Mt. Baldy, B.C., Sale Approved - Ski Area Management

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30 June 2016

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SAM Magazine—Oliver, B.C., June 30, 2016—Mt. Baldy in British Columbia is about to get new owners, who plan to revive the ski area after several years of financial instability. The area was placed under receivership in 2014 and MtBaldy emailsize did not open for the 2015-16 season. The court approved the sale of Mt. Baldy to an investment group led by Vancouver-based lawyer Victor Tsao for $3.4 million, plus $300,000 for one serviced lot—a steal considering the booming real estate market in the province. The property will now do business as Baldy Mountain Resort.

Mt. Baldy operated from 1968 until it closed during the 2012-13 season because its owners ran out of funds. An investment group attempted to purchase the area in 2015, and even opened it for brief time, before the investors dropped out. According to reports, all assets have been recovered from the previous owners except for one computer containing the prior years' season pass holder information, which is still being sought.

“We are very pleased to have found a purchaser with the financial and operation capability to restart the ski operation and lay a solid foundation for a sustainable resort for the community,” said Gary Powroznik, managing director of the Supreme Court appointed receiver G-Force Group.

New managing director Joey O'Brien will run the ski area operations. O'Brien has decades of ski industry experience as former owner of Ski Mattock in Nova Scotia for 24 years until 2003, and CEO of Fortress Mountain in Alberta from 2008 to 2014.

He's thrilled to be a part of the project, but noted there are challenges ahead. “The mountain has had basically what I call eight or 10 years of maintenance-free activity,” said O'Brien. “Frankly, I expect a lot of ghosts to jump out of closets. The first thing we have to do is get it functional before we start improving it.”

The new owners plan to complete the sale as quickly as possible so work can begin on preparing Baldy Mountain Resort for the 2016-17 season. The mountain has a summit elevation of nearly 7,000 feet, with 22 trails spread across 500 skiable acres served by three lifts. It is located just north of the U.S.-Canada border above Washington State.