Alberta — While a currently partially abandoned ski resort has received a critical approval from Alberta, it still faces some uncertainty.
This month, the Alberta government announced that it has given conditional approval to a proposal to make Fortress Mountain into a four-season destination. Some of the adjustments requested by the province include reducing the maximum number of guests allowed if the proposal is fully built out, scrapping a plan to add an on-mountain restaurant at Whiskey Ridge, and removing any plans for recreational motorized vehicle use on the mountain. This approval does not mean they can start construction. Rather, the developers must submit new documents to the province.
“What we’ve done is said, ‘yeah, we’ve approved this concept, but there’s some more homework that you need to do,’” said Rob Simieritsch, who’s the executive director of the All-Season Resort devlopments for Alberta’s Ministry of Tourism and Sport, to Rocky Mountain Outlook.
According to the Rocky Mountain Outlook, challenges remain. The developers will need to consult with an Indigenous community before work on the project can begin. Before the initial approval, the Bearspaw First Nation voiced their concerns regarding the growth. Reportedly, there have been talks between the developers and the First Nations group after the letter was sent. The Executive Director of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) for the Southern Alberta Sector, along with the Banff-Kananaskis MLA, also voiced concerns about the approval, arguing that insufficient analysis was conducted regarding wildlife and water.
The Revival Plan
Late last year, Alberta announced the first resorts as part of its All-Season Resorts plan. This new law fast-tracks developments at ski resorts. The first projects greenlit for this program include a potential gondola at Silvertip Resort, Castle Mountain, Nakiska, and the currently defunct Fortress Mountain Resort. While there is an active cat-skiing operation at Fortress, much of the property is abandoned. However, this plan would change that.
The master plan, prepared by Ecosign, envisions the resort’s first phase being focused on summer visitation, with various activities and a resort village. The goal is to implement the plan over a period of around 15 years.
Perhaps one of the most interesting aspects is a gondola to Whiskey Ridge. However, it’s not for skiing; it’s for sightseeing. Some potential activities in phase one include mountain biking, ziplining, a mountain coaster, a canyon swing, a via ferrata, and hiking and biking trails. Future phases would add another mountain coaster, cross-country biking, an Indigenous cultural center, water areas for paddleboarding, horseback riding, cliff walks, more ziplines, camping areas, and paragliding.
The base area would be developed into a village featuring hotels, condominiums, retail shops, dining options, glamping cabins, employee housing, and a Nordic Spa. Sadly, the architecturally beautiful base lodge cannot be refurbished and is slated for demolition.
Skiing & Riding
Before it closed in 2006, Fortress Mountain was devoted to skiing and riding operations. It featured an array of mostly intermediate and advanced terrain, served by fixed-grip lifts. Due to the time elapsed since their closure, the lifts need to be replaced.
Interestingly, the first phase wouldn’t feature lift-served skiing. Initial phase one winter activities would include cat-skiing (which currently exists), fat-tire biking, snowshoeing, snow tubing, and sledding. Future phases would add non-downhill skiing activities such as cross-country ski trails, competition venues, ice skating trails, and dog sledding.
New lifts would eventually be installed to serve the old terrain pods. After that, future phases would add more terrain and lifts. As mentioned in the master plan, one challenge ski operations face is retaining snow in the face of strong winds. Wind fencing is planned to fix that issue.
You can read the master plan here, and the environmental assessment here.
Image/Video Credits: Fortress Mountain Resort (Ecosign), Skier72
