Group previews Little Gore trail

By David Blow Davent67@hotmail.com | Posted: Sunday, March 7, 2010 5:08 pm

NORTH CREEK -- Johnsburg Supervisor Sterling Goodspeed stood overlooking North Creek Saturday and got a bit nostalgic.

It had been more than three decades since he’d been on skis on that part of Little Gore Mountain, and he was both excited and reflective.

"This is the historic cradle of skiing in the northeast," he said. "I learned to ski here in 1964 and ’65, and my dad skied this same terrain before World War II."

Goodspeed was part of a group of 20 or so who skied down the north side of Gore Mountain and then hiked 15 minutes up to what will be the drop-off point for a new Hudson chairlift that will begin hauling skiers and riders from the historic Ski Bowl next year.

The lift will connect the Ski Bowl to Gore Mountain’s other ridges, creating a run from the top that will offer 2,500 vertical feet of skiing — the sixth most in the East.

In addition to Goodspeed, others in the group Saturday were several youngsters, members of the Gore racing team, Gore General Manager Mike Pratt and Jeff Byrne, senior vice president of the Olympic Regional Development Authority.

Byrne also talked about merging history with the present and what it means to skiers and riders who visit Gore. He spoke about how excited Goodpseed was, while checking out the view of North Creek from above the Ski Bowl.

"He had a smile as wide as the gap in his helmet to get his head through," he said.

Pratt on Sunday said a total of 110 skiers and riders took advantage of the one-day opportunity to try out the new trails to the Ski Bowl.

Gore Marketing Director Emily Stanton served as a Post-Star reporter’s tour guide on the trip that involved skiing Upper Pipeline to The Oak Ridge Trail to the Half-n-Half Glade to Moxham, which Goodspeed said was the old Ridge trail from the 1940s to 1977.

Stanton asked some of the younger skiers at the bottom what they thought of the experience of skiing something that hasn’t been skied in decades.

"It’s a little bit too long of a hike," I overheard one girl say, only to have Stanton remind her that the new lift next year will make Saturday’s hike a one-time deal.

After hearing that, 15-year-old Danielle Dacunha of Clifton Park then began talking about what she liked about the excursion.

"It was really pretty. You feel like you’re in the middle of the woods," she said.

Chris Murphy of Lagrangeville was also in the group. He, too, complained a little about the climb that made everyone a sweaty mess in the 40-degree heat, but he then talked about how nice it is to see all the changes at Gore having skied there for 35 years.

"It’s nice to see the investment in the mountain," the 40-year-old said. "And it was great to see all the ski patrollers out there guiding us. They did a really nice job with it."

The ski patrollers he spoke of were at every possible turn on Little Gore, guiding people who were seeing it for the first time. Some handed out commemorative buttons while the mountain photographer was snapping shots.

For Goodspeed, however, the new connection also means more revenue for his town as skiers and riders can ski down from the Gore base lodge to the Ski Bowl and catch a shuttle to town for lunch and then back for more skiing.

He said the shuttle, which this year began running people from the base lodge and the Ski Bowl to Main Street in North Creek, was quite successful. It reached a record of 166 daily riders.

"This will be the most significant thing economically that has happened in our town in decades," he said of connecting the mountains.

New businesses have already popped up over the past year or so and Goodspeed said there’s a "huge buzz" about Gore and the Johnsburg area.

"People always said Gore is the best-kept secret. Well, I think we’re right on the cusp of being discovered," he said.

Few complaints for North Creek businesses

By Dayelin Roman droman@poststar.com 

-->

New trails, shuttle system for skiers coming together

By Dayelin Roman - droman@poststar.com | Posted: Monday, December 14, 2009 1:00 am

JOHNSBURG - Town Supervisor Sterling Goodspeed said he believes in the economic boost of the ski season, and efforts to expand North Creek's ski offerings will pay off.

"It's going to be amazing," he said. "It's going to set us apart in the northeastern United States."

While a host of new trails and a new lift between Gore Mountain and Ski Bowl will not be complete until next winter, a new lodge at the base of Ski Bowl will be open by Christmas.

A trail now takes skiers to Ski Bowl, but their only option back up the mountain on select weekends and holidays this winter will be a new shuttle that also stops on Main Street.

As of last week, the trail to Ski Bowl was closed for lack of snow.

Also last week, workers put up the final layers of sheet rock on the walls and the ceiling of the new 2,600-square-foot lodge. Once finished, it will warm up skiers with a fireplace and warm snacks. Skiers can also buy tickets for tubing Ski Bowl and skiing Gore at the lodge.

But the new $200,000 building - a bill that was shared among the Olympic Regional Development Authority, Warren County and the town - won't shut down with the ski season. In the summer, it will host the town's summer youth program.

"It's an enhancement to the town as well," Goodspeed said as he stood among workers laying sheet rock to the sounds of classic rock.

The new lodge stands mostly on the footprint of an old one, Gore General Manager Mike Pratt said, but was expanded by 10 feet on each side.

"The old structure required more than tender loving care," he said.

The lodge is one of a host of improvements in the town associated with the project called the interconnect, which has prompted new downtown shops, lodging and

restaurants.

The shuttle, which will begin taking visitors from Gore to Ski Bowl to Main Street on Dec. 19, will be run by local business Brant Lake Taxi and

Transport.

A new Ski Bowl Village, which will host five hotels and various condominiums and homes, is also in the works, though only one building with two connected townhouses and a welcome center are now under construction.

Mac Crikelair, the project's manager, said those will be done by the end of this winter, and as many as 20 rooms in the first 34-room hotel may be done by next winter.

In the meantime, he said, those interested in purchasing units may be able to do so this winter after filings with the state attorney general's office are complete.

Goodspeed said the improvements on the mountain and the new businesses are already bringing more visitors to the hamlet, citing thousands of people who crowded Main Street's shops and restaurants on Columbus Day weekend after they attended a harvest festival at

Gore.

This winter, business owners are preparing for a similar influx.

At the last Town Board meeting, officials encouraged residents and business owners around North Creek's business district to keep sidewalks clear of snow during the winter after the local business alliance told officials a local law should be enacted.

Members of the hamlet's business alliance told officials they wanted to be sure visiting skiers had plenty of room to roam.

Goodspeed said at the height of Ski Bowl's popularity, it wasn't unusual to see 300 people gathered at the mountain. By the end of the winter, he said, he suspects he'll see the

same.

August 30th - Progress

Looking up Ski Bowl Village Drive            Looking Down

Building Site

Gore Lift Line Progress

Ground Breaking

The developers have broken ground. View from the town highway garage. Photos taken Wednesday, 22 July 2009

 FrontStreet Transfers Historic Ski Lift Parcel to Town of Johnsburg

North Creek, New York – March 2, 2009: FrontStreet Mountain Development today
announced that it has transferred ownership of the historic ski lift property located in the
North Creek Ski Bowl to the Town of Johnsburg. This property, known as the Ski Lift
Parcel, consists of 11.45 acres of land directly under the old T-bar ski lift that serviced
the historic North Creek Ski Bowl for decades. The Ski Lift Parcel will now be  the site
for a new triple chair ski lift to be part of Gore Mountain. 
 
This action paves the way for the reopening of the  entire  historic Ski Bowl for public
skiing as part of the Gore Mountain Ski Area.  The Ski Bowl is adjacent to  and will
become part of the Gore Mountain Ski Area, one of the largest ski areas in the East. Gore
Mountain is operated by the Olympic Regional Development Authority  (ORDA).  The
new triple chair lift planned for the site will complete the interconnection between the Ski
Bowl and Gore Mountain.  The purchase of the new triple chair ski lift had been
previously announced by ORDA.
 
The connection with Gore Mountain and  the restoration of the historic Ski Bowl for
public skiing  will  collectively  bring significant revenue, economic growth and
employment opportunity to the surrounding  communities, including the  Town of
Johnsburg and the North Country in general.  Many new businesses and real estate
development projects are underway due to the planned interconnection.
 
