Gondola, observatory, zip line, expanded beginner terrain proposed
EBS STAFF
Snow King Mountain in Jackson, Wyoming, is accepting public input on its Phase 2 development plan that will eventually go before the Bridger Teton National Forest for approval. Once the Forest Service has collected public comments and completed the environmental assessment, it will give Snow King direction about what can and cannot be accomplished in its proposed plan.
“Essentially we are trying to keep alive a small ski resort that has been teetering on shutting down for a long time and want to improve it to attract more visitors and diversify the business,” Snow King General Manager Ryan Stanley wrote EBS in an email. Stanley added he hopes the Bridger Teton National Forest will begin the National Environmental Policy Act process next year and he expects it will be a couple years before Snow King knows if it can act on the proposed improvements.
Snow King Mountain’s Phase 2 plan includes:
– Replacing the 35-year-old summit lift with an eight-person gondola.
– Replacing the Panorama House with a new restaurant, meeting center/planetarium, ski school and ski patrol office. Moving the ski school to the top of the mountain would give students and instructors access to more sun and better beginner terrain.
– Building an observatory at the Summit that would be run by Wyoming Stargazing.
– A 72-acre expansion of the east and west boundaries. Snow King would return more than 100 acres of currently permitted land on the south side of the mountain to the Forest Service. The new terrain would provide much needed beginner and intermediate runs during the winter and the potential for mountain bike trails during the summer.
– Creating a new access road to the summit, which would also serve as a beginner run down the mountain in the winter and an improved hiking trail in the summer.
– Installing a zip line adjacent to the new gondola.
For more information about the Phase 2 plan, visit snowkingmountain.com/mountain/master-plan/or submit an email to phase2@snowking.com
