GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo.—The new owners of Sunlight Mountain Resort have outlined their improvement plans for the mountain, including proposals for a top-to-bottom high-speed lift and a new restaurant.
The resort aims to submit its plans to White River National Forest and Garfield County officials within the next few months for approval, resort general manager Tom Jankovsky said.
“I’d say it’s at least two years before they can break ground,” Jankovsky said this week.
Exquisite Development, based in Destin, Fla., bought the 40-year-old ski area in December for an undisclosed price. The asking price was $50 million.
The resort’s new owners plan $15 million of on-mountain improvements, plus a 750-unit base village.
“The whole idea is to make Sunlight a more attractive resort for locals and visitors alike,” Jankovsky said. “I think our season-pass price will still be very competitive, and we have no intention to price the locals out.”
Besides a new high-speed lift and restaurant, proposed improvements include a new lift to the extreme ski area and 120 acres of snowmaking, up from the current 20 acres at the bottom of a beginner run, Jankovsky said.
A 50-acre-foot reservoir on the mountain would store water for snowmaking, he said. The resort expects to apply soon for water rights from Ruedi Reservoir to pump the water from the Roaring Fork River to the reservoir, he said.
