Sustainable Tourism Plan 

Early in the Sustainable Tourism planning process, a GSTC Destination Assessment was commissioned to assess Summit County’s current state of sustainable tourism development and management. Using the GSTC Criteria for Destinations (Version 2, 2019), the GSTC Assessment builds on the county’s foundation of initiatives to assess and improve the sustainability of the tourism sector. The GSTC standard covers the four main categories of destination sustainability:  

• Sustainable destination management and governance  

• Economic benefits to the local host community  

• Protection of cultural heritage, community, and visitor well-being  

• Environmental protection and conservation 

Review the results of the Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) Destination Assessment here. Learn more about the results of the GSTC assessment at a recorded webinar presented by Dr. Kelly Bricker on our Facebook page or review the GSTC assessment Presentation Document.

Note: The GSTC Destination Assessment is not a certification program. Rather, it’s widely recognized as a critical tool for helping destinations improve their management practices and prepare them for future certification by a GSTC accredited destination certification program. 

During the early development of the Sustainable Tourism Plan, the Coraggio Group conducted a comprehensive survey of Park City residents, business owners, workers, and visitors. They used these 2,600+ survey responses, in addition to focus groups and individual interviews with local leaders, to create the Situation Assessment for Park City and Summit County. This assessment identified seven key themes to help inform the Sustainable Tourism planning process:  

• Park City Chamber & Visitors Bureau staff and Board are engaged and prepared to take on the challenges ahead.  

• Degradation of Summit County’s key natural assets is a real and looming threat.  

• Park City’s residents are approaching a breaking point from overtourism.  

• The community of Park City is about to lose itself to the destination of Park City.  

• The destination needs more stewardship, not more promotion.  

• Current and future tourism levels, on top of community population growth, are testing the capacity of Park City’s infrastructure.  

• There is a shared vision and desire to achieve a more sustainable tomorrow. 

Later in the process, the Coraggio Group presented key takeaways from the Situation Assessment, shared progress the Stewardship Council has undertaken towards the creation of the Sustainable Tourism Plan and provided a forum for community sentiments on draft Sustainable Tourism documents. If you'd like to catch up on what we discussed during these sessions, take a look at the recording and document linked below. 

Facebook Live Video 

Presentation Slides

The Destination Stewardship Council was formed to develop the Sustainable Tourism Plan for Park City and Summit County. The council contains members from diverse perspectives, including government representatives, large and small local businesses, nonprofits, and residents at large. Over the course of 7 meetings, the council used the GSTC Assessment and Situation Assessment to create a vision and action plan for the future of sustainable tourism in Park City and Summit County. 

The Destination Stewardship Council included: 

• Roger Armstrong, Summit County Council 
• Tom Bradley, Park City Mountain Resort  
• Luke Cartin, Sustainability, Park City Municipal  
• Chris Conabee, Snyderville Basin Planning Commission  
• Max Doilney, Park City Council & The Corner Store 
• Susie English, Deer Valley  
• Colin Hilton, Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation 
• Daniel (Dano) P. Jauregui, Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, US Forest Service  
• Dana Jones, Snyderville Basin Recreation 
• Brooks Kirchheimer, Hearth and Hill  
• Patrick Matheson, Mountainlands Community Housing Trust  
• Aldy Milliken, Kimball Art Center  
• D Bonnie Park, Citizens for Responsible Development  
• Pat Putt, Planning & Zoning, Summit County  
• Emily Quinton, Sustainability, Summit County  
• Lora Smith, Mountain Trails Foundation  
• Carolyn Wawra, Recycle Utah  
• Ginger Wicks, PCARA, PCALA, HPCA  
• Diego Zegarra, Park City Community Foundation