New nonprofit ski hill opening in San Pete County with free lifts in first two seasons

Snowland Ski Area. Photo: Dave Varney

FAIRVIEW, Utah — A new ski area is coming to Utah for the first time since Woodward opened in 2019. The nonprofit-operated Snowland Recreation and Education area is located in Sanpete County, and its founders say affordability is central to the project. They don’t plan to charge visitors for lift tickets until the 2027-28 ski season.

The two-run hill was first operated as a ski area from 1967 to 1980, when it closed due to rising insurance costs and permitting challenges, according to reporting by the Salt Lake Tribune. Since then, locals have continued to ski and snowboard there, but they had to drive up the treacherous State Route 31 through Fairview Canyon to reach the top — a route where cars and trucks often slid off the road or got stuck in snowbanks.

Former Sandy City Councilman Chris McCandless and Brent Lange, chief development officer at Thanksgiving Point, worked together to create Snowland Foundation Inc., the nonprofit that will operate the ski area. Their vision is to make Snowland a gathering place that remains accessible to the community. “We want the mountain to be used. We want it to be a public asset,” Lange told the Tribune. “We don’t want it to be (cost) prohibitive. We want it to be a family gathering place that’s safe.”

The hill has in recent years been used by Wasatch Academy as a training area for its ski and snowboard team. The private school agreed to let Snowland operate the hill and donated a cabin onsite for bathrooms and offices, according to Tribune reporter Julie Jag.

The project is primarily being funded by a $1 million grant from the Utah Outdoor Recreation Program. Phase 1 will include a remodeled lodge, rope tow, public restrooms, and improved access. The public opening is planned for winter 2026–27, according to San Pete County.

For the first couple of seasons while the team gets the area up and running, Snowland plans to offer free tow lifts to visitors. The nonprofit expects to have two lifts operating as soon as the first week of December.