FrontStreet Mountain Development  acquired  the private  land located at the site of the
historic North Creek Ski Bowl in  2005. That same year,  FrontStreet and the Town of
Johnsburg entered into an agreement whereby FrontStreet agreed to transfer over 60 acres
of prime ski trails and lift lines to the Town to enable public skiing on the portion of the
Ski Bowl that has been in private hands and closed for decades. The transfer of the Ski
Lift Parcel  is part of that arrangement.  The Adirondack Park Agency  had  recently
approved the  combined  activities of  FrontStreet, the  Town of Johnsburg and  ORDA
covering private and public activities, including the property exchanges in the Ski Bowl. 
 
  ORDA OKs buying
lift connecting Gore & Ski Bowl; skiers will reach downtown’s edge
By Gordon Woodworth
Chronicle News Editor

        The Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) has okayed purchase, at long last, of a triple-chairlift that will connect Gore Mountain ski area with the North Creek Ski Bowl.
        Johnsburg Town Supervisor Sterling Goodspeed told The Chronicle the link will “move skiers to the edge of the Main Street business district in North Creek...The economic future of our town is the interconnect.”
        He called it “an economic catalyst not only for North Creek and Johnsburg but Warren, southern Hamilton and Essex Counties.”
        State Senator Betty Little, who played a key role in the process, agreed.
        “The interconnect is very important, because Gore Mountain is the economic engine of this area in the winter,” she said. “I have been working on this for 13 years, since I first began in the Legislature…Now the lift is ordered, and that helps everything move forward.”

Will reopen trails from the 1940s

        The triple chairlift will open up historic trails last skied in the 1940s, said Mr. Goodspeed.
        “For 30 years,” he said, “there has been some suggestion that this might happen. And then we would get right to the edge and it wouldn’t happen…What we’re seeing is the beginning of a lot of dreams that people never thought would be realized.”
        ORDA’s board approved buying the lift on Sept. 16. Ms. Little said ORDA’s chairman Joe Martens assured her that ORDA “is committed to doing this.”
        Mr. Goodspeed said the work will be paid for with part of a $5.5-million state grant obtained by Sen. Little for Gore in 2005-2006.
        He said, “There needed to be an agreement with the Olympic Regional Development Authority to spend the money. Senator Little was great during the negotiations. She really stood tall.”

Ski Bowl Village moving forward

        The interconnect is also said to be critical to the developers of Ski Bowl Village at Gore Mountain, a 430-acre, $250-million project planned on land adjacent to the Ski Bowl.
        Developer Mac Crikelair said, “We are excited to see the interconnect become a reality. It is important for all parties involved, and a lot of people have been working a long time to get that done.”
        The Ski Bowl Village project received Adirondack Park Agency approval in April, and Mr. Goodspeed said the town planning board has approved Phase One, which Mr. Crikelair said will include some townhouse units, a 34-room inn and a private day ski facility called The Hudson Lodge.
        “We’re looking to start work this year, opening up some roads and clearing some sites in the next few weeks,” Mr. Crikelair said. “We’re hoping to start construction of the buildings this year and continuing that in the spring.”

Other improvements at Gore

        Of the $5.5-million that Sen. Little obtained, $1.8-million will be used to buy a fixed-grip ski lift and snowmaking equipment for the interconnect. Another $1.4-million will be spent on improvements at Gore Mountain. The remaining $2.2-million will pay to install the lift and build trails.
        In addition to the interconnect, Mr. Goodspeed said $7-million in improvements to Gore Mountain’s Burnt Ridge pod have begun, thanks to a state grant obtained by Assemblywoman Teresa Sayward. He said that the Burnt Ridge work, combined with the interconnect, will make Gore “the seventh largest ski resort east of the Mississippi River.”
        Gore’s Web site says six new trails will be opened on Burnt Ridge, increasing the resort’s vertical drop from 2,100 to 2,300 feet and increasing its longest continuous run from 2.9 to 3.7 miles. The area will include a mix of intermediate and expert terrain and a high-speed quad lift, the Gore Mountain Web site says.

The Gore Mountain to Ski Bowl interconnect project takes a historic step forward

 

By Brett Hagadorn

brett@denpubs.com

 NORTH CREEK — The project has been described as a return to the roots of skiing in the Adirondacks. Others refer to it as an economic “dream come true” for North Creek and the region.

No matter what words are used - the Gore Mountain “interconnect project” represents one of the most vital steps toward the future of Adirondack skiing.

On October 10, the Adirondack Park Agency approved ORDA’s final proposal for the interconnect project. The approval also cleared the way for the DEC to issue a final ruling on the project which Town of Johnsburg officials expect to receive this week.

According to an APA statement: “The Agency determined that the portion of the 2005 UMP/ Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement related to the interconnection between the Gore Mountain Ski Center and the Historic North Creek Ski Bowl, which was rescinded in August of 2006, is consistent with the guidelines and criteria of the SLMP.”

The statement further clarified the project’s intent and specifically noted the historical context for their final approval.

“The primary objectives of the approved amendment are to improve public access to Gore Mountain and Forest Preserve lands, to improve the skiing experience and to provide for a stronger interconnect between Gore Mountain Ski Center, the Historic North Creek Ski Bowl and the hamlet of North Creek.  The 2005 amendment included construction of new ski trails and lifts in the Intensive Use Area that connects with the Town of Johnsburg’s Ski Bowl Park.”

The APA approval follows closely behind an ORDA resolution to fund the Gore Mountain to North Creek Ski Bowl Interconnect project. A completed interconnect would firmly place Gore Mountain as one of the seven largest ski areas east of the Mississippi River.

The capital appropriation resolution authorizes the President of ORDA to award over $3.2 million in development contracts.

A total of $1.8 million will be directed toward infrastructure acquisitions such as a new ski lift and snowmaking equipment.

An additional $1.4 million will be used to make necessary repairs and improvements to the existing Gore Mountain base lodge, including HVAC, roofing, and restroom renovations.

The renovations will be geared toward correcting current maintenance issues at the lodge and to prepare the facility for a dramatically increased number of visitors following the interconnect’s completion.

An additional $2.2 million will be held in reserve to facilitate trail construction and for the installation of the interconnect ski lift over the next few years.

The new lift is expected to be partially operational in time for the 2009/2010 ski season an will be open as the weather permits in the absence of snow making equipment. The 2010/2011 season is anticipated to be the lift’s first full year, including snowmaking, and full ride-up and ski-down lift service.

“The significance of this project is really ORDA’s commitment to purchase this lift, and marks an agreement between all the people involved, and the grant money provided through Senator Betty Little’s office,” Town of Johnsburg Supervisor, Sterling Goodspeed, says. “This signifies the actual occurrence of the interconnect.

“When that lift is ordered and installed, it will replace the 1940’s cable t-bar that runs to the summit of Little Gore. When that happens, it will be possible to ski back and forth between the ski bowl and Gore proper.

“The potential economic impact of exposing thousands of visitors to the North Creek business district is huge and it creates the potential to move all of the skiers from Gore Mountain to the edge of the North Creek business district.”

Under the current plan, the interconnect would also make it possible to ski on Gore Mountain via lift service origination at the Little Gore (Ski Bowl Park) area.

The town and ORDA officials are also working on a preliminary plan to provide shuttle service between Gore Mountain, the Little Gore area, and downtown North Creek.

“I believe this project will be the economic engine for the entire region in the winter months,” Goodspeed adds.

“This project means jobs, more businesses in the town, and  growth that is largely green. The best part about this is the fact that it’s largely based on our history. The trails that we are talking about opening are really just a reclaiming of the trails that were originally open in the 1930’s and 1940’s.”

According to a conceptual agreement between ORDA, the Front Street Development project, and the Town of Johnsburg - the Town of Johnsburg will retain full ownership of the lift-line trails.

“North Creek is a real American ski town at its finest,” Goodspeed concluded. “With everything in place - we will be host to the seventh largest ski area east of the Mississippi River.”

Gore Mountain’s Manager, Mike Pratt, is similarly optimistic about the project. While he understands the direct benefit to ORDA’s efforts in New York State, he’s also quick to identify the positive impact it will have on North Creek in the coming years.

