Professional Documents
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Park City Complaint
Park City Complaint
BERGMAN [13641]
RICHARDS BRANDT MILLER NELSON If you do not respond to this
111 E. Broadway, Suite 400 (84111) document within applicable time
P.O. Box 2465 limits, judgment could be
Salt Lake City, Utah 84110-2465 entered against you as requested.
[email protected]
Telephone: (801) 531-2000
Fax No.: (801) 532-5506
Attorney for Petitioner
Robert Theobald
Respondents.
Steven H. Bergman of RICHARDS BRANDT MILLER NELSON, and pursuant to Rule 8 of the Utah
Rules of Civil Procedure and Sections 801 and 802 of the Municipal Land Use, Development,
and Management Act, U.C.A. §§ 10-9a-801 & 802, hereby seeks review of a final Land Use
Decision of Respondent Park City Municipal Corporation (“Park City”), or in the alternative,
enforcement of applicable provisions of the Park City Municipal Code and Ordinances against
Parties
1. Petitioner Robert Theobald is a long-time resident of Park City, Utah who resides
Utah with an official address of 445 Marsac Avenue, P.O. Box 1480, Park City, Utah 84060.
of 255 N. Main Street A18, Park City, Utah 84060 according to records on file with the Utah
Division of Corporations.
part, by Gerry and Sarah Hall, and in turn, Crescent Vertical owns that certain real property
Vertical’s property at 2750 Meadow Creek Drive (the “Crescent Vertical Property”).
6. The final Land Use Decision(s) to be reviewed are: (i) the issuance of an
Amended Building Permit, Number 21-1302, as amended December 7, 2022, issued to Crescent
Vertical; (ii) other matters outside of the building permit, such as the planting of trees with
improper permitting and the City’s failure to enforce; (iii) the denial of Petitioner’s and other
parties’ December 9, 2022 Complaint, as amended February 15, 2023, re the Crescent Vertical
property on March 21, 2023; and (iv) Park City’s refusal to hear Petitioner’s timely appeal to the
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Board of Adjustment as set forth in an April 13, 2023 letter to Petitioner from Park City’s
Planning Director.
7. The Building Permit, as amended, issued to Crescent Vertical for the Crescent
hereto as Exhibit 2.
9. The Amended Complaint by Petitioner and others submitted on February 15, 2023
10. Petitioner’s timely March 31, 2023 appeal to the Park City Board of Adjustment
of the unwritten denial of Petitioner’s and other parties’ Complaint is attached hereto as Exhibit
4.
11. Park City’s letter denying Petitioner’s appeal to the Board of Adjustment dated
12. Jurisdiction in this Court is proper as all parties are residents or entities of the
State of Utah.
13. Venue is proper in this Court as this Petition concerns Land Use Decisions
14. Petitioner has standing to bring this Petition as he is an adversely affected party
who owns property within 300 feet of the boundary of the Crescent Vertical property and has
submitted a written Complaint regarding the Amended Permit issued to Crescent Vertical and
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Factual Background
15. Petitioner owns real property located at 2810 Holiday Ranch Loop Road that
16. The Crescent Vertical property is located at 2750 Meadow Creek Drive, is located
17. The Willow Ranch Subdivision is zoned in the Estate District and is within the
Sensitive Lands Overlay. See Park City Official Zoning Map available at
https://parkcity.maps.arcgis.com/home/index.html.
18. Crescent Vertical acquired the Crescent Vertical property on or about August 26,
2020.
19. During 2021, Crescent Vertical sought to renovate the Crescent Vertical property,
and in connection with those renovations sought to amend the Plat for the Crescent Vertical
20. The Plat amendment process began first, with the Park City City Council
approving an ordinance in April 2021 to amend the Plat. See Ordinance 2021-20 (April 29, 2021)
21. Initial signatures on the Amended Plat date from July 2021.
22. Lot 2 Willow Ranch Replat First Amended for the Crescent Vertical property was
recorded as Entry No. 1181780 on January 20, 2022 with the Summit County Recorder. A true
and correct copy of the Replat First Amended is attached hereto as Exhibit 7.
23. Crescent Vertical applied for a Building Permit on or about October 1, 2021, with
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24. The application was incomplete in several respects. First, the application included
plans to add a pool, but no application was made for a Conditional Use Permit for the pool.
25. Under applicable provisions of the Park City Land Management Code (“LMC”),
including LMC 15-2.10-2(B)(19) on the date that the original permit was issued, i.e., October 27,
2021, pools, spas, and similar facilities were conditional uses that required a Conditional Use
Permit.
