Park City strike impacting operations, leaving skiers and execs frustrated

PARK CITY — Long lift lines and limited trail access have left visitors to Park City Mountain Resort frustrated as ski patrollers continue to strike for a third week.

“A lot of the local people that we met instantly apologized for what we were experiencing here, saying I’m really sorry that you came this far to have this going on right now,” said Mike Evans, a visitor from New York.

Evans and his family spent months planning their holiday vacation to Park City with the hope of experiencing the greatest snow on earth over the New Year’s holiday, unfortunately, they arrived just as the ski patrol strike hit the mountain.

“We had no idea anything was going on till we pulled into Park City and saw people picketing on the corner,” Evans said.

Not fully aware of the strike’s impact, Evans and his family hit the mountain’s slopes on Tuesday and Thursday last week, only to be met with long lines and closed terrain. On Thursday, he shared his frustration on Instagram.

“And at that point we waited for an hour and a half, we went up to the top of where that lift ended and it was a five-minute ski down to around a thousand people, and we just said we’re done, this isn’t really worth it, definitely not worth it,” Evans said.

Evans says he paid about $1000 for the lift tickets at Park City Mountain Resort and expressed frustration with the communication from the resort about the amount of terrain that would be available to ski.

“You would think that with the type of business that they’re running and the people that are coming in, you’d want to figure out a way to get this taken care of,” Evans said.

“Or if you have all these people that come in and spend this money, you’d have some way to give them a notification that there’s going to be an issue here and give me an opportunity to maybe plan to go to a different place or, you know, make arrangements to ski at a different resort,” Evans said.

Park City Mountain COO Deirdra Walsh published a letter in the Park Record Monday apologizing to visitors for their experience over the peak holiday period, calling it frustrating.

Walsh added that negotiations are continuing with the ski patrol union and that terms have been agreed to on 24 of the 27 contract items the union opened, she stated mediation is now underway on the final three items:

“People have asked, ‘Can’t you just pay patrol $2/hour more?’ It’s never been about 2 dollars. There’s a lot of misinformation surrounding these negotiations. First, please know; we care deeply about the work of our ski patrol; we have invested a lot in them and will continue to. Second, they are asking for much more than $2/ hour. In fact, on the day they went on strike, their demands equaled $7/hour more. Finally, you should know that we have come to the table with compelling offers.”

As of Monday, 25 of the resort’s 41 lifts are operating with access to limited terrain. Shares of Vail Resorts, which owns Park City Mountain Resort, have dropped more than 5% in the last five trading days due to investor frustration with the ski patrol strike.

“We planned this for months, we spent thousands of dollars to get here, and here we are unable to really enjoy the full mountain,” Evans said.

Bill Rock, president of Vail Resorts’ mountain division, said they are meeting with the patrol union on Tuesday to figure out a solution and reach an agreement.

“We are meeting with the union nearly every day and working hard to reach an agreement, with both parties negotiating in good faith,” Rock said in a statement.

Despite social media posts and other news outlets like Business Insider claiming that Vail Resorts guests are experiencing long lines and unsafe conditions, Rock said the resort is operating as usual.

“We remain committed to safely operating Park City Mountain for our guests and employees, and this week lift lines have been under 10 minutes on average,” Rock said. “Since the strike began, we have been able to open more than 50 additional trails and have nearly 2,300 acres of skiable terrain available for our guests thanks to our incredibly hard-working and dedicated team.”

Park City Mayor Nann Worel also released a statement on behalf of the Park City Council, saying they are ready to help with bringing the strike to an end.

“The Park City Council and I recognize that resort communities face significant livability challenges – and it is the workforce that all too often shoulders the weight of today’s economic pressures. Supporting a professional workforce is essential to the health, safety, and vitality of our town.

After yet another weekend of confusion and disruption due to the unresolved labor dispute at Park City Mountain, the City Council and I urgently call on Vail Resorts to take immediate action to conclude negotiations and end the uncertainty.

Park City Mountain is a cornerstone of Park City’s community well-being, and it is Vail Resorts’ responsibility as an essential employer to resolve this conflict without further delay.

As we stand by ready to assist in any way necessary to help bring this matter to a resolution, we humbly ask everyone for civility and respectful behavior toward each other during this challenging time.”

– Park City Mayor Nann Worel

---

Contributing: Michael Houck, KSL TV