By Peter Shokeir, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Marmot Basin has its sights set on opening some lower slopes by November 15th, but that tentative date is temperature dependent.
While the ski resort is operationally ready to go, the mountain needs more snow before a few runs can open.
“We’ve got a high level of confidence that the 15th will be our opening day, but that does remain to be seen,” said Brian Rode, vice president of Marmot Basin. “We have to see how well the snowmaking goes. That’s really the big thing for us right now.”
Rode explained how they use a combination of natural snow and snowmaking. As of Monday, November 4th, Marmot Basin has received around 40 centimetres so far this season, and snowmaking began four days prior.
“We need another week or so of decent snowmaking temperatures and then that will allow us to open a few of our signature runs in the lower mountain and get open for business,” he said.
Jasper is forecasted to see a warming trend for the next several days before getting back into cooler temperatures more typical for the season.
“We do depend on the temperatures to stay cool enough so we can make snow,” Rode said. “Now, that could all be a moot point if we have a couple of big snowfalls, which is entirely plausible.”
Operationally, the ski resort is ready to go, and none of the buildings or lifts had been damaged during the wildfire, though it caused the maintenance work to be compressed into a shorter time.
Rode is anticipating “a hell of a lot of snow” this season, especially in light of the wetter fall and a La Niña winter that will bring colder temperatures to Western Canada.
Staff accommodation has been a major challenge for Jasper after the wildfire destroyed 820 housing units in the townsite. Rode reported most of their staff are now housed but warned the current arrangement was not sustainable and there ultimately needed to be an improvement in residential housing for the entire community.
“When I think of staff accommodation, I just think of enough quality accommodation to house everybody who lives in this town, regardless of whether they’re here for a season or they’re here for years, and that’s an issue that faces this entire community, not just Marmot Basin,” Rode said.
An even more pressing problem is the lack of hotel rooms for visitors. Between 25 and 30 per cent of rooms are out of inventory due to two hotels burning down in the wildfire and some rooms still serving as temporary housing for residents and workers.
While this isn’t a major issue midweek during the winter when there is 40 to 45 per cent occupancy, Rode warned there may not be enough hotel space during the weekends and holidays.
“From a marketing perspective, we’re trying to encourage skiers and snowboarders to come midweek,” he said. “If they can adjust their schedule to come midweek, then they’ll have plenty of room.”
Visitors are advised to reserve their rooms ahead of time if they could only come during the weekend.
Rode noted skiing and snowboarding drive visitation to Jasper during the winter and emphasized the ski experience depended on hotels, retail, restaurants, bars and other offerings.
“It is essential that we have a good, strong season for the entire community, so that … those businesses can bridge across the winter and get into the busier summer months, and that’s when they will see the real recovery happen,” he said. “But before they can get into the summer, they’ve got to have a viable business during the winter.”