26. On October 27, 2021, the definition of Recreation Facilities, Private in LMC 15-
27. Notwithstanding that the Park City Planning Commission deleted some of the
terms from the definition of Recreation Facilities, Private in the LMC, the amended definition of
Recreation Facilities, Private on April 4, 2022, still requires a CUP for the ongoing construction
Recreation Facilities, Private. Recreation facilities operated on private Property and not
open to the general public, including Recreation Facilities such as swimming pools,
tennis courts, outdoor Pickleball Courts, and similar facilities for the Use by Owners and
guests.” (emphasis added)
28. The amendment of the definition in 2022 was done with Sarah Hall, both a
the amendment and voting on the amendment without disclosing that the change was being
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29. Second, the application did not include complete plans for the home, with
inaccurate floor plans (including missing pages) and no square footage calculations stamped by a
registered architect as required by the LMC. The latter is significant, as the Amended Plat for the
Crescent Vertical property and Park City Ordinance 2021-20 both include express limitations on
the size of the home. For example, Plat Note 13 states that “[t]he Home square footage is limited
to a maximum of 9,300 square feet, excluding the first 600 square feet of the attached garage
space per CC&Rs and the City’s Land Management Code.” Amended Plat, Note 13 (Ex. 7); see
also Amended Plat Note 19 (“Floor plans for both house and barn shall be submitted at the time
of a building permit for any modification to the house and any new construction for the barn,
showing that the combined maximum square footage will not exceed 9,800 square feet. Plans
must be stamped and signed by a registered architect to ensure the maximum total square footage
30. Park City further did not require Crescent Vertical to prepare a Sensitive Lands
Overlay analysis as required by LMC 15-2.21 for all lands within Sensitive Lands Overlay Zone
and 15-2.10-6 for Conditional Uses in the Estate District, such as the Crescent Vertical property.
31. Nor did Park City require Crescent Vertical to “provide a wetlands delineation by
a qualified professional utilizing the methods of the 1987 Army Corp of Engineers Manual for
Identifying and Delineating Jurisdictional Wetlands, as amended.” LMC 15-2.10-6 & 15-2.21-6.
33. When issues with the Permit were raised by Petitioner and others with David
Thacker, Chief Building Official for Park City, Mr. Thacker wrote to Gerry Hall, one of the
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managers of, and a beneficial owner of, Crescent Vertical, informing him of the issues with the
pool and square footage. For example, in an email dated November 11, 2022, Mr. Thacker stated
that:
The concerns we have received related to the total square footage of the home and
pool are not clear in the current set of plans. Specifically, the building plans do not
have the total square footage of the building noted as it is proposed to be built.
The approved plans have several areas not included in the square footage totals, and
an amended page submitted (showing additional finished area) but not calculated.
Additionally, the pool does not have clear dimensions on the plan. Per our previous
conversation it was indicated this is not a pool but a hot tub. However, the originally
submitted and updated pool plans all note this is a pool.
1. A plan showing the dimensions of the pool (width, length, and depth). The pool
plans indicate two areas of a pool. Please indicate what is proposed to be built
2. A CUP application for a pool will be required based on Land Management Code
regulations unless the plans are updated and approved as a hot tub.
3. A licensed Utah State Architects stamped and signed set of plans showing the
actual square footage of the structure including the pool area.
34. Even though Crescent Vertical did not provide the three things Mr. Thacker
requested, an Amended Building Permit 21-1302 was apparently issued on December 7, 2022.
Subsequent emails between Mr. Thacker and Mr. Hall indicated that Mr. Thacker was still
35. Having not received any determinative response or actions from Park City, on
December 9, 2022, Petitioner Theobald, along with three other neighbors (collectively
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36. In addition to issues involving the lack of a CUP for the pool, the absence of
Sensitive Lands Overlay analysis, and the square footage issues, the December 9, 2022
Complaint also raised issues with wetlands and wildlife protection and disturbance, fencing
issues and view corridors, including planting of trees outside the allowed limits of disturbance
set forth in the Willow Ranch CC&Rs incorporated into the Amended Plat as established by the
Army Corps of Engineers. The Complainants requested an immediate stop work order.
37. On February 15, 2023, the Complainants supplemented their Complaint with
additional information, including additional evidence that the square footage was in excess of the
maximum allowed by the Amended Plat and that Crescent Vertical’s attempt to circumvent the
CUP process by recharacterizing the pool as a hot tub was improper. (See Exhibit 3.)
38. There were a number of meetings and telephone calls between Petitioner, his
neighbors, and various City officials, including Mr. Thacker, the Chief Building Official, Nann
Worel, Park City Mayor, and Margaret Plane, Park City City Attorney.
