Architect Jack Johnson
Photography: Timothy Thimmes
As you look around at the 100-square-mile Park City area, you will not see very many projects that weren’t influenced by the stylistic touch of the Jack Johnson Company. Jack Johnson has been a major architectural force in the area since he first came here from California in 1971.
Born and raised in the Midwest, Johnson received his Civil Engineering degree from the University of Illinois. After relocating to southern California, he started skiing at nearby Mammoth Mountain. He instantly fell in love with the sport, which became a lifelong passion.
Johnson first worked in Utah as an engineer for Edgar Stern, whose Greater Park City Company had purchased then-Park City Resort. Johnson soon headed the entire design department for the ski resort, overseeing all of its building projects. It was then that he developed “a vision of what [Park City] could be.”
In 1975, when Greater Park City Company underwent some changes, Johnson faced “meager employment opportunities in the Salt Lake City area.” Rather than leave the mountains that he had come to love, he decided to start his own company — J. J. Johnson & Associates. Over the past 31 years, the Jack Johnson Company, as the firm is now known, has grown considerably. From his office on Highway 224 near Sun Peak, Jack Johnson oversees 140+ employees who work out of five offices in Park City, Boise, Phoenix, Scottsdale and Atlanta. The firm specializes in all types of recreational resort planning and residential communities.
In his 30+ year tenure in the Park City area, Johnson has seen considerable change. From one of his first offices located in the Treasure Mountain Inn, he could “watch the potholes growing and the dogs sleeping on Main Street.” Eight years ago, as he was planning his new office complex, he wondered if he really wanted to build “way out in the middle of nowhere in the Sun Peak area.” In those eight years, he’s watched the area from Kimball Junction to Main Street fill in with development. He’s proud of his involvement in that development and of “working with clients creating tremendous projects in the whole resort area.”
As you walk into Johnson’s spacious office lobby, you notice his understanding and love of the mountain landscape. The rustic design incorporates huge Douglas fir tree trunks growing through the atrium. The wood treatment runs throughout the building and seems a reflection of the down-to-earth Johnson. As he looks back on the changes in the area over the past 30 years, he says, “There are fewer potholes and fewer dogs, believe it or not. Other beneficial changes are good coffee shops and restaurants. On the other hand, we have too much traffic and too many traffic lights.”
He feels that one of his talents is understanding developers and how they do business. Since he sees things from their point of view, he is better able to incorporate his “vision” into the developments he helps to plan.
Jack Johnson is proud that he has had an integral part in the planning of the Park City area from its earliest days as a destination resort. His firm was influential in the initial development of the Deer Valley Resort, and his planning is also evident in Park Meadows, Promontory, Glenwild, Tuhaye, Sun Peak, Silver Springs, the Prospector area, Thaynes Canyon, Deer Crest, and other neighborhoods.
As for the future, Johnson says, “I don’t see very much new development coming to this area. We’re pushed to the limit, with no more open space to develop. Growth is now moving to the outlying areas such as Heber City and Midway, which are planning resorts like Park City in the high-end range.”
Johnson says that the Park City area will continue to grow, not in developments, but in the services needed by the community. “I can think of no other community our size with the numbers and types of cultural and recreational activities available. We have incredible amenities for our citizens, including a top-end free bus service.”
Johnson says he will never leave the area because he enjoys the mountain atmosphere, ambience and recreational activities. He still has a “passion for skiing and other activities unique to high-mountain living.” He says he’s “fortunate to live in a place where all of them are available.” As you look around this community’s architectural face, you’ll see Jack Johnson’s love of the area stamped on it.
Carolyn Southerlin moved to Park City in 1975 and has also witnessed the many changes to the area. She likes many of the changes, but misses the dogs sleeping on Main Street.
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