Over 1,400 people responded to our simple question, "Do you support Jumbo Glacier Resort?" and now, Curbediverse, the results are in. In Curbed Ski's most popular poll ever, 81% of readers said they were opposed to the project. The controversial plans call for a massive new resort with 14,640 skiable acres (Whistler/Blackcomb is 8,171 skiable acres), 23 chairlifts spanning four different glaciers, 5,627 vertical feet of skiing, and 2,300 vertical feet of summer skiing on Jumbo Glacier. And just days after our poll concluded, the British Columbian government has delayed their decision on the future of Jumbo as it seeks "greater clarity" on whether proposed buildings are inside an avalanche zone.
There's been plenty of debate since the project was first proposed decades ago. The scale, fiscal feasibility, and environmental impact of the project has been criticized for years, especially given that the full build-out of the project would require 20 years of construction activity at an estimated cost of almost one billion dollars.
The plans for Jumbo Glacier Resort include a base village of 5,500 beds on 272 acres. Basically, it's like creating a town of 10,000 people from scratch. Currently, the glacier is used mainly by Canadian skiers who tour in to access a backcountry hut or go heli-skiing, and it used to be used by Canadian race teams who used snowcats to train on the glacier in the summer.
We were waiting on a decision from environment minister Mary Polak on whether or not the project's environmental certificate would be renewed or not. "Substantial" construction needed to be completed in order to keep the certificate. But according to a report from the Vancouver Sun, the province's Environmental Assessment Office said it required a new avalanche risk evaluation to prove that the resort is complying with a requirement that it not build the daylodge and service building within an avalanche zone.
There's no new timeline on when a decision might be made, so this jumbo-sized saga continues.
· Vote Now: Do You Support Jumbo Glacier Resort? [Curbed Ski]
· Proposed $1 Billion Jumbo Glacier Resort Still May Not Happen [Curbed Ski]
· British Columbia's Proposed Jumbo Glacier Resort [Curbed Ski]
· Color Us Jealous: Early Season Powder at Whistler Blackcomb [Curbed Ski]
· Which Ski Resort Has The Most Skiing in North America? [Curbed Ski]
· Could Whistler Area Get New Backcountry Ski Area? [Curbed Ski]
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