“This will take the load off of Carpenter, especially during that 9 a.m. – 11 a.m. period where we see the most visitation because people, especially ski school, will be able to get to Mountaineer, underutilized terrain. You’ve also got the [blue ski runs] like Fairview, Silver Hill. People are able to utilize that terrain, then they can come back over to Carpenter and get up to the upper mountain.”- Garrett Lang, Deer Valley Director of Mountain Operations.
Deer Valley’s newest list isn’t exactly the biggest news for die-hard skiers. A new detachable quad chairlift will go from the top of the Snowflake lift to the beginning of the Lower Little Stick run. The bigger part of the story is how Deer Valley got their lift approved, while Park City Mountains lift replacements will not be happening this offseason due to a successful appeal. KPCW and TownLift report that Deer Valleys’ offseason projects got approved by the Park City Planning Commission. With everyone at the meeting speaking in support of the project, it’s unlikely that this will face an appeal.
The new lift will be one thousand feet long and have an automatic lowering and rising safety bar, which helps increase beginners’ confidence. The lift leads back to the base area from the Lower Little Stick run, along with giving access to the Mountaineer Express via the Deer Hollow trail. With the old Burns lift being removed, Deer Valleys plans on extending the Snowflake lift to make it closer to the base area. Deer Valleys magic carpets will be moved to the location of the soon-to-be-removed Burns lift. Some of their other offseason plans include the regrading of the Lower Little Stick trail, adding new mountain biking trails, improved HR practices to address their staffing shortages from last season, and the continued planning of their new base village. 
Deer Valleys neighbor, Park City Mountain, initially planned for two lift replacements for this offseason. They were hoping to replace the Silverlode Express with an eight-pack chairlift, and the Eagle and Eaglet lift with a detachable six-pack chairlift with a mid-station. While the plans initially got approved by the Park City Planning Commission, this decision got appealed by a group of locals. Last week, the appeal was granted, meaning that Park City won’t be able to install the lifts this offseason. People have pointed out that Deer Valleys’ approval comes down to the trust the ski resort has with Park City, compared to the rapidly deteriorating relationship Vail Resorts has with locals. While this lift replacement is far less significant than what Park City Mountain would have done this offseason, it seems like locals value resorts that have capacity limits and meaningful relationships in the community rather than an Epicly overcrowded ski resort. 
Image Credits: Deer Valley Resort, KPCW, TownLift
