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A global perspective on Whistler

He was one of the starring characters in what is arguably Whistler’s most iconic photograph.

He was one of the starring characters in what is arguably Whistler’s most iconic photograph. No joke – there he is, standing in front of the old Soo Valley cabin in all his glory; that’s him second from the left, holding up a pair of what look like Dynamic VR17 skis. And he looks like he fits in perfectly. Ah, the 1970s – when time was elastic and money was just a detail….

Think again. While most of the other Toad Hall alumni were busy racing for the UIC ski team, Paul Mathews was hard at work earning a science degree in forest ecology from the University of Washington. "My Whistler friends were having a great time of it," he says, "but I was too busy studying and commuting back and forth from Seattle to really get into it properly. I was just a fringe player. I had to live that lifestyle vicariously."

His commitment to learning seems to have paid off however. Today, Mathews runs one of the most respected mountain resort design firms in the world. And though he admits he spends far too much time in international airports and hotels, his firm – Ecosign Mountain Resort Planners Ltd. – is still based out of the same timeworn condominium in Alpine Meadows that first housed his company back in 1975. "I think we’re up to around 250 resorts that we’ve planned and designed," he says, obviously very proud of the work he’s done over the last 30 years. "We actually just made the short list for the 2014 Winter Games with a resort we’re designing in the Caucasus Mountains. And that’s very exciting!"

From Zermatt to Sun Peaks, from Mount Washington to Verbier – by way of Korea, Japan, Austria and Russia (to name only a few countries in which he’s worked) – Paul Mathews and his Ecosign cohorts have played an inordinately big role in articulating a successful vision for the development of mountain resorts in the 21 st century. Still – the one job he’s most proud of is his participation in the development of Whistler-Blackcomb. "I was involved at all levels of development," he says, "and I can say I have few regrets. Our ski-in ski-out facilities, for example, work better than anywhere else in the world."

He smiles. "Look – for most of us old farts, it wasn’t that long ago that this place was considered on the far edge of the world. Because of Whistler’s success, B.C. has really stepped up its presence on the global stage. That was always the vision for Whistler: by creating a buzz about B.C., it opened the door for a lot of other mountain resort players in this province."

Like many old school Whistlerites, Mathews has always been an outspoken Whistler booster. "I’ve worked in a lot of mountain resort towns and advised on a lot of on-hill development," he says, "but I’m always happy to return home. This valley feels pretty darn good to me." But like many people who’ve lived here for decades, he’s also beginning to see signs that disturb him.

On a recent tour of B.C. with the chairman of Nippon Cable (the company that owns 23 per cent of Whistler-Blackcomb), Mathews was taken aback by his Japanese colleague’s comments about Banff. "Mr. Ohkubo told me that he was pleasantly surprised to see that the people in Banff were so friendly – as opposed to the people at Whistler," he says. "And that struck me pretty hard. It seems sometimes that we’ve lost our appreciation for tourists around here – in favour of social and political support for local residents."

He stops talking for a moment. Hesitates, as if he’s considering how he wants to couch what he has to say next, but then decides just to go for it. "Here we are busting our ass to subsidize our locals’ lifestyle. And that’s great if you’re an employer in this valley – or an employee. But the visitor (and the weekender!) end up at the bottom of the pile! So what does that say about us?"

More than anything, Mathews thinks Whistlerites need to re-visit the concept of "value". "So many of the local percs were built on the back of developers," he explains. "So what happens now that we’ve reached buildout? Let’s not fool ourselves. When the mayor talks about "finding new financial tools" what he’s talking about is finding new methods of taxation. And who is going to pay those additional taxes? The visitor of course."

Which is plainly not sustainable. At least not according to Mathews. "We became Number 1 in North America on the back of a cheap dollar. And we thought we were so smart! But we aren’t. Few people realized at the time just how big a role that cheap dollar played in our rise to prominence. Well, now that the dollar is running at $.90 US, we have to modify our expectations. We have to ask ourselves some hard questions about the future of this place." Another hesitation. Another decision to charge ahead. "Look – it’s pretty simple. No matter what business you’re in – no matter how successful you’ve been in the past – you can’t sit back and rest on your laurels. You have to continually re-invent yourself. In order for Whistler to move forward, we have to re-invent who we are."

And according to Mathews, that means re-inventing what Whistler-Blackcomb is all about too. "There are a lot of people at Whistler who think that we’re still leading edge," he says. "But we’re not! The mountain infrastructure has been on hold for the last decade. And a lot has happened in the industry since that time, especially on the technological side. Don’t get me wrong – our mountains are still good business. But the stuff that made us famous – the high-speed quads and such – are now 20 years old! Just to give you an example, when my daughter came back from a trip to Switzerland with me recently, she couldn’t help but feel that Whistler-Blackcomb looked a little shabby next to the Swiss resorts we’d visited…"

So what to do? "We need to re-examine our mountains from a 21 st century perspective," he says. "From run placement and layout to flows and densities – from snowmaking to food preparation – we have to continuously ask the question: How can we make the Whistler-Blackcomb experience better? How can we really give our visitors an authentic and fulfilling Coast Mountain adventure? If we can’t figure that out, we’re doomed…"

For Mathews, it all comes down to local pride. "Quality is everything," he says. "And that takes a real commitment from people. Whether it’s infrastructure or hospitality and service, things decay with time. And if you don’t manage these things carefully, you end up dropping down a few steps on the popularity ladder. You can’t renew every 25 years. You have to revisit these issues every year! Look – the best wake-up call for Whistler is that we’re no longer the Number 1 resort in North America." He shakes his head. Smiles. "And this is a wake up call to which we all need to pay some serious attention…"