County Commission gets update on 910 Cattle Ranch acquisition

Summit County is in the process of purchasing the 8,587.7-acre 910 Cattle Ranch north of Jeremy Ranch. About 1,600 of that acreage is in Morgan County. On June 4 Summit County Land and Natural Resources Director Jessica Kirby gave the Morgan County Commission an update on how the process is going.

Summit County had been in talks with property owner David Bernolfo for close to a decade before acquiring an option to purchase the property last summer, she said. At that time Summit County made a $15 million down payment funded by a GOED bond. It is waiting for an approved forest legacy grant of $40 million to complete the purchase. That process is expected to take up to 18 months.

Even after all the papers are signed, it may be some time before the property is open to the public, Kirby said. “It could be three or four years before we have a plan together that can actually be implemented on the property.”

For the next year or so Summit County will engage in a planning process to make sure the property has the best management plan possible once the county acquires it, Kirby said. “We've brought in almost a million dollars this year just to put management plans together.”

The planning process is critical to ensure best management practices in wildlife, recreation, watershed protection, restoration and education, she said. “The proximity to Salt Lake City is obviously one of our biggest concerns as far as overuse and over-love of this property. So definitely at the forefront of our management strategy is figuring out a way that we can balance the use and maintain the wilderness feeling and the great natural resources that are out there.”

Summit County is also going after grants to help them fund ongoing property management. 

One thing is certain about the property — it will not be developed as residential or commercial space, Kirby said. The whole property will be under a perpetual conservation easement which effectively removes development rights.

“We are really looking at this as a different piece of property. It’s not going to be another Park City mountain or Round Valley or thousands of miles of trail. We hope to look at it very differently and look at wildlife first, restoration first, habitat first to keep a sense of wilderness out there.”

“There'll be supplemental recreation structures like bathrooms, parking lots, maybe a couple sheds but no significant development,” she said.

Bernolfo, who intends to set up a foundation that will donate the proceeds of the sale to the University of Utah, has stipulated that hunting will be prohibited on the property, Kirby said.

In addition, Summit County has already determined no motorized vehicles will be allowed.

“Right now, the only thing I can say with great confidence is that motorized vehicles have been taken off the plate,” Kirby said. “It's just not appropriate. It's not a large enough area for that but we are looking at creating access for equestrian [use]” along with hiking trails, fishing along the river “if we can get a sustainable fishery going” and some limited winter cross-country skiing access.  

Summit County has so far been working with professionals as it begins to solidify its plans for the property and county officials hope to have a draft management ready by the end of summer. They plan to begin holding public meetings to gather input at that point, Kirby said.

“Our next steps are to just take it really slow,” she said. “So we are trying to be very intentional with what we're going to do on the property.” λ