GONDOLA GOSSIP

by:  staff writer

A recent article openly discussed the future of skiing and snowboarding… and its future didn't include the "poors" anymore. Say it isn't so! What happened to making snow sports more affordable and accessible? Rut-roh… conspiracy theory time. Some suggest this is already underway. More and more private clubs with members only benefits are becoming more prevalent. Others say that special offers to pass holders are test runs for passes tied to a variety of benefits from access to members only on mountain dining to early opening access and private priority lift lines. Some of these ideas may work and others maybe not so much... but people are talking about it.

Valuation. As home values skyrocket those spending the most seek special perks and privileges as part of a package. Everyone typically wants to get the best value for their money, but that's nothing new. It used to be about location… location… location. The better the location and bigger the square ft were the big dollar drivers. Who doesn't want a big ski-in ski-out dream home? Over-all most skiers and snowboarders are familiar with the closer to the slopes the more it costs concept by now. Closer also means closer to everything including shopping, dining, and nightlife too. Some of the most posh condos and biggest mansions have proximity to both.

The greatest misunderstanding in the history of the ski business may be the one thing that is difficult to change… community capacity. If your restaurant only holds 150 people… it's not going to hold more because the resort sells more passes. It's also not going to hold more because someone buys a mansion or condo nearby. At first they are like hey I paid a million bucks to be a local… only for the kid at the pizza place to reply: "get in line so did everybody else." Over time this got worse as more and more passes were sold and capacities couldn't keep to meet demand. So, the convenience many paid for becomes less and less convenient. Enter the idea of private clubs that offer everything from private parking and slopeside dining to private spas, ski storage and more. These are a long way from your grandparents old seasonal ski locker rental.

The situation needs to address balancing the wealthy investing in the communities while enabling appropriate value and access that sustains all visitors and local businesses. Otherwise the wealthiest will simply include their own parking, retail and hospitality operations in their private clubs. This is a hot topic for developers. More profitable private club spaces would likely mean less public spaces for skiers and snowboarders be they locals or visitors. It seems obvious that the après scene and dining capacity are already limited needing a fix. The only question is will there be solutions that are mutually beneficial or will wealth win again restricting access and capacity for non-members? Only time and will tell… until then it's just gondola gossip.