Major Resort Proposal Moves Into Consultation Stage
Prince George, B.C.- The proposed Valemount Glacier Destination resort has taken one step forward with the Regional District of Fraser Fort George considering an application for a change to the Official Community Plan to allow the development. The resort would be located west of Valemount in the Premier Mtn range.
The project is undergoing a Master Plan review process under the Provincial All Seasons Resort Policy.
The Regional District has given the application first reading which clears the way for the application to now go through the public consultation process.
The consultation has four parts:
- participation in joint public consultation meetings with the Mountain Resorts Branch of the Ministry of Forest Lands and Natural Resources for both the OCP amendment and Master Plan review;
- written invitation to comment period advertised in the local newspaper and Regional District website and mailed to owners of privately held land already designated Resort Commercial (Canoe Mountain);
- direct referral to the three First Nations with identified traditional territory in the subject area; and
- written referral reports to technical agencies with invitation to provide comment.
The proposed Valemount Glacier Destinations subject area covers 8966 hectares of Crown land and includes a 2000 bed-unit resort village an upper mountain bench, while lower base development near the airport will provide pedestrian access by gondola up from the valley bottom.
The high elevations and large glaciers provide a large summer skiing area suitable for both public skiing and race training. The skiable terrain in winter will feature the longest in-bounds vertical drop in the world and the longest ski run in the world.
Facilities for year-round skiing on glaciers and high-alpine glacier sightseeing do not currently exist in North America, although they are common in the European Alps.
Comments
Wondering if any reader can tell me where to find published evidence of habitation in this area by any aboriginal group, let alone 3 different tribes. Rather inhospitable terrain…
They were talking about this in 2004.
@ Contractor,
Published evidence or lack of. The courts have said a duty to consult with aboriginals is triggered in areas that are in aboriginal traditional territory.. Which pretty much means any crown land in the province. That’s our constitution at work..
This is great news for Valemount. I hope this comes through for them!
This is not the Canoe Mtn development, which has been in development for decades. The group is the same ones responsible for Kicking Horse and the recently failed Jumbo Glacier resort. While I would love to have such a development close to PG, chances are slim. The snow and terrain are great and the plan is grand, but major resorts are almost always built within 3 hours drive of a major population base. You need the day skiers to buy lift tickets and you need that quick easy access from a major hub. Good luck to the Obertis, I hope this is a go.
“Rather inhospitable terrain”
A sacred mountain or mountain range does not have to be habitable. In fact, that may be the very characteristic which make it sacred.
Look at what has happened to Everest, a sacred mountain. Also Mt. Fuji, Kilimanjaro, Vesuvius, Olympus.
That’s right it was Canoe Mountain.
Well, I think your right about the 3 hr drive. I think it is a stretch to build another resort town like that. The world is changing, or I am just getting older and negative. But, we aren’t allowed to do the things we did 30 years ago. people seems too busy trying to make a living and survive. Not much money left to play.
Look at Whistler, Big White, Sun Peaks. It is a hit and miss situation for them, every year. Not the lack of snow, but the lack of traffic.
Sorry, but I think the 20-30 yr olds are either focusing on getting started financially or too broke to spend money on $1,500 ski weekends.
That’s my opinion, old man.
Make no mistake this will be a packed resort.Especially if its a year round resort. Places like Sunshine, Marmot Basin, Fernie are packed daily during the season with Alberta traffic and people are looking for a change in destination.
On any given day on the weekend between TeteJaune and Jasper you can pass at least 50 snowmobile party’s heading into BC. One day I counted 80.. And skiing/snowboarding is way cheaper than snowmobiling.. This is one of those cases of if you build it they will come..
I agree with northman, I believe this has a great chance to succeed. Hotels book up fast in the Robson Valley during winter from all the sledders. I would love to see Valemount transform into a Whistler North.
Proximity to Jasper is beneficial to them as well. Hopefully they can swing some business from Marmot Basin.
Doubtful, too remote. Do you know what kind of skier\boarder numbers you needed to run a resort of that size? Also, ski and golf resorts and soon all rec property in BC is massively overdeveloped. Ski and golf condos can be bought for less than they were selling around 2003. They shot up, overbuilt and have been on a downward trajectory since around ’08. Boomers are trying to cash out.
I hope this resort goes through, for my own guilty pleasure, but the lack of a local market and the distance from a major hub, make it a tough sell.
What also determines the success of ski resorts is the snow conditions. People will drive the extra distance if they know there is going to be good conditions. This resort being at higher elevation will almost guarantee some powder and good conditions during the peak season. This is why cat/heli skiing is so popular in Valemount.
Ive been to all the big resorts on the BC-Alberta divide and Okanagan Big White, Sun Peaks and Silverstar and they are for the most part good for the early season but at around the end of January ice up and are hit an miss.
Mt. Robson in the same area as Canoe Mt. was known as Yuh-hai-has-kun, “mountain of the spiral road,” by the Shuswap Indians & was revered as a spiritual place by that tribe. I doubt very much that it was inhabited or scaled to any degree before Europeans came, but was still held in reverence by natives.
@He spoke, I just recently returned from the Whistler area, believe me it is not ” hit & miss” with them. The area is busier than Jasper or Banff & this is the “slow” season with hotels offering killer deals to attract more business. Try getting a hotel room at the last minute on a weekend at Sun Peaks, Big White or any of the major ski hills in southern BC. The ski hills that are hurting in BC are the smaller hills away from larger population centres. In northern BC there is not a single ski hill open 7 days a week anymore, most operate Thursday to Sunday.
I really hope Valemount finds a way to make this work, it will be a boon for the village & central BC in General.
The high season in Jasper is summer, not winter. If the downtown businesses do not make it in the summer, they are suffering. One of the few places in Canada where the McDonalds failed and was closed.
My point gopg2015, the Whistler area is busier in their slow season than Jasper is in their high season. Mind you with the emergence of summer mountain sports & festivals summer may become Whistlers high season.
I’ll stand corrected, Whistler in summer is their high season, just seems busier in winter. Still the Whistler area is busier than Jasper in both summer & winter.
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