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Extreme ski makeover

Resorts spending billions to improve lifts, lodging, homes

Joanne Kelley, Rocky Mountain News

Published October 6, 2007 at midnight

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Colorado's ski areas are going to extremes to outdo each other again this season.

Collectively, resort operators and investors are sinking $3 billion - a conservative estimate at that - into ambitious makeovers that involve everything from slopeside real estate development to mountain upgrades.

"The ski business sucks up capital," said James Chung, president of New York-based Reach Advisors. "In a way, it's a little bit of an arms race. That's part of the game they have to play . . . to be top-notch."

More than 12.5 million skiers flocked to Colorado resorts in each of the past two record-setting seasons, helping to justify all the building activity.

"It's easier (when resorts are doing well) because you have the cash flow to reinvest," said Dave Belin, director at RRC Associates, the Boulder-based research and consulting firm.

Some ski resorts - Steamboat, Vail, Snowmass and Winter Park - are practically reinventing themselves in the process with grand villages replacing the '70s-style motifs. And while the biggest projects stretch over a few years, key phases already have been completed.

Demand for luxury lodging

Chung said the resorts have little choice but to think big, given the luxury tastes of those who travel to Colorado for ski vacations.

"The vacation traveler has gotten spoiled, not just by ski resorts but by everything they do on vacation," said Chung, whose strategy and research firm advises resorts and other businesses. "The consumer has developed higher expectations and has become pickier."

Toward that end, Broomfield-based Vail Resorts Inc. has pumped about $100 million into capital improvements at its five ski areas this season.

Vail Mountain, for instance, got two new high-speed chairlifts that will shorten trips to some of its most popular terrain at the top of the mountain.

But much of the frenetic pace of investment has been fueled by a growing appetite for more than just groomed trails and speedier lift rides.

Skiers increasingly want to stay as close to the ski runs as possible, while still having easy access to dining, retail shops and entertainment. And the demand for luxurious lodging has been growing.

That helps explain why resorts with aging base villages have been leveling or renovating outdated buildings or building a slew of new ones.

The town of Vail, with the help of the ski area operator, has been undergoing a $1 billion-plus renewal. One of the biggest additions to the high-end lodging scene is the Arrabelle at Vail Square, which opens in January.

Farther west in the Aspen area, Snowmass Village will unveil $25 million worth of new improvements, part of an overhaul plan to reinvent the aging base area there.

A new kids center, which cost about $17 million to build, is the largest capital project in the company's history. It sits at the center of the new base area.

A number of big ski areas have been playing catch-up with the help of new owners.

The Mueller Family has put $200 million into a base village overhaul at Crested Butte. The southwestern ski resort had lacked luxury lodging and a big meeting facility at the base. The Elevation Hotel, which formerly housed a Club Med, has received a $25 million face-lift and will soon get a spa.

Winter Park, which has been among the last to develop its base area, has grand plans for a pedestrian village and already has committed $132 million to the first phase of the project.

Almost 200 new condo units will open in January, while a parking structure with roughly 300 spaces will be available in December. The projected opening for a new commercial village is December 2008.

The ski area, which is still owned by the city of Denver but operated by Canadian resort giant Intrawest, also put $8 million this summer into a Panoramic Express Chairlift and new runs at Mary Jane.

Intrawest's 2007 purchase of Steamboat Ski Resort also kicked off a building boom in the area. Much of the base is slated for redevelopment, and the downtown area is flush with construction projects.

In its first major move under a new owner, the ski area spent $16 million this summer to fix flaws in its beginner area and moved and installed chairlifts.

A number of other areas - Copper Mountain, Telluride, Arapahoe Basin, Echo Mountain and Monarch - have opened new ski terrain this season.

Arapahoe Basin will almost double in size to 900 acres when it opens an expansion on the backside of its summit in December. The ski area, on the western side of Loveland Pass, spent $3 million on the project and hopes the extra runs will help to spread out growing numbers of visitors.

"The A-Basin expansion is one of the biggest things happening this season," said Rob Perl-man, president of Colorado Ski Country USA, an industry trade group.

Monarch Mountain, whose relatively new owners have spent some money recently buffing up the small base area there, invested another $600,000 this year.

