Aspen One is breaking ground on several new infrastructure projects later this month at the Snowmass Ski Area, and they come with an almost $80 million price tag.
Projects at the Snowmass Ski Area include upgrading the Elk Camp chairlift from a quad chair to a high-speed six-pack and replacing the Cirque T-Bar lift, making it a two-seater.
These two chairlifts are set to debut next winter season, marking the first time in almost two decades that the Snowmass Ski Area adds two new lifts in one season.
The new Elk Camp chair will reduce ski season wait times and upload more bikes to the Snowmass Bike Park in summer months.
As construction for these on-mountain developments takes place, some closures will occur throughout the summer season. Aspen Snowmass, a division of Aspen One, will share this information locally and in-resort in the coming months.
“The areas of terrain served by these lifts are some of the most popular on our mountain,” said Susan Cross, Mountain Manager at Snowmass in a press release from Aspen One.
Aspen Skiing Company CEO Geoff Buchheister said the push for these investments comes out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Being outside was important for people, and we saw a lot of interest in outdoor sports and certainly in skiing and snowboarding,” he said. “We want to make sure that we continue to enhance the experience.”
Another project is the complete reconstruction of the 56-year-old Ullrhof Restaurant. Buchheister said it will double the restaurant’s original seating capacity, as well as make it Aspen Snowmass’ first all-electric on-mountain restaurant.
“We're not using propane. We're not using natural gas,” he said. “Things that are environmentally not as up to (the) standard that we want to hold ourselves to.”
They will work with Holy Cross Energy to make this switch.
Ullrhof is scheduled to reopen during the 2026-2027 winter season.
Elk Camp restaurant may also undergo upgrades this summer to expand capacity, pending approval from the Town of Snowmass Village.
Snowmaking and forest health projects, including wildfire mitigation, are also slated to take place across all four mountains. These upgrades are part of a larger master plan that was approved by Pitkin County, Snowmass Village and the U.S. Forest Service.
Closing day for both Aspen Mountain and the Snowmass Ski Area is this Sunday. Closing day festivities will take place on Saturday at the Snowmass Ski Area and Sunday at Aspen Mountain.
