Our Blog September 24, 2014

Vail Resorts Has Purchased Park City Mountain Resort!

The purchase of PCMR involves roughly 687,000 sq ft of residential and commercially owned property owned by PowdrCorp at the resort base. It does not include the Gorgoza tubing hill just below Parleys Summit.

Vail CEO Rob Katz said he was pleased and that the sale would “bring a permanent end” to litigation between Talisker/Vail and PowdrCorp that, for months, had threatened to close PCMR this winter. That threat was put to rest Tuesday when PowdrCorp posted a $17.5 million bond to operate the resort this coming winter while it appealed a judge’s ruling that Talisker had a right to evict PCMR from the mountain for failing to renew its lease on time in 2011.

“Ending that dispute” said Vail CEO Rob Katz, will “provide assurance to the guests and employees for PCMR – and to anyone in the Park City community – that they no longer have to worry about any disruption to the operation of the resort.”

John Cumming (CEO PowdrCorp) said “selling was the last thing we wanted to do, and while we believe the law around this issue should be changed, a protracted legal battle is not in line with the core value to be good stewards of the resort communities in which we operate. “  He added that “a sale was the only way to provide long-term certainty for PCMR employees and the Park City community. My family and I are extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to play a role in making PCMR what it is today, and we deeply appreciate the dedicated employees and all of the people who have supported us over the years.”

The agreement, Cumming said, requires Vail Resorts to retain PCMR employees in their current roles.

Beginning in the summer of 2016, Vail Resorts plans to build lifts to connect Canyons resort to PCMR. Together, the resorts will cover more than 7,000 acres of skiable terrain. Vail CEO Rob Katz said Wednesday that “[We] will be looking to upgrade or add new lifts, restaurants, and snowmaking capabilities at both resorts.”

More details about the consolidation will be disclosed in March, so we’ll all have to wait until then to hear what else this consolidation means for us.