It’s that time of the year when resorts across the country promote their capital improvement (most commonly referred to as Cap X) plans for the coming winter season and how you as the guest will benefit from these fancy, and not so fancy, upgrades.
Over the past two years, we have invested more than $12 million into on-mountain, behind-the-scenes and energy efficiency upgrades throughout both Killington and Pico Mountain. Aside from the new Skye Peak Express installed last summer, the vast majority of CapX funds have gone into snowmaking improvements. In fact, we have replaced miles of snowmaking pipe, hundreds of hydrants, rebuilt dozens of valve and pump houses and installed new operating hardware and software to monitor water and air flow and overall system efficiency. The net results for our guests have been improved snow surfaces.
This summer we are spending approximately $2.5 million on upgrades throughout the resort, including snowmaking, computer systems and numerous TLC projects throughout our base lodge areas. As for snowmaking, we’re in the process of replacing the pipe and hydrants on Upper Pike at Pico, Lower Cascade at Killington and a variety of small sections throughout both resorts as we continue to improve our snow product.
Where do we go from here? Well to start, there are a number of big picture projects that need to be addressed in the near future, including replacing the Peak Restaurant, maybe upgrading the Snowdon Quad and work on numerous trail intersections to alleviated congestion and the mixing of abilities.
The Peak Restaurant has been a landmark atop Vermont’s second highest peak for almost 40 years. While structurally sound, the building, which was built as the top terminal for the old Skye Peak Gondola in 1970, no longer serves its original purpose. However, it does offers some of the best views in all of New England; is a great place in the summer as a relaxing stop for hikers on the AT/LT, leaf peepers in the fall, and those looking for a quick lunch or warm up in the winter.
Replacing the building though is no small task. Demolition alone would cost millions, and design, construction of a new “Green” building that offers a new restaurant, maybe even conference and meeting rooms or a destination wedding facility could costs upwards of $12-$16 million.
Upgrading the Skye Peak Express last summer cost almost $6 million. Upgrading the Snowdon Quad, which first debuted as a double chair in 1964 and then upgraded to a quad in 1992, would be a similar cost, if not more depending upon the economic climate, demand, etc.
Plus, there are many other upgrades that need to be addresses in the next three to five years, including continued snowmaking improvements, replacing snowcats, continued upgrading of base lodge facilities and maintaining our existing lift infrastructure. In the meantime, there are numerous low-cost items that we can address that our guests will notice, most importantly, improving our guest service. A positive employee interaction can make, our break, any vacation experience. We will (and must) continue to improve our customer service throughout all aspects of our resort operation. There is no price you can pay for delivering a smile and welcoming a guest!
