Summit County council reappoints incumbent and interviews four applicants for High Valley Transit board

The Summit County Council interviewed four candidates for one vacancy on the High Valley Transit Board and voted to reappoint incumbent David Geffen to a term ending Dec. 31, 2028.

Council member Candace began public interviews saying, “For those who may not know, David is obviously an existing board member, but puts in a tremendous amount of hours on behalf of this community,” and asked Geffen to describe priorities if reappointed. Geffen, who told the council he has been on the board “for 3 and a quarter years,” listed several near-term projects: moving operations from the Ecker site to a new transit center, planning bus rapid transit (BRT) from Kimball Junction to Park City, and expanding service into Wasatch and toward Mayflower and Provo.

Geffen said High Valley Transit has grown faster than he expected, from a handful of staff to “almost a hundred members of staff,” and that the district’s shift from a startup to a more institutional operation requires stronger internal processes and careful budgeting. He told the council the system is currently fare-free on locally run routes and said he supports keeping local service fare‑free while acknowledging exceptions could make sense for specialized trips such as airport service.

The council also heard from three other applicants. Peter Tomei described long experience with Park City transit and community redevelopment and said he is an “avid user” of transit when possible, emphasizing customer information and connections to the airport. Joseph Newcomb, a former federal revenue-research staffer who later worked in the private sector, described public finance and budgeting experience and said he would focus on “last-mile” access for riders. Richard Sontag asked about whether Promontory pays fees that would qualify that area for transit but was told by council members and legal staff that Promontory generally pays county-wide impact fees and that residency in the Park City School District (the transit district boundary) matters for board eligibility; council members determined Sontag did not meet the residency qualification and he was disqualified from appointment.

Councilors thanked all applicants for volunteering. Council member Roger moved to reappoint David Geffen; the motion carried. The council did not record a roll-call tally in the public record beyond the unanimous voice vote recorded at the meeting.

The county will notify applicants of the appointments and the transit district will proceed with its capital planning and grant applications now that board membership is set.