Park Record file photo
On the day after Independence Day in 2020, Park City Councilor Steve Joyce was jogging and decided to end the outing with a walk on Main Street.
On the Fourth of July, a series of giant murals with social justice themes were put on the asphalt of the shopping, dining and entertainment strip, quickly drawing widespread attention from people who supported the works and those who were displeased. One of the murals — with a Black Lives Matter message — had already become especially controversial.
In a July 5 email to Jenny Diersen, who is the economic development program manager at City Hall, and Arts Council of Park City and Summit County Executive Director Jocelyn Scudder, Joyce told the two the murals were “wonderful” and he thanked them for organizing the work and “selecting such an appropriate, supportive message.”
Joyce, a first-term member of the City Council who is not seeking reelection in this year’s City Hall contest, continued the email, acknowledging there were split opinions even shortly after the murals were created.
“While most of what I am hearing is very positive, we are definitely hearing some complaints. If the end result is that the haters don’t want to come back to Park City, all the better,” he said in the email.
The comment by Joyce is especially notable in a community where tourism drives the economy. Tourism boosters and Park City leaders typically court visitors regardless of political leanings or stands on issues like social justice even if the community itself leans left and sees social equity as a priority. It is unusual for an elected official to essentially dismiss a segment of possible visitors in the manner described in the Joyce message.
Some of the critics of the murals in the weeks after they were created noted the potential impact to the negative side on tourism. Park City, though, enjoyed robust economic numbers in 2020.
The Joyce email was part of a cache of municipal communications centered on the controversy regarding the murals. The communications were compiled at the request of a private citizen using the state Government Records Access and Management Act. The communications were provided to the media in addition to the person who filed the request.
Joyce in an interview described his decision to use the sentence addressing his opinion that it would be “all the better” if “haters” did not desire to return to Park City. He said some of the input to officials at the time were “very racist comments.”
“It’s not who we are,” he said, referring to some of the input in opposition to the murals. “I think Park City, in general, is wonderfully accepting.”
Joyce said the message was designed to be read by the recipients and was not meant to reflect the opinion of the full City Council. He said he was not “attempting to pour fuel on the fire” of the mural controversy.
“We don’t need to tolerate racism here in town,” he said about the input that spurred his July 5, 2020, message.
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October 27, 2021 at 07:00PM
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Park City councilor on social justice murals: If 'haters don't want to come back … all the better' - The Park Record
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