39. One such telephone conference call occurred on March 21, 2023 between among
Petitioner, Mayor Worel, and City Attorney Plane wherein Mayor Worel and City Attorney
Plane orally indicated to Petitioner and Mr. Jensen that Park City would not be pursuing the
40. On March 30, 2023, in a discussion with Mr. Thacker, Petitioner learned that Mr.
Thacker was no longer investigating the December 9, 2022 Complaint, as amended, and that he
would not be preparing a written response or final decision to the December 9, 2022 Complaint,
as supplemented February 15, 2023. Mr. Thacker further indicated that Mayor Worel and City
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41. Based on the discussion with Mr. Thacker, Petitioner believed that Park City
intended for the March 21, 2023 meeting between Petitioner, Mayor Worel, and City Attorney
42. Accordingly, on March 31, 2023, Petitioner timely appealed the unwritten denial
of the December 9, 2022 Complaint to the Board of Adjustment. The Appeal included the
December 9, 2022 Complaint, the supplementation of that Complaint on February 15, 2023, and
several other exhibits, including two Letter Reports, a PowerPoint presentation, a chart of home
square footage calculations from various methods, and the Amended Plat. A true and correct
43. The Appeal also referenced Planning Commission meetings on February 23, 2022
and March 23, 2022, where Sarah Hall, who is a sitting Planning Commissioner, as well as one
of the managers and beneficial owners of Crescent Vertical, proposed and participated in
discussion and voting to amend the LMC to exempt hot tubs from the CUP process – without
disclosing that such a change would specifically benefit her incomplete Building Permit
application.
44. Finally, the Appeal referenced the decision of the Board of Adjustment from
March 1, 2022 In the Matter of the Appeal Filed by Third Party Neighbor regarding an
Disturbance Restrictions in the Willow Ranch Subdivision Plat and City Ordinance enacting the
same wherein the Board of Adjustment determined that the Willow Ranch Plat (which is also
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45. On April 13, 2023, Gretchen Milliken, the outgoing Park City Planning Director,
advised Petitioner by letter that Park City would not consider his appeal to the Board of
Adjustment, asserting that the appeal was not timely and that there was no final action to appeal.
District Court Review under the Municipal Land Use, Development, and Management Act
46. Section 801 of the Municipal Land Use. Development, and Management Act
(“MLUDMA”) provides that an adversely affected party may file a Petition for Review of a land
use decision with the District Court within 30 days after a decision is final provided that the
47. Section 801 further provides that the District Court may review any land use
48. “A land use decision is arbitrary and capricious if the land use decision is not
49. “A land use decision is illegal if the land use decision: (A) is based on an
incorrect interpretation of a land use regulation; (B) conflicts with the authority granted by this
50. Section 802 of MLUDMA provides that an adversely affected party may
directing the land use authority to enforce the applicable codes or ordinances or by direct
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51. Among other things, the District Court can issue injunctions, mandamus,
abatement or other appropriate actions and can prevent, enjoin, abate or order removed an
reconstruct, alter, or change the use of any building or other structure within a municipality
stated herein.
54. Petitioner is an adversely affected party from a final land use decision of Park
City, as he resides within 300 feet of the boundary of the property at issue, the Crescent Vertical
Property.
55. Petitioner timely challenged the final land use decision, submitting a Complaint
with others on December 9, 2022 that challenged Park City’s issuance of an Amended Building
56. The December 7, 2022 Amended Permit was illegal or unlawful as Crescent
Vertical did not obtain a Conditional Use Permit for the pool, did not conduct a Sensitive Lands
Overlay analysis or provide a wetlands analysis, and sought to renovate a home that exceeded the
maximum square footage permitted by the Amended Plat and Park City Ordinance 2021-20.
57. Petitioner has exhausted all administrative remedies, seeking repeatedly to obtain
a written decision on the December 9, 2022 Complaint, as supplemented on February 15, 2023,
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and then timely appealing to the Park City Board of Adjustment when the Mayor and City
Attorney told Petitioner that Park City would not provide a written determination on the
58. Park City then refused to permit Petitioner to appeal the decision to the Park City
59. In addition to issuing an unlawful or illegal Amended Building Permit, Park City
acted arbitrarily and capriciously in refusing to issue a written determination to the December 9,
2022 Complaint and refusing to allow Petitioner to appeal that refusal to the Park City of Board
of Adjustment.
