The chief operating officers of Colorado ski resorts say short staffing at the U.S. Forest Service is slowing down their ability to get work done.
In Colorado, nearly all ski resorts that are open to the public operate on federal lands with special use permits from the Forest Service. The resorts therefore, work closely with the federal agency on everything, especially to get new projects approved.
During the 2025 Ski Area COO Summit in Keystone on Friday, former Breckenridge COO John Buhler asked a panel of ski resort leaders about how they’ve been impacted by cuts to the Forest Service.
“Itap been pretty horrible honestly,” Copper Mountain COO Dustin Lyman said. “Itap a process that has always been lengthy and difficult to navigate. And now, with less people and the same amount of work, itap just made it slower and more challenging.”
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