In an interview with the Idaho Mountain Express Wednesday, Sun Valley Co. General Manager Wally Huffman said the company is moving forward with an ambitious plan to improve skiing facilities at Dollar Mountain.
"We are committed to building detachable quad lifts on Quarter Dollar and Full Dollar," Huffman said. "With more lift capacity we will need more trail capacity, so we are also looking hard at knocking the rocks off Joint Venture Trail and the face of Elkhorn and putting in snowmaking."
According to Peter Stearns, assistant mountain manager, the current skiable acreage on Dollar Mountain (referring to slope area that can be groomed) totals 45.82 acres. Adding Elkhorn, with Joint Venture, Arrowhead Way, Elkhorn Face and Elk Bowl, would give Dollar skiers an additional 23.28 skiable acres.
Huffman said he received approval for the new lifts from Sun Valley Co. owner Earl Holding just after Christmas 2006. The quads could be installed this summer, pending project approval from the city of Sun Valley.
"We are not changing the location of the lifts, so we should be OK," Huffman noted.
Elkhorn property owners will have to say yes before Sun Valley can install snowmaking on Elkhorn, but Huffman said he thinks they will give the nod as well.
Another run on which snowmaking could be added is Sheepherder's Dip on Dollar, which might be renamed Otto's Run in honor of Otto Lang, according to Huffman.
Huffman added that other changes could be coming down the pike as well.
"We are intending to take the tubing hill and move it to the right hand side of Half-Dollar, where the terrain park is. We would like to move the terrain park to where the tubing hill is."
Huffman said the reason for the swap is that people did not like "the trek up the hill" to get to the tubing park. Relocating it to the side of Half-Dollar would also allow it to be seen by spectators at the base of the hill and patrons of Carol's Dollar Mountain Lodge.
"And the terrain park will have more terrain, which is a good thing," he said.
