One in all North America’s largest misplaced ski areas might reopen in a couple of years beneath a plan submitted to the Province of Alberta final week. Kelowna-based Ridge North America and Calgary-based Western Securities Restricted would be a part of forces to accumulate Fortress Mountain Holdings and ultimately assemble as much as 14 lifts. Fortress wouldn’t be one other Kicking Horse or Revelstoke however moderately a year-round resort and recreation hub with a modest ski element. Actual property types a key side of the plan together with summer time actions like mountain coasters, downhill biking and zip strains.
Fortress first opened as Snowridge in 1967 with an all-Doppelmayr fleet consisting of two T-Bars and one double. Doppelmayr equipped two extra chairlifts within the mid-Nineteen Seventies, making a mid-sized mountain with snowboarding on three elements. Although surrounded by towering peaks, vertical at Fortress was by no means large with the most important chair rising 1,070 ft. The ski space declared chapter and closed a number of instances by means of the second half of the twentieth century. At one level Aspen Snowboarding Firm acquired a 50 % stake and funded the 2 latest lifts. The corporate that will later turn out to be Resorts of the Canadian Rockies purchased Fortress in 1986 however put it up on the market 15 years later as a part of its personal chapter. RCR continued working the mountain in chapter till shuttering Fortress in 2004.
Banff Rail Firm, headed by Zrinko Amerl, purchased the lease in 2005 and ran lifts for a couple of months in 2006 earlier than the province condemned a number of buildings. By late 2006, regulators ordered Amerl to cease promoting providers he couldn’t present and forbid move gross sales for the 2006-07 and 2007-08 seasons. BRC offered the mountain to Fortress Mountain Holdings in 2010. Each T-Bars had been eliminated in 2012 however the chairlifts stay standing. At this time the property is off limits to the general public with a restricted cat snowboarding and film shoot operations. With no upkeep in a long time, all three chairlifts are anticipated to be eliminated and changed in new alignments.
Whistler-based Ecosign ready the resort’s newest grasp plan, which encompasses 3,500 acres of crown land. “The Fortress All Season Resort Grasp Plan presents a long-term imaginative and prescient to develop a contemporary, world class vacation spot in considered one of Alberta’s most spectacular mountain contexts,” Ecosign notes. Part one consists of no ski lifts however moderately three sightseeing gondolas just like one Ridge is presently developing close to Kelowna. Every gondola would service distinct journey nodes with actions like a cliff stroll, paragliding and paddleboarding.
Raise-served downhill snowboarding would resume in part two with chairlifts on Fortress’ conventional entrance and bottom terrain. A hard and fast quad and two conveyors would serve the entrance with a removable six pack on the again. Part three envisions a set quad on the previous Farside terrain plus a newbie platter and third conveyor. A second six pack is earmarked for Whiskey Bowl in part 4, plus a cabriolet elevate connecting the resort core to parking and a floor elevate on Mt. Baldy. The ultimate part would come with a quad chair on the bottom of Mt. Baldy and a second parking cabriolet. At full buildout, the resort might accommodate 6,780 skiers and 9,650 whole guests per day.
The bold imaginative and prescient faces a number of challenges. First, terrain is scenic however restricted with vital competitors from close by ski areas with way more vertical. Ridge and Western Securities have vital expertise constructing points of interest and business buildings however have by no means operated a ski resort. Many have failed right here earlier than. On the plus aspect, the present plan correctly concentrate on actions past snowboarding which attraction to broad audiences. Ridge and Western Securities are well-capitalized and skilled builders. Alberta is booming with 4.2 million individuals visiting close by Banff Nationwide Park final yr. Fortress lies simply outdoors the park, nonetheless, making large-scale growth extra sensible than at present ski areas like Lake Louise or Sunshine. In 2024, Alberta handed the All Seasons Resort Act, aiming to double customer spending to CA$25 billion yearly by 2035. Final yr Alberta designated Fortress, Nakiska and Fort the primary three mountains focused for attainable growth. These insurance policies place Alberta among the many most pro-development jurisdictions in North America.
The Province will settle for public feedback on the proposal by means of February twenty seventh. Builders additionally launched a survey to information additional refinements to the plan. If accredited, full buildout is predicted to take 14 years and final by means of 2040.
