PARK CITY, TALISKER STILL NEGOTIATING NEW LEASE

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16 April 2012

Push to The Latest: No

SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, April 16, 2012—Continuing a three-year wrangle, Park City Mountain Resort and its landlord, Talisker, remain in negotiations regarding PCMR's lease of much of its ski terrain, despite a series of legal moves in the courts.

Last week, Talisker responded to a lawsuit filed by PCMR in early March, in which PCMR claimed Talisker was trying to force PCMR out of business, PCMR asked the court to compel an extension of the lease through 2051. Talisker claimed that it was not trying to put PCMR out of business, but argued that PCMR allowed the lease to expire in 2011 and failed to provide written notice that it wished to extend the lease. Talisker asked the court to dismiss PCMR's lawsuit.

PCMR responded in turn to Talisker's motion for dismissal. “Our legal team has reviewed the motion and believes it lacks merit,” PCMR communications director Krista Parry told SAM. “We will ask the court to deny the motion so that we can proceed with litigation and resolve this case based on the merits.”

The situation is complicated by the fact that Talisker also owns Canyons Resort, PCMR's neighbor and competitor. Canyons' managing director, Mike Goar, told The Associated Press that lease negotiations are continuing. "We're back at the table, talking about a solution. I'm optimistic we're going to work through it," Goar said.

Talisker, a real estate developer with a long history in the Park City area, acquired the PCMR lease when it became majority owner of United Park City Mines, which holds the lease to much of PCMR's 3,000+ acres of ski terrain, in 2003. Talisker bought Canyons in 2008. Local businesses have reportedly urged the two resorts to resolve the issue for the sake of the local economy.

“Our desire has always been to quickly and fairly resolve this dispute for the benefit of our team members and our community, who truly bear the brunt of uncertainty,” Parry told SAM. “We will continue our discussions with Talisker and look forward to working with them on a reasonable solution.”