60. Park City’s actions are arbitrary and capricious as their own records indicate that
the Amended Building Permit was not lawful, yet Park City has refused to require submission of
61. Park City’s actions are illegal as they are acting in violation of numerous Park
City LMC provisions and ordinances, including, but not limited to LMC 15-2.10-2. 15-2.10-6,
62. Wherefore, Petitioner seeks an order of this Court instructing Park City to revoke
Amended Building Permit 21-1302 or to permit Petitioner to appeal the challenge of Amended
Building Permit 21-1302 and the denial of the December 9, 2022 Complaint, as supplemented on
63. Petitioner further seeks an order of this Court instructing Park City to issue a Stop
Work Order to Crescent Vertical pending submission of a lawful application for a Building
Permit for the Crescent Vertical property, including a Conditional Use Permit, a Sensitive Lands
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Overlay analysis, and a wetlands analysis, or an order of this Court requiring a determination by
stated herein.
65. Petitioner is an adversely affected party from a final land use decision of Park
City, as he resides within 300 feet of the boundary of the property at issue, the Crescent Vertical
Property.
66. Respondent Crescent Vertical is renovating a home in the Estate District and
Sensitive Lands Overlay Zone of Park City in violation of numerous Park City Land
Management Code provisions, the Amended Plat for the Crescent Vertical Property, and Park
set by the Amended Plat and Park City Ordinance 2021-20, as calculations
of the actual square footage of the Crescent Vertical property all exceed
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d. Failing to prepare a wetlands analysis;
e. Building and/or altering the vegetation outside the Limits of Disturbance set
corridor; and
69. These violations can only be enforced by this Court, as Park City refuses to do so.
70. Wherefore, this Court should enjoin further building or other activity on the
Crescent Vertical property unless and until Crescent Vertical submits a complete and compliant
building permit application that includes an approved Conditional Use Permit and valid Sensitive
71. The Court should further order Crescent Vertical to comply with the maximum
square footage limitations allowed on the Amended Plat and by Park City Ordinance 2021-20.
72. The Court should further order Crescent Vertical to restore all areas outside the
Limits of Disturbance that have been restored and to remove any and all vegetation that does not
comply with the Amended Plat and the Park City Municipal Code.
73. Alternatively, this Court should issue a writ of mandamus to Park City to enforce
the Park City Municipal Code and Park City Ordinance 2021-20, to issue a Stop Work Order to
Crescent Vertical and to require Crescent Vertical to comply with all requirements of the Park
City Municipal Code and Park City Ordinance 2021-20 before work can resume.
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Prayer for Relief
ii. Permit Petitioner to appeal the challenge of Amened Building Permit 21-
1302 and the denial of the December 9, 2022 Complaint, as supplemented on February
lawful application for a Building Permit for the Crescent Vertical property, including a
Conditional Use Permit, a Sensitive Lands Overlay analysis, and a wetlands analysis; and
iv. Refer the Appeal of Petitioner to the Park City Board of Adjustment;
C. Alternatively, for this Court to issue a Writ of Mandamus to Park City to enforce
ii. Require a deed restriction or new Plat Note indicating that all permitted
buildable square footage has been consumed and that a Barn or other outbuilding may not
iii. Require Crescent Vertical to comply with all requirements of the Park
City Municipal Code and Park City Ordinance 2021-20 before work can resume;
D. Alternatively, this Court should enjoin further building or other activity on the
Crescent Vertical property unless and until Crescent Vertical submits a complete and compliant
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building permit application that includes an approved Conditional Use Permit and valid Sensitive
E. The Court should further order Crescent Vertical to remove any construction that
causes the home to exceed the maximum square footage allowed on the Amended Plat and by
F. The Court should further order Crescent Vertical to restore all areas outside the
Limits of Disturbance that have been restored and to remove any and all vegetation that does not
comply with the Amended Plat and the Park City Municipal Code;
s/ Steven H. Bergman
Steven H. Bergman
Attorneys for Petitioner Robert Theobald
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H. Craig Hall (1307)
Hyrum J. Bosserman (16404)
KC Hooker (18018)
BENNETT TUELLER JOHNSON & DEERE
3165 East Millrock Drive, Suite 500
Salt Lake City, Utah 84121
(801) 438-2000
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
Attorneys for Petitioner
STATE OF UTAH
individual, Petitioner,
Case No. 230500181
vs.
Judge Kent Holmberg
PARK CITY MUNICIPAL
CORPORATION, a municipality;
CRESCENT VERTICAL, LLC, a
Utah limited liability company,
Respondents.
Please take notice that H. Craig Hall, Hyrum J. Bosserman, and KC Hooker of the law
firm of Bennett Tueller Johnson & Deere, hereby enters her appearance in the above-entitled
case, as counsel for Robert Theobald. All documents, correspondence, and court pleadings
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on the 29th day of August, 2023, I caused a true and correct copy