Since Vail Resorts bought Park City Mountain Resort for $182.5 million a few weeks ago, the industry giant has added PCMR to the Epic Pass and announced support for Ski Utah's plan to create an 18,000-acre mega resort. We've broken down what Vail's purchase means for skiers this year, but without a doubt the biggest changes won't happen until next summer. Now, we have new details from Vail's CEO about the biggest project at PCMR: the plan to connect nearby Canyons with Park City's namesake ski area.
Rob Katz, the CEO of Vail Resorts, said last week that the company plans to connect PCMR and Canyons in the summer of 2015. The Park Record has confirmed that the link will be a chairlift.
What the lift will look like is still under view, but Rob Katz said, "Just given the terrain, it'll probably be a chairlift, a singular chairlift, that you can ride up and then down . . . so you can ride it both uphill and then download to the other side," Katz said.
No plans have been released and there's still little information about what Vail Resorts will have to submit (and to whom) under the regulatory process. But for construction to start next spring, Vail will have to get things going quickly.
With Ski Utah announcing the other lift alignments required to connect all 7 Wasatch ski areas under the ONE Wasatch plan, Vail's plans mean that the ONE Wasatch timeline has likely been accelerated. Will the other ONE Wasatch connections also start construction next summer? Stay tuned, Curbediverse.
· Vail outlines plans to connect PCMR and Canyons in 2015 [The Park Record]
· The Seven Most Insane Moments from the PCMR-Talisker Battle [Curbed Ski]
· Breaking: Vail Resorts Buys Park City Mountain Resort [Curbed Ski]
· New Map Shows How 7 Utah Ski Areas Could Become One [Curbed Ski]