“With everything in place next year we expect to be able to open the interconnect when the conditions are right,” Pratt, says. “From the saddle on Gore, skiers will wind up at the top of the Village Slope triple chair on Little Gore.”

He anticipates installing a lift similar to the “Village Triple” currently in use at the Little Gore slope.

“In vertical drop we are currently ranked as number eight east of the Mississippi River,” Pratt adds. “When we have everything opened up to Little Gore, our ranking will move up to number six.

“It’s a great facility with tremendous natural resources, especially with the terrain and the Hudson River,” Pratt adds. “And we have a lot of wonderful people making it work.”

Acknowledging the tough economic conditions faced by the country, he stands firm behind a belief that the interconnect means much more to the region than a regional ranking. 

“We’ve had a tremendous growth curve since 1995. Even now when you look down Main Street, it’s truly developing into a renaissance. It’s wonderful and we’re going to ride this momentum through this season and into the next few years,” he said. 

“There seems to be a lot of excitement about Gore Mountain and about the Adirondacks.

“In spite some of some of the bad things that are happening economically - I think we’re in a very good position for the future.” 

 

 

 

 

 

Burnt Ridge expansion progresses at Gore Mountain
By Emily Stanton, North Creek News-Enterprise

NORTH CREEK - Just two short weeks after the end of a banner 2007/2008 winter season, components of a new quad chairlift have already arrived and Gore Mountain is in full swing preparing for this fall's opening of the Burnt Ridge Mountain Expansion.
The new development will feature the debut of the high-speed Burnt Ridge Quad, servicing five new trails plus glades. The new terrain, with 1,436 vertical feet, will increase Gore Mountain's total vertical drop to 2,300 feet, the eighth greatest in the eastern United States.
Burnt Ridge Mountain is one of Gore's four peaks of development.
The trails will be a unique mix of intermediate, expert, and gladed runs located among an array of various tree species and interesting geologic formations.
Like the recently constructed terrain on Bear Mountain, Gore Mountain will continue to theme trail names after the Great Camps of the Adirondacks, introducing "Sagamore," "Cedars," "Hedges," and "Echo." Guests should also look for "Sagamore Glades" and "The Gully" connector trail.
The black diamond "Sagamore" is similar in pitch to Bear Mountain's "Topridge," except that it is wider and offers more vertical. "Cedars" will transport guests from the Gore Mountain base area to the bottom of the Burnt Ridge Quad, while the lengthy blue-square "Echo" trail neighbors "Twister Glades." "The Hedges" connects skiers from the top of the new chair to "Twister."
The Burnt Ridge expansion comes on the heels of landmark Gore Mountain improvements, including the December 2007 openings of both the Northwoods Lodge by Lincoln Logs and the new Village Chair at the North Creek Ski Bowl. The Northwoods Lodge improved convenience and service for every Gore Mountain guest, especially beginners and families, while making new space and services available in the Base Lodge. The North Creek Ski Bowl expansion brought the first-ever aerial lift, terrain park, and night skiing experience to the historic area.
Upon celebrating a record-breaking 2007/2008 season, it was recently announced that Gore Mountain was voted "Best Terrain" in the Northeast by visitors of OnTheSnow.com, a popular website of snow sports enthusiasts.
During 2007/2008, Gore Mountain hosted 23 family-oriented events, 18 NYSEF (New York Ski Education Foundation) events including freestyle skiercross and boardercross at the North Creek Ski Bowl, 23 adult ski and snowboard specialty clinics, and 6 Town of Johnsburg community events.

Project on Gore receives approval
 

By ALYSON MARTIN
amartin@poststar.com
Tuesday, April 15, 2008 1:51 AM EDT

JOHNSBURG -- The Adirondack Park Agency on Friday approved FrontStreet Mountain Development LLC's application for the Ski Bowl Village at Gore Mountain, one of the largest projects approved by the environmental agency in recent years.

The project will include the reopening of the North Creek Ski Bowl, one of the first commercial ski parks in the country.

The $250 million development project involves more than 430 acres, a ski-in/ski-out venue for all commercial and residential developments and a proposed four-season sporting club community that will be developed in phases.

"We're excited. We've been working on this for many years. We've been in front of the park agency for about two years," said Mac Crikelair, FrontStreet project manager, during an interview Monday.

The Ski Bowl will become part of Gore Mountain Ski Center when the project is finished in an estimated seven to 10 years.

The FrontStreet project will use an Integrated Energy and Environmental Management plan.

"It was very important for us to make sure we bring forward a significant environment perspective in this developing project," Crikelair said.

Ed Milner, president of Gore Mountain Region/Town of Johnsburg Chamber of Commerce, said he was "delighted" by the approval.

"We think it's wonderful," Milner said. "We're disturbed it's taken this long, and we're also disturbed it's taking so long for other projects in the area to meet APA approval."

The project will also bring jobs and business to the area, he said.

Voicemail at the number listed for Johnsburg Town Supervisor Sterling Goodspeed said he would be on vacation until April 21.

Town Board member Ron Vanselow said he expected the approval, but he isn't fully supportive of the plan.

"I have some serious concerns about this project," Vanselow said. "As with anything, there was the potential to be a mixed bag. There's a lot of belief that it will have a positive impact on the tax base in the town.

"But there are a lot of other factors. We don't know where they're going to get the workforce, or where workforce housing will be."

The application was submitted to the APA in May 2006, with the town of Johnsburg as a co-applicant.

The APA issued a total of four permits for FrontStreet, Johnsburg and the Olympic Regional Development Authority -- which operates Gore -- covering all of the private and public activities and property exchanges in the Ski Bowl area.

Phone messages left for Keith McKeever, a spokesman for the APA, weren't returned Monday.

Friday's approval of the project came after almost two years of work by the APA and state and local agencies.

The developer is now working on completing the requirements of the APA, as well as other state and local agencies, to move forward, Crikelair said.

"I'd like to break ground sometime this year. The timing of it remains to be seen here, but we're anxious to get started as soon as possible," he said. "We have a few procedural items to take care of, and then we can get under way with the construction."

The FrontStreet project has been in the works since the private investment company acquired land at the Ski Bowl in March 2005.

Since then, the town of Johnsburg, ORDA, the Warren County Economic Development Corporation and FrontStreet have been working together to connect Gore Mountain Ski Center and the town park, which contains a portion of the Ski Bowl, Crikelair said.

According to Crikelair, when the land transfer to the town from FrontStreet is completed, Gore Mountain will become the sixth largest ski area in the Northeast.

Efforts to reach Emily Stanton, Gore Mountain's marketing manager, were unsuccessful Monday afternoon.

Gore lifts off on media day

By Erin DeMuth Judd
Saturday, December 22, 2007 1:48 AM EST

ejudd@poststar.com

NORTH CREEK -- All the snow Mother Nature has dumped on the region in the last two weeks has made life heavenly at Gore Mountain.

In welcoming people to an event Gore hosted Friday, Marketing Manager Emily Stanton gushed that it's been one of the mountain's "best early seasons ever."

But what makes this season so great isn't just the snow.

"Today is such a special day," Stanton said Friday morning. "We're opening the Village Chair today and Gore will once again return skiing and snowboarding to the Ski Bowl."

While there's been tubing in the North Creek Ski Bowl on Route 28 for several years, skiing has pretty much been absent since about 2002, when a small T-bar shut down.

The new Village Chair, a triple chairlift, provides skiers and snowboarders with access to the family-friendly Village Slope trail and the adjacent terrain park and half-pipe.

In August, during a previous interview with

The Post-Star

, General Manager Mike Pratt estimated that the lift and terrain park amount to $1 million worth of improvements to the Ski Bowl.

Tickets good for all Gore Mountain trails, not just Village Slope, can be purchased at the Ski Bowl, Stanton said. A yurt has also been erected at the Ski Bowl to give people a place to warm up between runs.

In addition to tickets, Stanton added that foods like

pizza and soup will also be available for purchase at the Ski Bowl.

During the event on Friday, Stanton and Pratt also gave a tour of Gore Mountain's new Northwoods Lodge.

Gore began converting its old gondola loading barn, which stopped operating

in 1999, into the lodge in June.

