Mountain Spa

The City of Midway has asked the Summit Land Conservancy, Park City’s local accredited land trust, to buy and preserve 45 acres of scenic pastureland in Wasatch County. This will be the Conservancy’s first conservation project in Wasatch County, and will facilitate Midway City’s goals of protecting the open views and agricultural uses that reflect the rural character of the county. The land trust is currently working with the Wasatch Open Lands Board, and the Midway Open Space committee to obtain and use open space bond dollars passed by voters in November 2018. The Conservancy will leverage the government funding with dollars raised from Midway neighbors and private foundations with intent to close on the project in December 2020.

The Mountain Spa project has hatched a unique partnership between land trust, government, and developers to place easements, preserve open space, reduce housing density, and create significant public benefit. The 78-acre property will be divided to allow for a boutique resort and four homesites. Two of these homesites will include permanently protected farmland. The agricultural pastureland parcels are located adjacent to River Road and Burgi Lane. The project will minimize and cluster the allotted development while restoring a dilapidated site to a functional, publicly-accessible spa and business.

The Summit Land Conservancy will hold a conservation easement on 45 acres, preserving the unique features, conservation values, scenic viewsheds and rural agricultural character of the area. The Mountain Spa property is home to geological craters and hot pots (natural hot-water springs that form crater-like depressions), irreplaceable wetlands, and valuable winter wildlife habitat. Mountain Spa sits adjacent to Valais Park on the northern border and will provide trail connections and public access to showcase the unique geologic structures of the land. The two larger agricultural parcels along River Road and Burgi Lane will continue to operate as farmland.