[A] federal judge has approved $4.9 million and a contract for the repair of the aerial tram at Jay Peak.
The funding paves the way for repairs and upgrades to the lift system that must be made in order to bring the tram back on line.
Vermont Department of Labor officials grounded the tram at the end of the last ski season because of safety concerns. Last week, J. Stephen Monahan, the director of the Workers Compensation and Safety division, issued “an order for corrective action” to Jay Peak, requiring the resort to replace key components, including the brake and electrical system.
The entire upgrade will likely take as long as nine months because parts for the electrical system must be fabricated by Doppelmayr, the tram’s manufacturer.
Jay Peak officials say the tram could be up and running by mid-June if other repairs are made while they wait for the electrical system.
Steve Wright, the general manager of the resort, says the tram can operate once a plan is approved by the state and “the typical maintenance we do every year” is undertaken.
Wright blamed the media for generating headlines that hurt optics for the resort, which has been struggling to keep ahead of bad publicity associated with fraud charges brought against Jay Peak’s owners, Ariel Quiros and Bill Stenger. The two men are accused of misusing more than $200 million that foreign investors put up for projects at the resort and in Newport. Jay Peak is now under the direction of Michael Goldberg, the court-appointed SEC receiver.
The order from Monahan says the repair work “must be satisfactorily completed, or otherwise approved” in one place, and says “must be fully completed and approved” by the state’s Passenger Tramway program in another.
Wright interprets that to mean once the plan is approved, the tram can operate again. The resort, he says, will load test the tram in the coming week, make repairs and submit a plan for state approval. Jay Peak has 10 days from May 31 to appeal the order if the resort disagrees with the state on what needs to be done.
Goldberg said in an email on Sunday that he is “hopeful that the necessary testing will be undertaken within the next 10 days to indicate that the tram is safe and operational.”
But the state says there is more work required than typical maintenance. In addition to replacing the electrical system, Monahan says Jay Peak must address problems with the cable and analyze the integrity of the steel towers and tower foundations, and upgrade anchor fixations and rope saddles. A new hydraulic brake system with new controls for the service brake and emergency brake must be installed.
“If everything falls into place quickly, there’s a chance they could run at the end of the summer,” Monahan said. “I have told the receiver we are willing to work with them to get things done expeditiously. Our primary concern is safety.”
Monahan says the state is aware that halting the tram, which is the only lift to the peak of the mountain, is hard on the resort financially. “We’re cognizant of that,” he said. “We have a mutual goal of getting the tram safe and return it to operation.”
As for operating the tram by mid-June, Monahan says, “I don’t think anyone here thinks that that timetable would work.”
“I wouldn’t say it’s impossible, but I’d say it would be extremely difficult for them to get our permission to run it in the middle of this month,” Monahan said.
He said the tram could run on a limited basis with 45 instead of 60 people if the resort works with the state to prioritize the repairs.
As of last Friday, the resort had not yet had “a major sit down” with the state to go over the order. Goldberg says he will be meeting with the engineers and the state this week.
In response to questions about the timeframe for the tower, cable and brake repairs, Goldberg said, “our primary concern is the safety of our guests.”
“We will not operate the tram until our engineers certify that the tram is safe and the state agrees,” Goldberg wrote. “We are addressing these issues immediately and we are optimistic we will satisfy the state. We are hopeful to accomplish this shortly.”
The state asked Jay Peak to move ahead with a contract with Doppelmayr last fall after a safety inspection showed problems with the tram. Monahan grounded the tram last week because he said the resort had taken no action to make necessary repairs. In the interim, fraud charges were brought against Stenger and Quiros.
Goldberg hired Stenger to continue working at Jay Peak in order to help keep the resort running smoothly. He pays the former CEO a salary of $100,000 and says he no longer has a management role. Two of Stenger’s sons also work at the resort.
Stenger inadvertently emailed VTDigger on Friday to weigh in on the tram issue. “Sure you saw this. Need to get to tram way folks. This will cost us real money.”
