Vail Resorts files appeal to Silverlode and Eagle lift upgrade denial

The Silverlode Express at Park City Mountain. Photo: TownLift

PARK CITY, Utah — On Wednesday July 27, Vail Resorts filed an appeal of the Planning Commission’s decision preventing the planned upgrades to the Silverlode Express and Eagle chairlifts.

Back in June the Park City Planning Commission voted 3-1 to grant the appeal of the approved administrative conditional use permit for the Eagle and Silverlode lift upgrades at Park City Mountain. Park City Mountain Vice President and COO Deirdra Walsh confirmed that the lift upgrades will not be in place for the 22/23 ski and ride season following the decision.

Commissioners John Kenworthy, Laura Suesser, and Bill Johnson voted to grant the appeal 3-1 on the basis that it was not consistent with the 1998 Mountain Upgrade Plan (MUP), which governs lift upgrades at the resort. The other issue fell on strengthening parking mitigation at the resort.

Park City Mountain Resort’s spokesperson Sara Huey said, “The City Planning Director made the right decision to issue this permit, supported by her extensive, four-month-long analysis and the advice of three outside experts. There is no evidence that she made a mistake, and we believe her decision will be upheld in this next step in the process.”

“While we disagreed with the outcome, we respect the right of four residents to appeal the Planning Director’s decision and likewise we have the right to appeal the Planning Commission’s decision,” Huey continued, “In parallel with this appeal, we, of course, remain committed to working with the City to explore options to ensure that the resort moves forward with these important replacements of equipment that was installed many decades ago.”

Eagle and Silverlode upgrades will not happen in time for 22/23 winter season