By renovating an existing structure, Gore was able to not only do something good for business, but do something good for the environment as well.

"Sixty-five percent of the existing walls, floors and roof of the loading barn were retained and used in the lodge," Stanton said. "It's a cool way to celebrate the history of the old gondola and be environmentally friendly."

The Northwoods Lodge also features rubber flooring made from recycled material, Stanton added. And material salvaged from the old loading barn has been used to build a small roof for the box office attached to the Gore's original base lodge as well.

Skiers and snowboarders, like the environment, also stand to benefit from the new 20,000-square-foot facility.

Gore's equipment rental shop, day care and ski school programs have all been moved from the base lodge to the Northwoods Lo dge.

This has opened up an additional 7,500 square feet of space in the base lodge for seating and lockers, Stanton said.

It also means Gore's Kids Klub program has a much better headquarters in the Northwoods Lodge.

For one thing, the Kids Klub is located in a large room

that opens right out onto the slopes.

"This makes it real easy for instructors to get all the kids out there," Pratt said.

Gore's self-improvement quest won't end with the Northwoods Lodge and Village Chair, however.

About this time next year, Stanton said Gore expects to open Burnt Ridge Mountain to skiing.

The Burnt Ridge area will feature five new trails, totaling 6 miles, and add about 60 acres of skiing to Gore, a press release said.

To get skiers to these trails, a new chairlift will be added.

"The lift lines are already in," Stanton said. "This summer we'll be ready to install a high-speed quad lift."

Gore Expansion Fully Funded

By MADELINE FARBMAN
mfarbman@poststar.com
Published on 9/24/2006 

NORTH CREEK -- As negotiations continue for the Ski Bowl project, the developer who plans to build a new residential and resort complex is working on offerings to help the town handle an influx of new visitors.
Plans are in the works for FrontStreet Mountain Development to provide a new ladder truck costing $1 million and build a structure to house it; design and construct two new wells in the village; and allow the new ski hut at Ski Bowl Park to hook onto the septic system that is put in for the development free, indefinitely.
Sterling Goodspeed, a Johnsburg Town Board member, said the developer announced these measures at the Sept. 4 board meeting, although Mac Crikelair, project manager for FrontStreet, said Thursday they are still working on the particulars.
"We have conceptual agreements on all three of these subjects," Crikelair said.
Goodspeed said he was pleased with the measures FrontStreet would be taking.
"They go some distance in protecting our community infrastructure," he said.
Goodspeed also said that the town had been meeting with FrontStreet and other local developers to discuss improving the town water system in such a way that it would not cost taxpayers additional money.
In a town divided in its response to the Ski Bowl project, Andi McKee, acting chairwoman of the Ski Bowl Park Committee, said she wasn't sure if these actions by FrontStreet would change any minds.
For the people who want this development for the business it'll bring in, this is icing on the cake, McKee said. And for folks who like living in a small town and want it to stay that way, this won't sway them.
FrontStreet plans to build a 430-acre complex including a 120-room hotel, two other inns, condominiums and other residences, a ski lodge and an equestrian center.
The firetruck and water measures address questions that also were raised in the Notice of Incomplete Project Application (NIPA) that the Adirondack Park Agency sent FrontStreet on May 30 after FrontStreet applied for a permit from the APA.
Keith McKeever, spokesman for the APA, said that an NIPA is often needed in the case of large developments.
The APA was seeking more information about location of ski trails, water supply, waste water collection and treatment, traffic issues and other concerns, McKeever said.
The town also signed a 20-year contract at the end of August with the Olympic Regional Development Authority, which runs Gore Mountain, formalizing plans for the construction and operation of new facilities in the Ski Bowl and the Interconnection Project to connect Gore Mountain and the Ski Bowl.
Under this agreement, ORDA will build and operate a new ski hut in the Ski Bowl, to be built on land owned by the town. Although the Town Board had hoped to have local business people run concessions at the ski hut, ORDA will give that responsibility to the company that runs concessions at its other facilities.
"That was one thing we had to give up," said town Supervisor William Thomas.
The agreement also provides for six afternoons of free tubing at the Ski Bowl for Johnsburg residents, and Johnsburg children 18 and younger will continue to be able to ski for free at Gore.

Ski Bowl project review ordered

By MAURY THOMPSON, thompson@poststar.com
Sunday, August 6, 2006 7:42 AM EDT

NORTH CREEK -- State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Denise Sheehan has ordered an additional level of review for a plan to connect the North Creek Ski Bowl with Little Gore Mountain.

The supplemental review will focus on the environmental impact of connecting ski trails and lifts with the Ski Bowl in coordination with a private resort development project.

Sheehan's order is not a direct response to a lawsuit filed on behalf of the Residents Committee to Protect the Adirondacks by lawyer John Caffry, said Maureen Wren, a DEC spokeswoman. Rather, the review was prompted by new information presented in the course of a broader review of the project, Wren said.

"It's a procedural action that requests more information on one aspect of the unit management plan so as not to hold up the process on the approval of the rest of the plan," she said.

The review is not expected to delay development of the ski resort because the trail connections will be undertaken late in the construction process, said Johnsburg Supervisor William Thomas.

"They're (the DEC) just making sure everything is done the right way," Thomas said. "I have no problem with the procedure."

Front Street Development plans to build a 430-acre residential and resort complex that will include a 120-room hotel, two smaller inns, condominiums, townhouses, single-family homes, a private ski lodge and an equestrian center.

The state has committed $5.5 million toward the project.

Peter Bauer, executive director of the Residents Committee to Protect the Adirondacks, said it is wrong for the state to spend money on connecting trails and lifts to benefit a private development project.

Bauer praised the commissioner for requiring the supplemental review.

"We are grateful that the state has heard us, to some extent," he said.

The environmental group's lawsuit claims the supplemental review is necessary because the DEC did not previously evaluate the full scope of the project.

Bauer said he hopes the DEC will seek public reaction as part of the supplemental review process.

(Note- this article is included in an effort to provide the reader with the most up to date information on this exciting and valuable project and to dispell rumors. It is not expected to cause any development delay. Following precendent, the RCPA's law suit will most likely be dismissed as meritless. - Bergman)

North Creek looks to the future...Developer gets financing

   By CHRISTINE MARGIOTTA
cmargiotta@poststar.com
Wednesday, June 28, 2006 6:33 AM EDT

Ski Bowl money restored

By MAURY THOMPSON, thompson@poststar.com

Updated: 4/27/2006 10:21:03 PM

Johnsburg Supervisor William Thomas said Thursday he was relieved to learn that $5.5 million in state funding to help build a ski lift connection to the North Creek Ski Bowl is now definite.

A $2 million matching grant for Adirondack Community College's proposed "Regional Higher Education Center" also is now definite, said state Sen. Elizabeth Little, R-Queensbury.

Thomas said his spirits had risen and fallen in recent weeks as the state Legislature included the money in the state budget, only to have Gov. George Pataki veto it.

The state Legislature completed its override of a series of Pataki's vetos on Tuesday, influencing those that dealt with funding for the Ski Bowl and for the college.

"We're very excited that Betty stayed with this and got the override done," Thomas said.

The money will subsidize construction of a ski lift to take skiers from the Ski Bowl's trails to Little Gore Mountain.

The connection will facilitate a $200 million private plan to develop the Ski Bowl as a resort, with condominiums and other amenities, Thomas said.

"It's going to take an old ski area that was really historic and bring it back to life," Little said.

Little has been instrumental in the project, which will be a boon to the local economy, said Leonard Fosbrook, president of EDC Warren County.

Ski Bowl funding vetoed

By CHRISTINE MARGIOTTA

Updated: 4/12/2006 10:19:22 PM

To the shock and disappointment of local officials, Gov. George Pataki vetoed Wednesday a money stream that contained funds crucial to the development of two major local projects.

The $2.9 billion axed by Pataki contained $5.5 million to help build a ski lift connection to the North Creek Ski Bowl, as well as a $2 million matching grant for Adirondack Community College's proposed "Regional Higher Education Center" -- both projects considered economic catalysts for the region.

