How local is more local?

Who best represents what Saratoga is?

This is the question we at the Saratoga Sun find ourselves asking following the May 21 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council in which they refused to fill a vacancy on the Carbon County Visitors’ Council Board of Directors. With a month to fill the vacancy, weeks of advertising and a deadline of May 31 a motion to appoint the sole applicant—McCall Burau—failed due to lack of a second.

When Councilmember Kathy Beck, who made the motion, asked why there wasn’t a second, Councilmember Jerry Fluty explained his decision, or lack thereof.

Per the Carbon County Visitors’ Council, Saratoga’s representative “only needs to be a qualified elector of the county and should be employed, have a background or an interest in the travel and tourism industry.” Additionally, the applicant would need to live in Carbon County and have the best interests of Carbon County tourism and travel as their primary focus. Burau, as far as we can tell, fits these criteria.

She and her husband Danny, who served on the Carbon County Visitors’ Council for the past six years, have owned a popular restaurant in Saratoga since 2018. With that business, they have not only helped bring in taxes for the Town of Saratoga’s budget through the Sales and Use Tax and Specific Purpose Sales and Use Tax but have also employed people who turn around and spend that money in the Valley as well.

“When tourists visit Saratoga, they bring major economic benefits. In addition to the lodging taxes collected, ‘Leisure and Hospitality’ is the largest employment sector in Carbon County, providing 22% of our jobs,” wrote Burau in her letter to the town council. “But tourism isn’t just about attracting visitors; it’s about creating opportunities and enhancing the quality of life for everyone in our community.”

Along with her interest in serving on the Carbon County Visitors’ Council Board of Directors, Burau also serves as the chairman of the Saratoga Planning Commission. The planning commission has held discussions on the ongoing housing crunch in Saratoga, discussed short term rentals and brought in OV Consulting to examine the pedestrian accessibility of Saratoga. A mother of three and business owner who already volunteers her time to one board and is willingly volunteering to serve on another board? Seems like someone who has a vested interest in our community.

None of these, it seems, qualifies Burau in the view of the majority of the Saratoga Town Council.

Councilmember Fluty said he was looking for someone “that’s been in the Valley quite a while.” We are curious: what counts as quite a while? It’s obviously not years—though that shouldn’t really matter—as Burau and her family have lived in Saratoga for nearly a decade. If it is years, then how many years? Is it decades? Is it generations?

While we await an answer to what length of time qualifies as “quite a while,” we have another question for Councilmember Fluty.

What counts as “more local?” According to the Oxford Dictionary, local is defined as “belonging or relating to a particular area or neighborhood, typically exclusively so.” It seems Burau fits that definition as she and her family live in Saratoga and, as previously stated, contribute to the local economy. Does Burau not count as local because she moved here from somewhere else?

As we await answers for those questions, we have yet another. What is Saratoga? As that appeared to be the final qualification determining whether or not someone could represent Saratoga on the Carbon County Visitors’ Council Board of Directors, we would like to know what Councilmember Fluty believes Saratoga is.

Here is what we believe Saratoga is or, at least, should be. It’s a diverse population of pioneer families and people who chose to call the Platte Valley home. It’s a place which welcomes people with open arms to become a member of its community. It’s where people have gone out of their way to help one another in times of need.

Our final question is the same one that was asked by Councilmember Beck on May 21. Why was there not a second to the motion?

If the rest of the council felt so strongly as to whether Burau could, or could not, properly represent Saratoga on the Carbon County Visitors’ Council then they could have—and should have—made those thoughts known through a vote.

Anyone who is willing to volunteer their time to serve and represent our community should be given the opportunity. To deny that to someone—especially when they’re the sole applicant for a vacancy—because they’re not local enough or haven’t met some arbitrary standard is a disservice to our community. Not only that, but it discourages others from taking an active part as well, whether they be a newcomer or a long-time resident.

We ask the Saratoga Town Council reconsider the appointment of McCall Burau to the Carbon County Visitors’ Council Board of Directors seat. Not because she meets the qualifications set forth by that organization or because she was the only applicant, but be­cause not doing so establishes a trend of discouraging volunteers for bo­ards and commissions when the­re is already a concerning lack of in­volvement already.