Planners taking close look at recreation possibilities

Picture a light-rail line connecting the Salt Lake airport to premier ski resorts.

Or dedicated bicycle lanes up the recreation-friendly canyons along the Wasatch Front in Salt Lake Valley.

How about a ban on dogs in those canyons?

Those are just a few of the ideas that emerged from a public opinion survey recently released by a Wasatch canyons planning group in which enhancing public transit, limiting private development and addressing overuse also figure prominently.

And, while respondents generally agreed on the importance of the seven Wasatch canyons as recreation destinations, there was less than a consensus on how to balance the demands of a booming population with the need for protecting ecosystems and fragile watersheds.

A yearlong effort to construct a new, long-term master plan for City Creek, Emigration, Red Butte, Parleys, Millcreek, Big Cottonwood and Little Cottonwood canyons was launched in May, and a first public outreach/comment period was just completed that gathered responses from more than 2,000 residents through an online survey and public meetings. Envision Utah's Wasatch Canyons Tomorrow project, backed by Salt Lake County, Salt Lake City, the state of Utah and the U.S. Forest Service, will update a canyons plan that was last revised in 1989.

Envision Utah's planning director, Gabe Epperson, said the survey results will form the basis for creating new planning and development schemes for the well-used canyons.

"This information informs the next steps in the process," Epperson said. "Now, we use the input to create planning scenarios … then we'll go back to the public for more comment."

While many use conflicts and issues were widely noted, opinions deviated just as widely on how to address them.

Competition between bicycle and automobile traffic was raised repeatedly, but some respondents cited dedicated bike lanes as a solution, while others believed cycling should be more regulated and cyclists ticketed or separated from the roads.

Maintaining canyon access for dog owners and their pets split respondents almost straight down the middle. About half want to continue keeping the canyons doggie friendly, while the other half favor a ban on dogs.

How to handle the increasing pressure of automobile traffic on canyon byways also brought a variety of responses. Many want year-round bus schedules (currently, most bus service focuses on getting skiers and snowboarders to canyon resorts during the winter months,) while others saw economic incentives/disincentives such as charging a per-vehicle fee as another approach.