Sen. Elizabeth Little, R-Queensbury, felt the veto was unfair, especially when $54 million to help fund the construction of a new stadium for the New York Mets baseball team -- nearly 10 times the amount earmarked for the Ski Bowl connection -- remained unscathed.

"I'm really disappointed that the governor vetoed the Gore Mountain money because I believe the expansion to the Ski Bowl was very, very important to Warren and Essex counties," she said. "I've supported the governor all along. I don't like to disagree with him, but I think these things are important to the North Country."

The money would have helped build a ski lift to dispense skiers from the Ski Bowl's trails to Little Gore, giving them access to all of Gore's existing trails. The $5.5 million appropriation was a crucial step forward for a $200 million plan to develop the Ski Bowl into a resort. Project developer Mac Crikelair of Front Street Development could not be reached Wednesday for comment on the veto.

Johnsburg Town Supervisor William Thomas, who has worked for more than a decade to make the ski lift connection happen, was angered Wednesday by the news of Pataki's veto. The move made Pataki's visit to the North Creek Ski Bowl over the summer, where he showed support for the project, seem insincere to Thomas.

"I just don't know what he's thinking," Thomas said. "We're right on the verge of making it all happen, and we have the money in place, and he's taking it away. Something is wrong."

The Olympic Regional Development Authority had no comment on the veto when contacted Wednesday. About an hour later, the authority stated that "no one has done more to support ORDA and the North Country than Governor Pataki. The governor remains committed to our mission, and we are confident that he and our legislative representatives will continue to work together on important projects that are beneficial to the region."

ACC officials could not be reached for comment.

Little indicated the support existed to override Pataki's veto, but such a measure could be mired in legal action. Pataki has said he his constitutional rights give him the power to veto spending without the reprisal of an override from the Legislature.

"Over the next week and a half, people are going to be trying to work on some kind of agreement with the governor, and if that's not possible, we're going to do what we have to do," Little said, indicating that failed negotiations with Pataki would likely lead to an override of his budget vetoes.

Little also criticized Pataki for vetoing appropriations to cover previously unfunded state mandates such as $1.2 million to pay for required building code enforcement books for all municipalities, and $600,000 for fire prevention and control training.

Comment - Please understand that the budget negotiation is far from done. The Ski Bowl funding is wrapped up in a very large allocation of member item spending. Over the next few days we can expect to see the legislature and governor enter into long and detailed negotiations. This is just politics as usual...all be it hitting a little too close to home for comfort. - Mark Bergman

Ski Bowl resort plans altered...Fewer townhouses, more hotels eyed

DEREK PRUITTÑPRUITT@POSTSTAR.COM The ski bowl area near Gore Mountain in Johnsburg was once home to one of the Northeast's first ski areas, but was shut down decades ago. Now, the 323 acres -- recently purchased by a Connecticut property development group -- is the site of a redevelopment project that would include connector trails to Gore Mountain, townhouses, single-family residences, lodges, a golf course and more.

JOHNSBURG -- Driving through town up Route 28, on the highway referred to by locals as "the bypass," a hill obscures Gore Mountain to the west, and undeveloped land blocks the view of North Creek to the east.

At this time of year, before the snow falls, the hillsides are as gray as they'll ever be. Cold winds have swept away the last of the fall color.

But appearances can deceiving. The future is brighter than the scenery on this bleak road.

A property development group from Connecticut recently spent nearly $2 million for 323 acres next to the town's old ski bowl, which was one of the first ski areas in the Northeast when it opened in the 1930s, but which closed to skiing two decades ago.

Plans for redevelopment, including connector trails between the ski bowl and Gore Mountain, a cluster of townhouses, plush single-family residences, private lodges, a golf course, an equestrian center and a day spa -- are set to lift the region out of obscurity.

Realtor Mark Bergman, with Adirondack Country Homes Realty in North Creek, brokered the deal, and is now eyeing the future with heady enthusiasm.

Bergman has lived in Johnsburg for three years, but he was a weekend resident for 13 years before that, commuting each weekend from Syracuse to ski Gore. He joined the Gore Ski Patrol in 1990, and eventually settled here.

His personalized license plate is "SK1 LIFT." He skis Vale once a year. He knows his way around a mountain, and right now, he said, Gore is underutilized.

With about 2,200 feet of vertical drop, Gore is bigger than Bromley and more challenging than Okemo. It attracts tens of thousands of tourists each winter, but few stay during the week, and even fewer venture into North Creek. The ski bowl deal will change that, he said.

A 2004 study by the state comptroller's office indicated the project, complete with connector trails, could pump as much as $45 million into the region's economy, roughly double what is currently spent there.

The area is perched not far from the Northway, said Bergman, which is a huge advantage not yet harnessed. By comparison, if people want to ski Vermont, they're in for a drive on smaller, crowded roads, he said.

To get to Stratton means an hour's drive on Route 100. To get to Stowe, it's two hours. Yet New York residents spend $100 million a year in Vermont, Bergman said.

"I'm not a Vermont-basher," he added. "It's just that New York state has a competitive advantage." One that, until now, has not been realized.

Bergman said the real estate market has been thriving since the Sept. 11 attacks, when urbanites began feeling as though they wanted a place to get away to, perhaps tapping "a subconscious survivalist instinct," he said. Land is also more solid and safe than the stock market, and North Creek is far enough away, there is no "T-shirt vendor, video arcade, salt-water taffy mentality."

The value of real estate within 10 minutes of Gore Mountain, and in the hamlet of North Creek, has doubled in the past two years, said Bergman, with good reason. The money in ski resort towns is not made in skiing, he said, but in residential and commercial property abutting the mountain.

"That's where the big bucks are made," he said. "With all this just impending, it's having an impact."

When the project is complete, the ski bowl will naturally mean a lot more overnight stays.

"You'd have to be a real hermit to go skiing and then just cocoon yourself in your room and not go out and eat," Bergman said.

The town will make money as the guests are fed and watered and entertained. Sales tax will be collected. Occupancy tax too. All making for a happy Main Street.

Bergman, like many locals, also envisions the far-off day when a local rail service will reach the hamlet's historic train station with passengers from Saratoga Springs, and Albany, and New York.

As a Planning Board member, Bergman has to look out for people who won't want to leave their town but may not be able to afford a new home in it. Affordable housing will also have to be found for the work force to staff the development.

"The surge in values is great," Bergman said. "But at the same time, it poses unique challenges."

But the burdens on the community will be minimal, he said. Same goes for the impact on infrastructure needs, especially when weighed against the benefits.

"When you put up 200 townhouses at 450 (thousand dollars) each, that's an enormous boon," he said, noting the riches will be shared too. "Warrensburg will feel it. Chestertown will feel it. I think the town will maintain a wonderful rural character, but there will be a huge economic benefit to the region."
Transortation Bill Includes Ski Bowl Funding

The 2005 Transportation,Treasury, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bill passed in The House of Representatives on November 18th. Included in this bill is an additional $500,000- of funding for the Gore Mountain to North Creek Ski Bowl interconnection project. This brings the federal funding brought home by U.S. Rep. John Sweeney to $750K to date. Thank you Representative Sweeney for leading the way on this critical project! Isn't it time for Albany to join in?

Ski Bowl Village : A New Era for North Creek

By Linda Ellingsworth

(This article appears in the "Gore Mountain Lake George Region Guide")

            After years of diligent work by town, county and state officials, Gore Mountain management, real estate agents and developers, North Creek is poised to become the site one of the Northeast’s major ski resorts. The final piece fell into place in 2005, as the 300-acre site adjoining the historic North Creek Ski Bowl was sold to a developer who plans to create a world-class resort called “SkiBowlVillage” on the site. In addition, significant state and federal funding has been pledged to build a ski lift that will connect GoreMountain to the Ski Bowl and the new village.

            “This has so much potential, and will improve the quality of life in the town,” said Realtor Mark Bergman of Adirondack Country Homes. Bergman brokered the sale of the site to Front Street Mountain Development, a company founded by David Crikelair of Connecticut. Crikelair is a former treasurer of Texaco whose father owned a large farm in Riparius. The Crikelair family has a long history of skiing at GoreMountain, said Bergman, including participation in the mountain’s racing program.

