CBMR gathering community input

Nordic expansion to Snodgrass this winter?

Crested Butte Mountain Resort officials are developing a process to solicit community input on a new Snodgrass plan. The resort wants to work with the community and the Forest Service to come up with a unique plan that focuses on so-called “non-traditional” winter uses for the property, along with year-round ideas on how to utilize the mountain.

CBMR came out of a meeting with the Forest Service last week with the understanding that a traditional, resort style ski experience was not in the cards for Snodgrass. But the ski area and Forest Service still want to try and see if some sort of winter recreation plan can be created for that property.
“We had a meeting last week internally to discuss next steps. We are developing a plan that will include a number of forums and methods for community input and discussion,” explained CBMR chief operating officer Ken Stone. “We are starting with outreach to our employees and then on to community groups and the public.
“We will have an outside facilitator come in to help discuss overall values that everyone can agree are important to all of us before getting into specific ideas,” Stone continued. “We will also be updating the Snodgrassfacts.com website to include information and ways for people to comment on a new plan for the future of Snodgrass. This will all take a few weeks to get in place, but we have started the process and will have more details as we move forward.”
Stone said that he will be meeting with the Nordic Council this week to discuss a general overview of the situation, and see if the resort can explore some programs for the coming winter that could tie into the potential of Snodgrass for the future.
“We don’t really know where it’s going but we are excited to talk with Ken and the CBMR folks to explore the possibilities,” said Nordic Center executive director Keith Bauer. “It’s an open book and we want to see if we can help them come up with some options. We’re excited about it.
“We could revisit some old plans that had a lot of Nordic trails up there,” continued Bauer. “There’s certainly potential up around Snodgrass but I haven’t really looked at it from a Nordic perspective. There’s beautiful terrain and this is very exploratory.”
Another initial idea for Snodgrass includes expanding the current backcountry, or so-called “side country” skiing experience on Snodgrass.
Stone said that CBMR will reach out to community organizations and all stakeholder groups to get various viewpoints and ideas and “to see if a consensus on ideals, values and vision can be reached. The hope is that we can explore unique opportunities for year-round recreation on Snodgrass Mountain that will meet a wide range of interests and support long-term sustainability for our community,” Stone concluded.