Agreements with the Province of British Columbia and Squamish and Lil'wat Nations Ensures Long-Term
Certainty for Whistler Blackcomb
BROOMFIELD, Colo. and
WHISTLER, British Columbia,
Feb. 24, 2017 /CNW/ -- Today
Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE: MTN) announces the renewal of Whistler
Blackcomb's Master Development Agreements with the Province of
British Columbia and approval of
the associated Master Plans. The execution of these 60-year
agreements provides future certainty for Whistler Blackcomb's
operations and are a positive benefit for the local communities and
the Province of British
Columbia.
In connection with the execution of the Master Development
Agreements and Master Plans, Whistler Blackcomb has entered into
agreements with the Squamish and
Lil'wat Nations on whose traditional territories it operates. These
agreements run concurrently with the Master Development Agreements
and ensure that local First Nations participate in the success of
the resort as partners through economic and cultural commitments,
jobs, contracting and development opportunities and recreational
opportunities for the youths of those Nations.
"This is a significant milestone for Whistler Blackcomb and our
local communities as it provides us with the long-term certainty
for the capital investment required to maintain our position as a
premier mountain resort destination in the world," says
Dave Brownlie, chief operating
officer at Whistler Blackcomb. "We are grateful for the support the
Province has provided during this process and for our strengthened
relationships with the Squamish Nation and Lil'wat Nation through
which all our communities will benefit."
"This is a major accomplishment for Whistler Blackcomb that has
taken many years to achieve," says Rob
Katz, chairman and chief executive officer of Vail Resorts.
"With this step now complete, we look forward to a strong
partnership with the local First Nations, the Province of
British Columbia, the Resort
Municipality of Whistler, and all
of the community stakeholders over the course of the next 60 years
to ensure the continued success of Whistler Blackcomb."
"I'm pleased to be able to approve these Master Development
Agreements for Whistler Blackcomb, which in turn help to ensure
Whistler's continued contribution
to the economic success of our Province," said British Columbia's Minister of Forests, Lands
and Natural Resource Operations Steve
Thomson. "I'm impressed with the partnership approach that
Whistler Blackcomb has taken in working with the Squamish and Lil'wat Nations and the local
community."
About Whistler Blackcomb
Whistler Blackcomb, the
official alpine skiing venue for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic
Winter Games, is situated in the Resort Municipality of
Whistler located in the Coast
Mountains of British Columbia 125
kilometres (78 miles) from Vancouver,
British Columbia. North
America's premier four season mountain resort, Whistler and Blackcomb are two side-by-side
mountains which combined, offer over 200 marked runs, 8,171 acres
of terrain, 16 alpine bowls, three glaciers, receives on average
over 1,170 centimetres (461 inches) of snow annually, and one of
the longest ski seasons in North
America. In the summer, Whistler Blackcomb offers a variety
of activities, including hiking and biking trails, the Whistler
Mountain Bike Park, and sightseeing on the PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola. For
more information, please visit WhistlerBlackcomb.com.
About Vail Resorts, Inc.
Vail Resorts, Inc., through
its subsidiaries, is the leading global mountain resort operator.
The Company's subsidiaries operate ten world-class mountain resorts
and three urban ski areas, including Vail, Beaver
Creek, Breckenridge and
Keystone in Colorado; Park
City in Utah; Heavenly,
Northstar and Kirkwood in the Lake
Tahoe area of California
and Nevada; Perisher in
Australia; Whistler Blackcomb in
Canada; Afton Alps in Minnesota, Mt. Brighton in Michigan and Wilmot
Mountain in Wisconsin. The
Company owns and/or manages a collection of casually elegant hotels
under the RockResorts brand, as well as the Grand Teton Lodge
Company in Jackson Hole, Wyo. Vail
Resorts Development Company is the real estate planning and
development subsidiary of Vail Resorts, Inc. Vail Resorts is a
publicly held company traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE:
MTN). The Vail Resorts company website
is www.vailresorts.com and consumer website
is www.snow.com.
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SOURCE Vail Resorts, Inc.