            “They thought this looked like an interesting venture,” Bergman said. David Crikelair has appointed his 28-year-old son Mac as project manager for the development.

            “The property was of interest to us,” said Mac Crikelair. “We kept saying, ‘we hope it gets done right’.” When no one else stepped forward to develop the property, the Crikelair family decided to jump in. “We figured we could have a lot of fun with this,” Mac said. “We already know a lot people here on the mountain.” Crikelair noted that he is the fourth generation in his family in the area, and has been skiing at Gore since he was two years old.

            The Crikelairs have been working closely with the Town of Johnsburg. They’ve also held public meetings for the townspeople, hired the LA Group to assist with planning, and have been working with GoreMountain, the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) and the Adirondack Park Agency (APA). “It’s been a good opportunity to pool everyone’s ideas,” said Crikelair. “We’ve had input from the local community about the historic ski trails at the Ski Bowl, and we’ve talked with Mike Pratt (Gore Mountain General Manager) about how he wants the new ski trails positioned.” The overall plan will be submitted to the APA in the near future, he said.

            Johnsburg Town Supervisor Bill Thomas is ecstatic about the development. “We are looking forward to becoming the premier ski attraction in the East,” he said. “We’ve reached the point where all the hard work will pay off.” He points to 2005 as the year that the “three legs” of the project came together: a private developer came forward; the state committed millions of dollars to the Ski Bowl, and the town began work with the developer to make the project a reality.

            The project’s scope is impressive. SkiBowlVillage will be a “totally integrated village” at the base of the Ski Bowl, said Bergman. Upon completion, the village will host more than 200 residential units that will be comprised of 170 to 180 townhouses and 25 single family residences. The townhouses will be constructed in Adirondack Great Camp style architecture, featuring natural materials such as log, stone and even garnet. Wherever possible, materials will be obtained locally. “These will be first class residences that will sell in the $400,000 price range,” he commented.

            Ski Bowl Village will also include a 30-room bed & breakfast/inn, a 60-room inn, and a 125-room hotel. A private member-based lodge named Hudson Lodge will be built as well. Similar to a country club, Hudson Lodge will accommodate 100 families who will pay an initiation fee to join. With half of the memberships already verbally sold, “there will be a waiting list,” Bergman predicted.

            Other amenities include an 18-hole golf course, a day spa and an equestrian center. The equestrian center will have horse boarding facilities and an arena, and will provide access to the area’s trail system. It is these facilities that will help North Creek become a four-season resort, said Bergman.

            Ski Bowl Village will be built in three phases, which will overlap. Phase 1 is slated to start in April 2006, with the construction of approximately 20 to 40 townhouses, the 30-room bed & breakfast and Hudson Lodge, which will be open by the 2006-2007 ski season. “For Phase 1, we’re trying to add things that won’t compete with the town,” said Crikelair. “We want to encourage people to interact with the town.”

            Crikelair also noted that the extent of Phase 1 is somewhat dependent on the amount of state funding for the ski lifts that will connect to Gore. “If the full connection is funded,” he said, “Phase 1 will be larger.”

            Phase 2 will include construction of the hotel, and Phase 3 will see the building of the single family residences. Bergman said that he already had several commitments to buy townhouses (clarification - not selling yet!). “There’s little doubt we will sell out Phase 1 pre-construction,” he commented.

            Beyond bringing more people to North Creek, there is also a direct local economic benefit. SkiBowlVillage stands to add $600,000 to the tax base of Johnsburg, said Bergman. “And the owners of these townhouses will not use a lot of town services,” he added. All roads in the development will be private and not maintained by the town. SkiBowlVillage will also have its own wastewater treatment plant.

            Of course, without the connector lift to GoreMountain, the proposed village would never come to pass. In the past year, Congressman John Sweeney has obtained $250,000 in federal funds for the project, said Thomas, and has pledged another $500,000 for 2006. Through State Senator Betty Little’s advocacy, $5.5 million has been earmarked to help build the lift that will connect the North Creek Ski Bowl to Gore.

            “There are a lot of challenges ahead,” said Thomas, “but this is very exciting.” In the future, he hopes to obtain grant money to build a substantial base lodge at the Ski Bowl that will be used by ORDA in the winter, and the townspeople in the summer months. And if the train connection can be completed to Saratoga, there will be a need for a gondola to shuttle skiers from the North Creek train station to the Ski Bowl. Thomas also envisions lighting the slopes on the Ski Bowl, and replacing the single chair lift with a triple chair.

            Supervisor Thomas sees all these developments as positive signs for an area that has seen more than its share of economic strife. “This is very good for the community,” he commented. “With this type of growth, North Creek and the whole area will prosper.”

Historic Day in North Creek
Tuesday July 19, 2005 will be remembered as a truly significant day in the history of North Creek and the Town of Johnsburg.

Governor George Pataki arrived at Gore Mountain via helicopter this afternoon and took a brief tour of the Gore Mountain facilities. He then traveled by car to the Johnsburg Ski Bowl Park (also known as the historic North Creek Ski Bowl) where he greeted local residents and visiting state and local political leaders before listening to a 15 minute presentation of the development plans for Ski Bowl Village. Mac Crikelair of Front Street Mountain Development, LLC conducted the presentation with support by Jeff Anthony of the LA Group and Maureen Donovan of the Warren County Economic Development Corporation. A clearly impressed Pataki then turned to gathered poltical leaders, Supervisor Bill Thomas, Assemblywoman Theresa Sayward and Senator Betty Little to ask them for their opinions of the project. All strongly supported this project as a critical economic catalyst for, not only, the Town of Johnsburg, but more importantly the entire region. The project will result in a $200M investment, creation of upwards of 300 jobs and an increase in skier visits (skiers who will spend $$ locally and regionally) to Gore Mountain.

Later, the Johnsburg Town Board met in a regularly scheduled session in the Tannery Pond Community Center. Before a well attended audience, the town board unanimously passed a resolution authorizing a land exchange with Front Street Mountain Development that will enable Gore to expand skiing operations to the former ski trails and lift line in exchange for some key building rights and a 4 acre parcel for hotel development. Front Street will contribute $200K to the town recreation fund and the remaining park lands will remain forever park land with no future private development. This land exchange truly solidifies the town's partnership with Front Street Mountain Development and extends a hand of welcome to them.

- Mark Bergman


Jeff Anthony of the LA Group briefs Pataki                         Mac Crikelair explains the plans


Listening to Maureen Donovan - WCEDC                                                     David Crikelair looks on as Pataki speaks


Sen. Betty Little speaks in support of the project

Pataki Visits North Creek Ski Bowl

Post Star - July 20, 2005

Brendan McGarry

NORTH CREEK—A Connecticut-based investment firm unveiled details Tuesday for a planned $200 million ski resort near the old Ski Bowl at Gore Mountain - a project designed to rival the best in the Northeast and galvanize the regional economy.

Gov. George Pataki toured the site Tuesday afternoon, calling the project “very exciting.” But he stopped short of committing to any of the additional $12 million in state funding the project would require.  “We’ll take a good look,” Pataki said. “There are a lot of competing priorities, but this has a lot of compelling pieces to it.”

Regardless of whether state money comes through, the developer plans to build at least the first phase of the project, which includes a private lodge, condominums and a bed-and-breakfast in the hamlet of North Creek.

Local officials are pulling for a public-private partnership, hoping the state will pay for two new chairlifts and related trails that would connect the state-owned GoreMountain ski center to the historic North Creek Ski Bowl.

The project would be subject to review by the Adirondack Park Agency and other regulatory groups.

FrontStreet Mountain Development of Darien, Conn., recently spent $1.98 million for 323 acres adjacent to the Ski Bowl, one of the first ski areas in the Northeast when it opened in the 1930s. It was closed to skiing about two decades ago, although it is used for other winter activities.

Plans for the new SkiBowlVillage at GoreMountain call for a 30-room bed and breakfast, 60-room inn, 125-room hotel, 175 townhouses and 26 single-family homes, restaurants, retail space, a spa center, an equestrian center, public and private lodges and a 9-hole, Par 3 golf course.

