Snow King announces next phase in development plans

Looming over the town of Jackson is Snow King Mountain, the less popular ski area in Jackson Hole. It has trouble competing with the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.

“Snow King’s really been a ski area that’s actually made its money in the summer and lost its money the rest of the year,” said Ryan Stanley, general manager of Snow King Mountain. “And so we’re trying to figure out how to turn that around. So we’ve currently figured out how to have a bit of a successful summer season for three months and we need to figure out how to turn the wintertime around.”

The resort is entering the second phase of the Base Area Master Plan. The plan is based on recommendations from a stakeholders group and the public. It includes adding a mountain sports training complex, updating employee housing requirements and adding more to the mountain.

“Instead of a 20-minute ride up the ski lift in the shade, we’d like to have an eight-passenger gondola that would take people to the top of the mountain to a nice restaurant where they can enjoy the views up there,” Stanley said. “And then get out skiing at a beginner’s ski area on the summit in the sun.”

The next phase also includes meeting with the town of Jackson about what can be done at the base. There will be public meetings for people to voice their opinions. The resort is ready and looking to the future.

“It’s really critical for Snow King to move into the future and not go backwards into the past,” Stanley said. “Snow King has struggled as a ski area for many years, as do many small ski areas, just to keep the doors open, keep the lifts spinning.”

The resort hopes to reach a conclusion with Jackson by the end of the year. The U.S. Forest Service is also starting the process of reviewing proposals that are on Forest Service land. That review process could take up to year and a half to complete.