By Megan Barber
February 9, 2015
Last week, Curbed Ski analyzed the ambitious new blueprint released from Mountain
Accord, a group of 20 public and private entitiesworking together to preserve the future of Utah’s
Wasatch mountains. For the first time ever, interest
groups ranging from environmentalists to transportation
officials have provided an outline of future options
including a tunnel linking Alta and Brighton, a train running up Little Cottonwood Canyon, and an
array of major land exchanges (read about the full plan over here). And while Mountain Accord is an ongoing process currently seeking public input on its plan, Curbed Ski wants to know what this all means for
Utah’s other major ski country proposal:One Wasatch. Similar to the uber-connected mega resorts in
Europes, One Wasatch would use only 3 new chairlifts to
connect the 7 Wasatch ski areas. And although 68% of Curbed Ski readers think One Wasatch is a good thing for Utah ski
country, if Mountain Accord succeeds, it’s
unlikely that the current version of One Wasatch will
happen.
There’s no doubt that a long-term plan for the
Wasatch Mountains is both necessary and a good thing, but
what that vision should look like depends on who you ask.
Mountain Accord wants to improve transit service to the
ski areas in order to reduce traffic, parking congestion,
and automobile dependence. It also wants to preserve the
Wasatch’s fragile watershed and maintain the current
recreational opportunities. Here’s how the Mountain
Accord blueprint directly relates to One Wasatch.
Mountain Accord wants increased environmental
protection of lands.
In exchange for better transportation options (trains,
buses, etc.) to, from, and between the Wasatch ski areas,
Mountain Accord proposes that around 2,000 acres of ski
area-owned land be moved into permanent protection. This
includes areas like the Pink Pine ridge, Mt. Superior,
Flagstaff, Days Fork, upper Silver Fork, Davenport Hill,
Grizzly Gulch and Guardsman Pass area. So what does this
mean for One Wasatch?
Specifically, Mountain Accord is asking to preserve
Grizzly Gulch, the site of the proposed connection between
Alta and Solitude, and Guardsman Pass, the site of the
proposed connection between Brighton and Park City
Mountain Resort. If these lands were protected, then ski
lifts would never be built and One Wasatch would be dead.
Mountain Accord wants to connect the ski resorts with
transit and trails, not ski lifts.
The whole premise of One Wasatch is to boost the Utah ski
industry by creating an unparalleled ski experience in the
United States. Mountain Accord, however, wants to connect
the ski resorts with innovations in transit (trains,
buses, toll lanes), not with chairlifts. This also means
that Mountain Accord’s plan prioritizes the
backcountry ski experience over expanded resort skiing.
While under the Mountain Accord blueprint ski areas would
gain about 100 acres of base development and some limited
resort expansion (Snowbird into Mineral Basin and Mary
Ellen Gulch, Solitude into Silver Fork, and Brighton into
Hidden Canyon), the ski area boundaries would largely
remain unchanged.
From this standpoint, the Mountain Accord blueprint and
the goals of the One Wasatch proposal look impossible to
reconcile. Of course, Mountain Accord is in its infancy
and the blueprint will likely be modified considerably
after the period of public comment. The One Wasatch plan
could also be changed.
Nathan Rafferty, president of Ski Utah, told local Utah radio station KUER that he doesn’t think Mountain Accord completely
ruins the One Wasatch plan. “I think everything is
still on the table,” he said. “I’m
excited that we’re talking about some of these big
issues. I think Mountain Accord is doing a super job of
negotiating some pretty tricky waters.”
At the moment however, it’s hard to see how both Mountain Accord and One
Wasatch can happen. Stay tuned for updates.
http://ski.curbed.com/archives/2015/02/new-utah-blueprint-threatens-the-future-of-one-wasatch.php