The company hopes to break ground on the first phase of construction next spring, Project Manager Mac Crikelair said. It will cost about $18 million and include the private-membership Hudson Lodge, the bed and breakfast and a cluster of condominiums, built in the Adirondack great camp style, Crikelair said. Membership and real estate costs were not released. The project’s goal is to increase foot traffic in North Creek.

Gore Mountain attracts tens of thousands of tourists each winter, but few stay during the week, and relatively few are willing to venture into the hamlet, located on the opposite side of the mountain from the ski area. The Ski Bowl, by contrast, is about a quarter-mile from Main Street, across Route 28.

A 2004 study by the state comptroller’s office indicated linking the ski

trails could pump as much as $45 million to the region’s economy, compared to the $21.7 million skiers spend annually.  The development could create more than 360 jobs, generate significant tax revenue and attract more than 100,000 additional skiers per year, according to Saratoga Springs-based landscape, architecture and engineering firm The LA Group.

Johnsburg Supervisor William Thomas envisions expanding local passenger rail service to Saratoga Springs, picking up Amtrak customers and returning them to the hamlet’s historic rail station, where they could be shuttled to the resort.

“It’s been a dream of mine since 1990,” Thomas said of the resort development.

Thomas, state Assemblywoman Teresa Sayward, R-Willsboro, and state Sen.

Elizabeth Little, R-Queensbury, all endorsed the project to Pataki.

ORDA Press Release – 7-19-2005

Governor Pataki tours North Creek Ski Bowl

Proposal Would Redevelop Ski Bowl and Connect to GoreMountain

Governor George E. Pataki today toured the North Creek Ski Bowl with Town of Johnsburg and WarrenCounty officials as well as members of the New York Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) to get a first-hand look at proposed development that would connect the area to GoreMountain and help provide a boost to the local economy.

"GoreMountain is a top-notch ski area that draws thousands of visitors each year to the North Country," Governor Pataki said. "I applaud local officials and ORDA for their ongoing efforts that are helping to reinvigorate the local community and the entire region. This project holds the potential to bring further economic development to the area and create a new winter ski and snowboard destination that can compete with the best resorts in the Northeast."

Gore Mountain and the Ski Bowl are currently operated separately by ORDA. A tubing hill with handle tow is offered at the Ski Bowl for day and night-time winter activities.

Local officials and the Warren County Economic Development Corp. have been working with ORDA on a proposal to redevelop the North Creek Ski Bowl by connecting the venue with GoreMountain and increasing access to Main Street businesses in the historic hamlet of North Creek. The proposal envisions a new ski lift, new trails, additional snowmaking and other amenities that would enable skiers to travel back and forth from Gore to the Ski Bowl, which is located less than one mile from Main Street in North Creek. Connecting the two venues would generate millions in additional economic activity for the region and allow the area to compete with larger ski resorts in Vermont. The proposed expansion is included in an amendment to ORDA's Unit Management Plan for GoreMountain.

Senator Betty Little said, "Developing the North Creek Ski Bowl and linking it to GoreMountain will create new skiing opportunities, supporting tourism and offering visitors expanded access to the mountain. The local economy will benefit from this connection as well as from the development of the SkiBowlVillage. I look forward to working with Governor Pataki, ORDA and local officials to ensure this project becomes a reality."

Assemblywoman Theresa R. Sayward said, "The cooperation between state and local agencies as well as private individuals has truly worked to benefit North Creek and the surrounding areas. The proposal we explored today continues the momentum of economic development that enhances the lives of our North Country residents."

William Thomas, Chairman of the Warren County Board of Supervisors and Supervisor of the Town of Johnsburg, said, "It has been the Town's desire to re-establish significant skiing at the ski bowl that would provide a connection to the State ski center and help boost local tourism and our downtown business community. I thank Governor Pataki for his past support for the region and stand ready to work with he and Congressman Sweeney as well as our local elected officials to make this a reality for the People of Warren County, Town of Johnsburg and the State of New York.

ORDA President and CEO Ted Blazer said, "ORDA is working with the Town of Johnsburg and WarrenCounty officials to further the benefits in North Creek for skiing and recreation. This project will aid economic development opportunities in the area."

In addition, the Town-owned Ski Bowl property is adjacent to 320 acres of privately owned land that holds potential for private development. The property has recently been acquired by FrontStreet Mountain Development LLC., a private development company with plans to build a SkiBowlVillage that would include residential housing, retail shops and restaurants, an Adirondack-style hotel, spa and 9-hole golf course. The development would be subject to approval by the Adirondack Park Agency.

The historic North Creek Ski Bowl opened in the early 1930s and was one of the first commercial ski areas in the country. Riders could board trains in Manhattan and disembark at the North Creek rail station, which has recently been renovated with support from the State. Plans are also underway to re-establish passenger rail service from Saratoga Springs to North Creek.

In June 2001, Governor Pataki announced $1.8 million in transportation funds to restore 40 miles of track between the Town of Corinth in SaratogaCounty and the Hamlet of North Creek. The rail line project hopes to expand existing tourist railroad service from North Creek south to Thurman, Hadley and Corinth, with the long-term goal of extending service to the newly-refurbished Amtrak station in Saratoga Springs.

Since 1995, the State of New York has contributed over $23 million in capital improvements at GoreMountain, including the installation of the $5 million Northwoods Gondola in 1999. The project was followed by the development of the Topridge section of the mountain that included construction of trails with double chair, base lodge and on-mountain lodge improvements, updated grooming equipment and increased water capacity for snowmaking through the Hudson River Pipeline Project.

Group Plans Hotels for North Creek
 
Developers buy land to build resort, at
base of Ski Bowl site
 
By JASON McCORD
mccord@poststar.com
NORTH CREEK -- Private developers have purchased 323 acres at the base of the historic North Creek Ski Bowl and are planning to build condominiums, hotels and an upscale day lodge on the site.
Local officials said the $1.98 million purchase is a huge step toward making Gore Mountain Ski Center more of a destination resort, greatly expanding Johnsburg’s tax base and stimulating the local economy.
“This is great news for us,” said Johnsburg Supervisor William Thomas. “We’ve been waiting for this property to move along with a development project for quite a number of years.”
Mark Bergman, associate broker with Adirondack Country Homes Realty, said a deal was closed Thursday, with the FrontStreet Mountain Development group purchasing the property from local business owner Elliott Monter.
The group plans to develop about 75 acres of the site, building a resort at the base of the ski bowl, Bergman said.
“It will help to transform Gore more into a destination lodge than it currently is,” Bergman said.
Mac Crikelair, project manager for FrontStreet Mountain Development, said the first phase of construction will include condominiums, a bed and breakfast and a lodge. Developers hope to break ground next year.
Future phases could include hotels and private homes, Crikelair said, although plans will have to be approved by the Adirondack Park Agency and local planning board.
“It’s a significant piece of land that can hold considerable development,” Crikelair said.
Developers believe the land holds great promise, Crikelair said, particularly with skiers who want easy access from their rooms to the slopes.
“We really think there is a lot of potential with the ski-in ski-out community,” Crikelair said.
Gore Mountain already has plans to reopen the historic ski bowl area, creating six or seven trails on the lowest of Gore’s four mountains, said General Manager Michael Pratt.
Plans also include connecting the ski bowl to the rest of Gore’s ski trails through lifts, an essential connection for the planned resort area.
The North Creek Ski Bowl was one of the first commercial ski areas in the country, Pratt said, but closed about 20 years ago.
Its heyday was from the 1930s to 1950s, Pratt said, when trains brought skiers from Manhattan and Schenectady.
With a new resort, Supervisor Thomas said he hopes those days will return.
Work on rail lines between North Creek and Saratoga Springs is progressing well, Thomas said, with a private resort likely fueling those efforts.
When completed, skiers from New York City and elsewhere could take a train up to North Creek, delivered within a half-mile of the ski bowl area, Thomas said.
“It’s very important to tourism in Johnsburg,” Thomas said of the resort plans. “I see it as a big catalyst for Main Street businesses.”
A report last year by state Comptroller Alan Hevesi estimated a private resort and the reopening of the ski bowl area could more than double the tourist dollars in the region’s economy, capturing a larger portion of the $100 million New York skiers spend in Vermont.
The study estimated Gore Mountain could attract an additional 168,000 skiers a year, bringing in a total of $45 million a year to the regional economy.
FrontStreet Mountain Development is based in Darien, Conn., but has ties to the local area, Crikelair said. He noted he’s a third-generation skier at Gore Mountain.
“One of the reasons we were attracted to the project is because we’re familiar with the area and know the different groups involved,” Crikelair said. 

