December 7, 2004
Minister of State for Resort Development
Land and Water British Columbia Inc.
Mount Mackenzie Facts
- At approximately 1,945 metres
(6,400 ft) Mount MacKenzie has the fourth highest vertical drop of
any resort in the world. Whistler’s vertical drop of about 1,524
metres (5,000 ft) makes it the highest in B.C. at present, but 19th
in the world.
- Mount Mackenzie gets 1,200 cm (40
ft) of snow each year. Whistler, by comparison, averages about 600
cm (20 ft).
- The single lift ski hill at Mount
MacKenzie has been in operation since 1964. CAT Powder Ski has been
running the ski hill since 1999.
The Agreement
The proposed development area includes
4,000 hectares of land. The city owns 27.6 hectares within that parcel
that is integral to the development plans. There are currently three
leases on the mountain:
1. Lease One, held by the city,
includes the existing lift and ski runs.
2. Lease Two, held by CAT Powder Skiing, includes the existing day
lodge.
3. Lease Three, held by CAT Powder Skiing, includes the snowcat ski
runs.
As per the agreement, the developers (MMRL)
Hunter Milbourne and Robert Powadiuk, will buy the 27.6 h section of
land from the city. MMRL will also take over Lease One (existing lift
and runs), and Lease Two (day lodge) and make phased modifications to
Lease Three to provide ski terrain for each phase of the resort
development. CAT Powder Skiing will develop a different parcel of land
to compensate for the loss of the day lodge and develop new ski terrain
south of the ski area boundary for snowcat skiing.
Mount MacKenzie Resort Future
Plans
- The plan calls for a modern
all-season resort with more than 16,000 bed units, guest service
facilities, an 18-hole golf course, a multi-use trail system, 25
lifts and 100 ski and snowboard trails, and will boast the fourth
largest vertical drop of any ski resort in the world.
- Mount MacKenzie will be about
one-third the size of Whistler, and comparable to Big White and Sun
Peaks resorts.
- The initial capital investment
will be $270 million. Estimated investment revenue of more than $800
million is based on projected real estate sales.
All Season Resort Strategy
The provincial government released the
British Columbia Resort Strategy and Action Plan in November,
establishing priority objectives for supporting sector growth.
Highlights include:
- A new integrated and harmonized
resort approval process with local governments.
- A new all-season resort policy
framework to help promote new investment.
- An investment plan to market
B.C.’s resort opportunities globally.
- A Master Development Agreement
template with the ski industry to provide greater security and
business certainty.
- The transfer of timber
administration from the Ministry of Forests to Land and Water BC
within major resort areas.
- A working partnership agreement
with Tourism BC to harmonize the marketing of resorts with the
Spirit of 2010 Tourism Strategy.
For more information on BC’s Resort
Strategy visit:
http://www.lwbc.bc.ca/ online.
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