurped by commercial interests. To developers and up canyon resorts this land is a commodity to be utilized for maximum financial gain.
Construction will impose significant impacts and irreversible scarring to the landscape and the forest, let alone degradation to the watershed–nearly twenty percent of the water utilized by Salt Lake City comes from this canyon, currently needing very little treatment. Individuals and organizations have rallied to lend their voices against this project. Yes, there are traffic issues, but the wildness of the canyon must be preserved–there are other ways.
Les Ellison lives in Salt Lake City and is an avid climber, skier and biker, often found in the local canyons. He coauthored Wasatch Rock Climbs, a technical climbing guide to climbs in the central Wasatch.