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Whistler Blackcomb to unveil updates to master plan

First updates since 2011
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Whistler Blackcomb will unveil proposed updates to its master plans for Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains at an open house on Wednesday, Sept. 25.

Senior staffers from the company and representatives from the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations will be on hand to answer questions about the proposed changes to the plan, which was last updated for 2011.

The master plans provide a 60-year vision for both Whistler and Blackcomb tenures, and master plan amendments often reveal future Whistler Blackcomb plans for lift development and expansion. For example, the ongoing project to move the Harmony Express Chair to the Crystal Zone on Blackcomb was first brought forward at the last update.

One faction, which will be interested to see the updates to the Master Plan, is opposed to paving an area of the Dave Murray Downhill that was removed from the run and flattened to create a finish-line staging area for the 2010 Olympics. People living in the area discovered that the area had been identified on the master plan for Whistler Mountain as a potential parking lot with space for approximately 175 cars.

There was also an effort to use the area as overflow parking for Creekside until residents spoke out.

As well as increasing traffic to the area, the campaign — Stop the Paving of the Dave Murray Downhill — was opposed to permanently narrowing the ski run in any way, pointing to original statements by the resort that the run would be restored after the Games. According to opponents, the new alignment takes away from the ski experience on one of the resort's most iconic runs while also creating a crowding and safety issue for skiers and snowboarders.

The petition has so far collected over 1,100 signatures.

Philip Langridge, who is overseeing the petition, said he's continued to work on the issue over the summer and spoke to a senior staff member to discuss the future of the lot. He was told that the lot would only be used a handful of days a year when the resort was at its busiest.

"Then why do it?" asked Langridge. "We bussed from Squamish during the Olympics. Those five or six days, (Whistler Blackcomb) could easily bus skiers from Function Junction."

Langridge expressed concerns that paving the lot would only be the beginning of development on the site. Neighbours are concerned that lights, washrooms, ticket booths and other facilities could follow.

Whistler Blackcomb disputed some of the facts put forward by the petitioners this week.

Doug Forseth, VP of planning, government relations and special projects for Whistler Blackcomb said that Phillip Langridge, who is spearheading the petition, never contacted senior management at Whistler Blackcomb to seek any information.

Forseth said he also offered to speak at the strata meeting for The Ridge in Taluswood, and sent a detailed summary addressing the issues in the petition, but never received a response. So far his only conversation with Langridge is a one-hour phone conversation back in August, and Forseth said Langridge has not updated his facts since then.

Whistler Blackcomb acknowledged that future plans could see the construction of a parking area in the Timing Flats area to skier’s right of the Dave Murray Downhill run, which is accessible through the Nordic Estates subdivision. However, they deny several of the claims being made by the petitioners.

For example, petitioners have suggested that the lot could provide parking for as many 300 cars. Forseth said plan put forward are limited to 125 stalls.

An earlier version of the master plan filed with the province stated the area has space for 175 vehicles, but Forseth said that number was changed to 125 in the most recent update. Skier parking would be limited to roughly four moths of the year; mid-December to mid-April, and the lot would be closed when not in use.

As well, said Forseth, the skiing experience has not been significantly altered through the area, objecting to suggestions that pre-Olympic work in the area narrowed the run and made the ski run less safe.

Forseth said the flat area has rarely been groomed over the past two decades, and that the connecting section of the run from the Timing Flats area to the intersection with Franz’s Trail is 40 to 45 metres wide and was improved prior to the 2010 Games to be better than it was in earlier years.

He said collisions do happen on the mountains, but in that particular stretch just three collisions — only two that have required any medical assistance from ski patrol — have been reported over the past five seasons.

Another issue raised by the petition group is the restoration of the site.

Forseth said Langridge was not involved in the discussions between Olympic organizers and Whistler Blackcomb when the scope of the remediation plan was developed, and has overstated what that means. Forseth pointed to the $250,000 in remediation work to the Timing Flats area after the Games by Whistler Blackcomb and Olympic organizers.

The reason the site hasn’t been completely restored, said Forseth, is the potential to use the flat area to stage future World Cup or World Championship events, as well as the expensive infrastructure — power, sewer, water, fibre optics — that remain on the site.

Forseth acknowledged that they did use the lot as overflow for Franz’s Trail for a handful of days during the 2010-2011 season, but said the practice was halted after neighbours complained. They have not opened the lot in the 2011-2012 or 2012-2013 seasons.

Given the cost of building, maintaining and staffing the lot, Forseth said it’s unlikely they would consider developing it at current business levels.

“Eventually we will need to do it if our business grows — which is something we’re hoping to do and something where the overall community benefits,” said Forseth. “We wouldn’t do it for the five or six days a year that the Creekside parking currently fills up, which is the case for the last three years. We’re thinking that the Timing Flats parking lot would not be activated until we get into a critical situation where it’s 12 or 16 days potentially, and there is no available parking at the Creekside base area.”

Forseth said that the proposed lot could also keep cars off Highway 99 if residents in the Nordic Estates subdivision use it to park rather than turning onto the highway and driving south to Creekside, freeing up spaces in the process.

As for claims that the parking lot would only be the starting point for more development to the area, including bathrooms, ticket windows and a restaurant, Forseth said there is no such plan. Lighting may be required for safety, but it would be turned off at night. And with the mountains closing by 3:00 p.m. during the darkest months of winter he said the lighting might not be necessary.

Whistler Blackcomb would also take steps to visually shield the area from residents, he said, including the units in At Nature’s Door that are above the lot.

As for the petition’s claims that the parking lot could cause property values to drop as much as 20 per cent, Forseth pointed to the real estate surrounding Blackcomb Base II which has a capacity for 1,500 cars. “That claim is hard to imagine being possible,” he said.

Whatever happens, Forseth said, will have to make sense for Whistler Blackcomb and the community.

“I think people know that Whistler Blackcomb (doesn’t) do things that make the ski area worse. In fact, we’re frequently considered among the best ski areas in the world,” he said.

Whistler Blackcomb's current master plan is available online at www.whistlerblackcomb.com/about-us/resort-master-plans.aspx. No updates will be revealed until the open house, which takes place from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Empress Ballroom at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler.