SAM Magazine—Eden, Utah, March 10, 2026—SunDown Lodge RenderingPowder Mountain will invest $40 million in a terrain expansion and base-area improvements on the public side of the resort as part of its evolving public/private operating model. The multi-year investment plan includes three lifts, a new lodge, and a 1,000-acre terrain expansion.

Reed Hastings, the Netflix co-founder who acquired a controlling stake in the resort in 2023, has been shifting Powder Mountain toward a model in which revenue from private memberships and real estate development helps fund improvements to the public ski area.

“This development plan is a demonstration of our commitment to keeping Powder a thriving public ski resort for generations to come,” said resort president Brandi Hammon. “As a local and an avid skier, the team and I are committed to our community and season passholders and will continue investing in their on-mountain experience.”

Central to the project is a new Skytrac fixed-grip triple chairlift serving advanced terrain in Powder Mountain’s Wolf Creek Canyon zone. The lift will provide access to roughly 1,000 acres of terrain, about 900 acres lift-served, with approximately 2,200 feet of vertical. 

The lift will be among the steepest Skytrac has ever constructed, according to a press release from the resort. It is set to be operational for the 2026-27 season.

Additional lift projects include replacing the existing Sundown lift with a Leitner-Poma high-speed quad and installing a new quad to serve beginner terrain, called the Doodle lift, using repurposed infrastructure from the current Sundown lift.

The investment also includes plans for the redevelopment of the Sundown base area, anchored by a 15,000-square-foot lodge designed by GSBS Architects with ski school facilities, rentals, food and beverage service, lockers, and skier services. The project will break ground this summer and is expected to be completed for winter 2027-28.