The area will offer an additional 200 acres of cat skiing on the steep chutes in "No Name Bowl" in the Gunnison National Forest.

Resort - Improvements - Why now?

Aspen/Snowmass

The first part of the base village project will be finished by winter with a $17 million "Treehouse Kids" adventure center for children, new Elk Creek Meadows beginner area and two new surface lifts devoted to novices. The terrain park and pipe have been relocated, and a bridge will let users ride over skiers and boarders below.

The biggest and most visited of Aspen's four ski areas had the weakest and most dated facilities. Voters in Snowmass Village passed a referendum giving developers the go-ahead to construct a new village and other projects at the area's base.

Crested Butte

After years of neglect, the base of the ski area has been getting a $200 million face-lift. The former Club Med has been transformed with a $25 million renovation. And part of the Mountaineer Square project will be ready to go by ski season.

The resort recently got new owners willing to spend money on two things that were lacking: luxury lodging and a facility big enough to handle large groups and conferences, something the resort hasn't had in years.

Steamboat

New owner Intrawest checks off the first big upgrade on its wish list: a $16 million project to regrade the beginner area to fix a flawed design. New chairlifts also will be added. That's just part of the estimated $1 billion or more that investors are heaping on the ski town to update its base and downtown.

Steamboat's former owner lacked the wherewithal to make big investments over the past decade, and the area fell behind big rivals in upgrading the mountain. The emergence of a deep-pocketed owner (Intrawest) has prompted others to spend money on improving lodging and retail outlets at the base of the mountain and downtown.

Vail

The flagship resort owned by Broomfield-based Vail Resorts has several new lifts and facilities opening this season as part of a $100 million infusion of capital to the company's five ski areas. A $1 billion-plus overhaul of most of the commercial properties in the town of Vail is nearing completion, as is Vail's posh new Arrabelle hotel and condo development in the old Lionshead area.

The town had a dated look and needed to catch up with the luxe ski resort, which continues to sink huge amounts of money into amenities on the mountain and typically charges the highest prices for skiing.

Winter Park

Operated by Canada's Intrawest, this resort is getting a new pedestrian village that will provide more lodging and parking at the base of the ski runs. The first phase is partially finished at a cost of about $130 million. The nearby Mary Jane area has a new Panoramic Express, a six-passenger lift that shortens the time it takes to access high-elevation terrain; and 100 acres of new intermediate and advanced trails. Price tag: $8 million.

Skiers increasingly want to stay slopeside, and the resort lacked enough adjacent lodging and parking. The area is one of the last large resorts in the state to build an ambitious pedestrian village at its base.

Arapahoe Basin

The ski area west of Loveland Pass will almost double in size when it opens 400 more acres of terrain in December. The $3 million Montezuma Bowl expansion adds 36 additional intermediate, advanced and expert runs to the backside of the summit.

The ski area, one of the closest to the Front Range, has seen increased skier visits and wants to spread out skiers more around the mountain. The plan to expand has been in the works for years, and it finally got approval to move forward.

Beaver Creek

Avon will be connected to the chairlifts at Beaver Creek with a Riverfront Express gondola, cutting down on traffic and allowing quicker access to the slopes. The resort has added a kids gondola and will open a facility for 7- to 14-year-olds in February.

A major $500 million development, including a Westin Hotel in nearby Avon, is in the works. The Vail Resorts-owned Beaver Creek has been pushing its family orientation.

Copper Mountain

The eastern side of the mountain will have a new gladed area that offers expert skiing from the Alpine or Super Bee lifts.

The U.S. Forest Service approved the project near the end of last season.

Telluride

The ski area will open new terrain that allows skiers to access 350 acres of extreme ridgeline acreage with a short hike. The Black Iron Bowl off Lift 12 had previously been guided skiing.

A trend to get skiers out into the backcountry within a ski area's boundaries continues to be popular.

Wolf Creek

The family-owned ski area got its first detachable lift last year. This year's $1 million capital budget goes toward a pressing need: finishing water-free rest-rooms at the top of its Raven and Treasure lifts.

Restrooms at the top of the mountain are a much- needed convenience for skiers, for obvious reasons.

or 303-954-5068

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