Peak Resorts, Inc. will break ground May 29 on a water reservoir that will expand its ability to make snow at its Mount Snow resort in Vermont six fold.
The new reservoir will be capable of holding 120 million gallons water for snow making compared with the resort's current capacity of 20 million gallons.
In addition to the lake, the previously announced and fully permitted West Lake Project will include the construction of three pump houses, the installation of snowmaking pipelines, trail upgrades and expansion, a new ski lift and ancillary equipment.
“These projects will support our goals by allowing Mount Snow to open each ski season with as much as 50 percent of its terrain skiable against approximately 15 percent with our current water supply,” said Peak Resorts President and CEO Timothy D. Boyd.
Plans call for future phases of the West Lake Project to include construction of a ski lodge and three-story skier service building at the base of the resort's Carinthia slopes. At approximately 36,000 square feet, Carinthia Ski Lodge will provide needed skier services in a comfortable, modern building that will include a restaurant, cafeteria and bars with seating for over 600 people, a retail store, convenience store and sales center for lift tickets.
“Our roadmap for growth calls for a mix of organic growth, real estate development and acquisitions,” said Boyd. “In addition, the follow-on development of the Carinthia Ski Lodge and adjoining condominiums will help meet our goals for expanding the productivity of our existing facilities.”
Foreign EB-5 investors backing projects
Funding for the West Lake Project and the Carinthia Ski Lodge Project is being generated through an EB-5 program that attracts overseas investment as funding for U.S.-based companies.
“We are very pleased with the continued interest in and success of our EB-5 program,” said Richard K. Deutsch, vice president, business and real estate development for Peak Resorts. “To date, we have 72 investors committed to providing the needed funding. By summer's end, we expect to receive the approval that will allow the release of the first $30 million from escrow, providing the funding for Phase 1. We have a pipeline of another 25 investors in process as we work to raise the $22 million required for Phase 2.”
Headquartered in Missouri, Peak Resorts is a leading owner and operator of high-quality, individually branded ski resorts in the U.S. The company currently operates 13 ski resorts primarily located in the Northeast and Midwest, 12 of which are company owned.
The majority of the resorts are located within 100 miles of major metropolitan markets, including New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, Cleveland and St. Louis, enabling day and overnight drive accessibility. The resorts under the company's umbrella offer a breadth of activities, services and amenities, including skiing, snowboarding, terrain parks, tubing, dining, lodging, equipment rentals and sales, ski and snowboard instruction and mountain biking and other summer activities.
