Summit County interviews seven applicants for new Cemetery District advisory board

Summit County Council members conducted round‑robin interviews of seven applicants for five seats on a newly revived Cemetery District advisory board, hearing applicants’ backgrounds in engineering, education, land planning, law and nonprofit governance and their views on siting and financing a county cemetery.

The council opened the first interview by asking applicants why they wanted the post and what relevant skills they would bring. Rachel said her civil‑engineering background — including environmental clearances for large infrastructure projects — and a later career in education gave her experience with stakeholder coordination and translating technical data for the public. She said Park City cemeteries are full and that county residents need options, especially in Snyderville Basin.

William ("Bill") described himself as a real‑estate attorney with CPA training who has worked for two years on a proposal to site a cemetery adjacent to a local temple; he said the project previously gained county approval for a roughly 300‑plot facility and a crematorium but encountered site‑level challenges. Pete, a landscape architect, recommended reviewing existing county‑owned parcels and cited past work that found bedrock at one candidate site; he suggested exploring county parcel inventories or public‑private partnerships.

Other candidates described complementary skills. Ari cited experience on the North Summit Fire Board and said he understands volunteer startup work. Marietta, who said she planned to change her residency to Park City, emphasized prior bond and board experience and noted her personal difficulty finding local internment options. Max, a former planning director and planning‑commission member, said the board should begin with a demographic study and needs assessment to set scope and financing strategies.

Council members’ questions focused on local residency, time availability for a startup board, and familiarity with past efforts to identify a site. Staff told applicants the council would confer after completing interviews and make appointments for five of the seven candidates; successful applicants will be notified once the council finalizes selections.

The interviews are part of an effort to activate a Cemetery District advisory board the county has discussed for several years. No formal appointments or votes occurred at the meeting; the council said it would convene privately to deliberate and return an announcement once selections are made.