Vail Resorts has never exactly been beloved in Park City. Parkites were skeptical when the ski industry behemoth acquired Park City Mountain Resort in 2014, and the apprehension has not dissipated much since.
But the frustration is boiling over amid what has, by all accounts, been a challenging ski season for the company here and in several of the other places it operates mountain resorts.
Last week, a group of Parkites sounded off on Vail Resorts and its management of PCMR in remarkable fashion during a Park City Council meeting. One speaker accused the company of caring “little about our community.” Another urged the elected officials to “stand up to Vail.” The comments echoed the flood of complaints from other Parkites this winter who have been displeased with the on-mountain experience and blame Vail Resorts for problems ranging from traffic congestion to the area’s lack of affordable housing.
Whether or not Parkites’ criticisms have merit — many do, though some don’t — it’s apparent that the community’s dissatisfaction with Vail Resorts has reached a new level. And it’s a problem that warrants action from the company given PCMR’s role both as one of the pillars of Park City’s tourism economy and as one of the town’s traditionally revered institutions.
It won’t be easy for Vail Resorts to rebuild — or build, depending on one’s view — its relationship with the local community. And it’s unclear if doing so is even important to the company apart from how the friction may affect its bottom line. But if Vail Resorts wants to find its way into Parkites’ good graces, doing nothing and hoping the criticism will dissipate isn’t going to cut it.
To begin with, PCMR must deliver the kind of skiing and snowboarding experience upon which the resort built its reputation over decades. By the company’s own admission, that hasn’t always happened this winter, and Parkites have decried longer-than-normal lift lines and the ongoing closures of key lifts. Vail Resorts has blamed staffing challenges due to the pandemic, and there is likely truth to that explanation. But the resort, quite simply, must find a way to do better next ski season.
Just as important is offering the community some level of assurance that the issues that are important to Parkites are also important to the company. Kirsten Lynch, who took over as Vail Resorts’ CEO in the fall, appearing in Park City for a town hall-style event would speak volumes. It would provide Parkites the opportunity to vent — respectfully, we hope — and for Lynch to demonstrate that she and the company understand its place in the Park City community and take the responsibilities of that role seriously.
Likewise, PCMR Chief Operating Officer Mike Goar would do well to make a point to be a visible presence and appear often at public events to hear feedback from Parkites and, in turn, provide the resort’s perspective on operational issues.
Simply ensuring Parkites feel heard and respected could go a long way to quelling their frustration.
Vail Resorts should also go a step further and commit to working with City Hall more proactively on issues such as mitigating traffic to and from PCMR and limiting the impacts of ski tourism.
Contrary to what some Parkites seem to believe, the company does not have the power to single-handedly solve community-wide problems. Yet our expectations for it and PCMR should nonetheless be high.
Yes, Vail Resorts has a duty to seek a certain level of financial performance for its shareholders. But it also has an obligation to be good stewards in the communities in which it operates. Many Parkites — and skiers and snowboarders in other Vail Resorts markets — would argue that it is failing in that capacity.
Certainly, it has the means to do better. It’s up to the company to decide whether it wants to.