One of the largest ski resort holding companies in the United States has reached a deal to purchase Wolf Mountain resort near Park City.
Officials of American Skiing Co., headquartered at Sunday River resort near Newry, Maine, said they had signed a letter of intent to acquire the resort from current Wolf Mountain owners Ken Griswold and Mike Baker. The purchase price for the deal, which is to be finalized this summer, was not disclosed.American Skiing dominates the New England ski industry with seven resorts including the popular resorts of Killington and Sugarloaf in Vermont. The company has about 3.5 million skier visits per year in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, ranking No. 3 among multiresort companies.
American Skiing President Leslie B. Ottne said he sees great potential for growth with its first venture outside of the Northeast.
"We believe Wolf Mountain is a diamond in the rough - a resort with almost unlimited potential," Otten said. "Park City is a fantastic community, and we look forward to being a socially and environmentally responsible neighbor. We also look forward to helping earn Utah its deserved status as the ski capital of the Rockies."
Although no specifics have been released, American Skiing spokesman Skip King said that enhancements for the ski terrain, additional lifts and a possible hotel have been planned.
"One of the principal reasons for coming is that Utah is actually underserved by skiers," King said.
He said the company would like to package a Western destination with its Northeastern holdings. King said that the company plans to market Wolf Mountain to its loyal base of skiers.
That was good news for Mark Menlove at Ski Utah, the local industry organization.
"This is great news for Wolf Mountain and the whole state of Utah. This company is a real player. They will have a major impact here," Menlove said.
A new connection with the Northeast could help boost the number of new skiers who would choose to come to Utah, Menlove said. King admitted that most Northeastern skiers favor Colorado as a Western destination. Last year, there were 2.9 million skier visits to Utah, compared to 12 million to Colorado.
According to Wolf Mountain spokeswoman Beth Moon, Griswold and Baker will still be involved in the resort, although not with day-to-day operations. Neither of the men were available for comment at press time.
Wolf Mountain's name was changed from ParkWest in 1994 after it was acquired by Baker.
Since its inception in 1968, the resort has struggled to survive while Deer Valley and Park City ski resorts have prospered nearby. Wolf Mountain has about 80,000 skier visits per year.
The ski resort had been for sale for some time. Last month, Telluride Ski Resort in Colorado abandoned plans to buy Wolf Mountain and other Western resorts.
The resort currently has seven two-person chairlifts and a vertical drop of about 2,200 feet. There is potential for adding to the vertical drop with chairlift improvements, King said.
Otten has a history of turning small resorts into profitable ventures. For example, Otten purchased then-tiny Sunday River Skiway in Maine in 1980, and expanded the resort to become the flagship of American Skiing Co. Sunday River grew from 40,000 skier visits in 1980 to approximately 600,000 today.
He acquired Attitash, N.H., resort in 1994, Sugarbush, Vt., resort in 1995 and last February acquired S-K-I Ltd., owners of Killington, Mount Snow and Sugarloaf/USA resorts. He has since added Pico, Vt., resort.