Defunct Ski Bowl Gets Chance for Another Run

Plans call for building a four-season resort and linking ski area in Johnsburg to GoreMountain

By LEIGH HORNBECK , Staff writer

First published: Friday, April 8, 2005

NORTH CREEK -- Back when a lift ticket was $5, people in the town of Johnsburg had a ski area practically all to themselves in their back yard.

The Ski Bowl -- often called Little Gore -- closed in 1976 as more and more skiers were drawn to the state-run GoreMountain. As the town celebrates its 200th anniversary, Supervisor Bill Thomas hopes a combination of private investment and public money will return the Ski Bowl to the playground his children enjoyed.

Last month, Darien, Conn.-based FrontStreet Mountain Development LLC closed a deal to buy 323 acres at the Ski Bowl for nearly $2 million. Located off Route 28, the area is also home to a 214-acre

town park and a tubing park operated by the Olympic Regional Development Authority, which runs Gore.

Maureen Donovan, vice president of the Warren County Economic Development Corp., said the EDC is

working with elected officials to find the money to pay for chair lifts and trails to connect Gore and the Ski Bowl.

"This has been a dream project for 20 years, it's been in the works that long," Donovan said. U.S. Rep. John Sweeney, R-CliftonPark, secured $250,000 of seed money for the project last July.

Gore's general manager, Mike Pratt, said ORDA has had the permits it needs for the project from the Adirondack Park Agency and the state Department of Environmental Conservation since the winter of

1999-2000. If the money comes through for what Pratt said is a multimillion-dollar project, there will be two new lifts and a dozen new trails to the north of Twister. The vertical drop into the Ski Bowl is 800 feet, Pratt said, similar to the expert terrain on Gore that forms Hawkeye and Chatiemac.

The developer skis those trails and took his children on weekend trips to Gore. David Crikelair is one of two partners in FrontStreet Partners LLC, an energy merchant bank. His son, Mac, is project manager

of the Ski Bowl project. The family owns a home in nearby Chestertown.

Mac Crikelair said this week that the first phase of the project is a bed and breakfast, lodge and some

condominiums. Plans for the "SkiBowlVillage" include more than one lodge, single-family homes, hotel and retail space.

Crikelair emphasized his desire to create a four-season resort destination, not just a skiing community.

"We're uncovering what will fit in the parameters of the APA and what the land will hold. We want it to be attractive, a four-season resort that uses the historic nature of the Adirondacks," Crikelair said.

There is town water on the site, but no sewer system. Crikelair said details about infrastructure, the total number of housing units and the amount of the 323 acres that will ultimately be developed is not finalized, but Supervisor Thomas said the total build-out may be as many as 500 units -- doubling the tax base in a town of 2,450 people.

The developer has not yet filed an application with the APA.

It is not the first time new trails and housing have been proposed on Little Gore. FrontStreet bought the property from developer Elliott Monter, who tried and failed to put 36 trails, more than 200 residential units, a movie theater and three hotels at the Ski Bowl in the 1990s, according to Mark Bergman, the real estate agent who brokered the deal between Monter and FrontStreet. Monter's plan

involved leasing property from the town, and the town balked.

"We wanted to hang on to our park, our Little League fields, softball fields, tot lot, our pavilions and tennis courts," said Thomas.

What was once the ski area is also home to the town's former landfill -- now a transfer station – and highway garage.

A 10-member advisory board, formed a year ago to oversee the use of the Ski Bowl, participates in talks between the town officials and FrontStreet.

"Our commitment is to work with the developer and make sure the park atmosphere is preserved," said

Bob Nessle, a South Johnsburg Road resident who was on Gore's Ski Patrol the first winter it opened in 1964.

"We waited a long time to get the right partners together to proceed, we need money from the state and federal government that is now being discussed," Thomas said.

The supervisor's visions of a stronger economy in his town do not stop with seeing skiers again at the Ski Bowl.

"The ultimate dream is a tram that would carry people between North Creek and Gore," he said.

Leigh Hornbeck can be reached at 581-8438 or by e-mail at lhornbeck@timesunion.com.

Big Dream Realized

Ski Bowl developers plan well received by public
By TOM HENECKER, News-Enterprise Publisher

NORTH CREEK - Plans unveiled by developers who recently purchased land adjacent to the Ski Bowl Park here were well-received by a gathering ofabout 75 people at an informational meeting held last week at the Tannery Pond Community Center.

Great things happen when you dream big, Johnsburg Supervisor William Thomas told the audience during opening remarks.
Mac Crikelair, project developer for FrontStreet Mountain Development, explained details of plans for 323 acres of real estate the company purchased last month. The project will be completed in phases, Crikelair said, and include plans for an Adirondack great camp-style lodge; 30-room bed and breakfast; 125-room hotel; 175 town houses (condos); 26 single-family homes; restaurants; retail space; spa facilities; an equestrian center; two private lodges; and a nine-hole, par 3 golf course.
The first phase of the project will focus on the lodge, bed and breakfast, and town homes at the base of Little Gore Mountain, Crikelair said.
A key element of the plan is a land exchange between the town of Johnsburg and FrontStreet which puts historic ski trails currently on private land back in the hands of the town. The terrain on those trails is considered by many to be the best in the Northeast. The Ski Bowl has a great variety of terrain,² said Mike Pratt, general manager of the Gore Mountain Ski Center. Gore Mountain will operate the Ski Bowl winters under a previous agreement between the town of Johnsburg and the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA). A triple-chair lift will be installed from the base of the Ski Bowl to connect with the Gore Mountain Ski Center, and the trail network will allow for skiing from Gore to the Ski Bowl. A terrain park and lights for night skiing also are planned at the Ski Bowl, Pratt said. Between the ski areas, there will be 35.4 total miles of ski trails, he added

From the 1930s to 1950s, the Ski Bowl was a thriving commercial ski center, complete with a lift and ski patrol. Starting in March 1934, ski trains brought skiers by the hundreds from New York City and Schenectady to the North Creek depot. The Ski Bowl closed in the early 1970s. Supervisor Thomas credited several groups for working closely to bring the project to fruition, including a committee of community members, ORDA, Warren County Economic Development Corp. (WEDC), and project planners The LA Group of Saratoga.This was a huge team effort, said WEDC President Len Fosbrook. This project will expand the tax base, increase employment opportunities, improve property values, and increase revenues to local merchants.

Very seldom do we see a project where all the pieces fit together like this, said Jeff Anthony of the LA Group planners about the cooperation between all the parties. Anthony, who is preparing the required applications for permits, expects approval for the first phase of the project by the APA by August of this year. Construction could begin in the spring of 2006, he said. This is a lifelong dream revitalized, said Sterling Goodspeed, one of the community members involved with the project from the start. It moves the mountain to Main Street. These developers have a passion for the project and they have a heart.

Another part of the plan of note is the construction of a town facility on the site of the original Ski Hut. Preliminary design show a much larger structure than the original, built in Adirondack great camp style. Responding to a question from the audience, Supervisor Thomas noted that Ski Bowl Park facilities, such as the ball fields, playground and tennis courts, will remain in place.

At the close of the meeting, Thomas asked if those in attendance felt the need for additional informational meetings. The consensus was that this meeting was thorough, and further meetings were not necessary at this time.
The meeting ended with an enthusiastic round of applause from the crowd.

Stay up to date on this exciting project. Send an
e-mail with your COMPLETE contact information (name,mailing address, phone #'s and e-mail) to mark@adkrealtor.com
and make the subject "ski bowl"