Intrawest Corp. on Tuesday announced it was postponing for one year the construction of a new village at Snowmass ski area.
The Canadian developer said a controversial election concerning the 600-unit village in February forced planners to rush the project. Intrawest teamed with Aspen Skiing Co. for the development.
“The election postponed people from preparing and reviewing permit applications … and other approvals,” said Michael O’Connor, Intrawest’s vice president of development at Snowmass. “It was a combination of things put on the back burner until the results of the election were understood. Basically, instead of having six months to prepare, the town, the county and our staff had six weeks.”
Snowmass voters in February approved the 1 million-square-foot village in a 640-515 vote. Aspen Skiing Co. owner Jim Crown lobbied in support of the village, promising that the village’s residential sales would fund $45 million in upgrades for the ski area.
The pro-village campaign relied heavily on a sense of urgency, noting that Snowmass was losing vacationers to other resorts with new villages and could only stem the decline by redeveloping. Opponents argued the village was too big.
Village and new chairlift construction started last spring, but the Army Corps of Engineers in April informed the Intrawest team that it had not secured necessary federal approvals, including a vital 404 permit. Planners spent four years seeking local approval for the village.
The delay announced Tuesday means a planned children’s center, condominiums and a parking structure will not be started until spring. Construction of a new six-person chairlift and future on-mountain infrastructure will not be affected, O’Connor said.
Staff writer Jason Blevins can be reached at 303-820-1374 or jblevins@denverpost.com.
