The Summit County Council will vote Wednesday, Aug. 26, on authorizing up to $20 million in water revenue bonds for Mountain Regional Water Special Service District, the utility serving roughly 24,000 residents in the Park City area.

The bond resolution, presented by Mountain Regional Water General Manager Andy Garland, would authorize the district's 17th supplemental bond issuance. The council convenes as the district's governing board at 4:20 p.m. in the Richins Building auditorium, 1885 W. Ute Blvd.

The bonds come as Mountain Regional Water pushes ahead on the Signal Hill Water Treatment Plant expansion, a project that will double the facility's treatment capacity. The EPA announced a $38 million WIFIA loan for the project in March, and Garland called the expansion "critical infrastructure" in a press release at the time, citing growing demand ahead of the 2034 Winter Olympics. A design document on the agenda shows the plant was at 90% design completion as of July 23.

How the $20 million in bonds relates to the $38 million federal loan, including interest rates and repayment terms, has not been publicly detailed.

HB 48 wildfire code update

Earlier in the afternoon, County Manager Shayne Scott will brief the council on HB 48, Utah's Wildland Urban Interface code, during a 3:50 p.m. work session.

The state law required counties to adopt wildfire mitigation standards and produce boundary maps by Jan. 1, 2026. Property owners with structures in high-risk zones face flat annual fees of $20 to $100 based on square footage in 2026 and 2027. Starting in 2028, fees shift to individual lot assessments by certified WUI coordinators.

The specific focus of Wednesday's update is not detailed in the meeting agenda.

Scott's appearance comes days after a tense exchange between the governor's office and Wasatch Back counties over development policy. On Aug. 18, Gov. Spencer Cox's senior housing advisor Steve Waldrip told the Heber City Council that state funding to Summit and Wasatch counties was "now suspended" over their opposition to the preliminary municipality pilot program, KPCW reported Aug. 21. Scott told KPCW on Aug. 21: "We just welcome a conversation. We are obviously a very pro-housing community, and I would say especially affordable housing."

The HB 48 work session concerns wildfire mitigation, not the preliminary municipality dispute directly, but both touch the broader state-county tension over land-use authority.

Other agenda items

The council will also hold a 6 p.m. public hearing on Ordinance No. 1017, which would amend the county's business license code.

Residents who want to comment must email [email protected] by noon Wednesday, Aug. 26. They can also attend in person or join via Zoom (ID: 772 302 472). The meeting will be livestreamed on the Summit County, Utah Facebook page.