(This story was updated Tuesday at 3:25 p.m. and 6:10 p.m. and Wednesday at 9 a.m.)
[V]ail Resorts announced the purchase of Stowe Mountain Resort on Tuesday.
The Colorado-based company has acquired the Stowe ski and retail operations at Mount Mansfield and Spruce Peak, according to a statement from the company.
Vail is buying the property from Mount Mansfield Co., a wholly owned subsidiary of American International Group Inc., the insurance giant, for $50 million, company officials said. AIG has owned Stowe Mountain Resort since 1988.
AIG Global Real Estate will continue to own the Stowe Mountain Lodge, Stowe Mountain Club, the golf course and condos on the mountain.
Rob Katz, the CEO of Vail Resorts, said in a statement that AIG investments in infrastructure at Mount Mansfield have made Stowe Mountain “the premier high-end resort for East Coast skiers and snowboarders.”
Over the course of a decade, AIG has invested in an adventure center, condo village, 312-room lodge and spa, and new lifts on Spruce Peak.
Stowe Mountain Resort is expected to generate net income of $5 million in fiscal year 2017-2018, according to the statement.
Blaise Carrig, senior adviser for Vail Resorts, said Tuesday that Stowe will be the company’s first property in the East.
“We tend to think of our portfolio of resorts as being premier and iconic,” Carrig said.
Stowe will join Vail Resorts’ portfolio of nine properties out west: Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Keystone in Colorado; Park City in Utah; Heavenly, Northstar and Kirkwood in the Lake Tahoe area of California; and Whistler Blackcomb in British Columbia.
Stowe’s rich skiing history, terrain and its locale in a “quintessential Vermont” were big draws, Carrig said.
Vail doesn’t have any plans at this point to buy other ski resorts in the East, Carrig said. Both Jay Peak Resort and Burke Mountain Resort in the Northeast Kingdom are for sale under a court-appointed receivership.
“At this point we just got our arms around Stowe and have a lot of work to do to make sure it is a successful and smooth integration,” he said. “We’re not into really looking beyond that.”
Parker Riehle, executive director of the Vermont Ski Areas Association, said he wasn’t surprised that “their first move to the East brought them to Vermont first.”
“We are the top ski state in the East,” Riehle said. “We are always in the top three in the country with that iconic brand that we have. Ski areas and ski states like New Hampshire and Maine just can’t compare and of course Stowe, of our 20 alpine ski areas, is among the most iconic and successful of our ski areas.”
Riehle said the synergy between Vail’s operation of the ski area and Mount Mansfield Company’s hospitality and real estate management will enhance the visitor experience in Stowe. He expects that Vail will make investments in lifts, trails and parking structures.
Talks between the parties began over the summer, Carrig said, culminating with Tuesday’s announcement. The closing isn’t expected until late April.
The timing, he said, is aimed at trying to avoid disrupting this ski season.
He said Vail did not pursue the real estate component of Stowe resort because it’s not the company’s area of expertise.
“Our core business is really in operating the ski mountain business. That’s really what we have been focusing on,” Carrig said.
Vail and AIG officials, leading up to the finalizing of the sale, will work on an organizational structure for determining staffing for the ski operations versus the real estate side of the business, Carrig said.
He said there are no big plans at this point for changes in the number of employees at the resort.
“There’s some areas where we have to sort out who is actually going to be working for who,” he said. “We’ll get into that now and probably have all of that resolved by the time we close.”
The Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation will review the lease of Mount Mansfield, according to Sen. Richie Westman, D-Lamoille. The state gets a 5 percent fee on lift tickets in exchange for ski area use of state owned lands. The Spruce Peak area of the resort is on private land.
Rep. Heidi Scheuermann, R-Stowe, said while the change in ownership is a big change for the local community, she expects Vail will work well with the town. Scheuermann said representatives from Vail have already reached out to her, and she said she will work with the company to help ensure a smooth transition.
Westman said there is “always a little apprehension” about a change of this magnitude, but he expects Vail will build on Stowe Mountain Resort’s success. The resort maxed out its 9,000 car parking lot three days this season, and he anticipates that Vail will look to find a way to create additional visitor capacity, either through an expanded bus system or bigger parking areas.
Stowe business owners have heard rumors about the sale since last fall.
Mary L. Collins, chair of the Lamoille Region Chamber of Commerce board of directors, said she was aware negotiations were underway for the sale but didn’t know the details or when a sale to Vail would be announced.
“It’s pretty big news,” Collins said. “The inclusion of Stowe in their portfolio as their choice for the ski area in the East is tremendous for all of us. I think it further underscores Stowe and Vermont as the place to come if you want to ski the East.”
She said the buzz in the business community has been positive.
“Sometimes change can be scary and it can catch some of us off guard perhaps in a way we’re not quite sure what to expect from it,” Collins said. “I think it’s going to be good for our brand, and I think it will be good for other businesses.”
Rich Marron, owner and general manager of the Town & Country Resort on Mountain Road in Stowe, said he sees benefits for skiers as well as businesses in the sale.
“Vail is obviously a pretty large player in the industry,” he said. “They know what they’re doing when they’re running a ski resort.”
He added that he expected the change in ownership would lead to an economic boost in the region, especially when it comes to attracting more midweek skiers and guests for lodging.
Also, Marron said, Vail’s Epic Pass, which gives skiers access to all of its resorts, would be a plus for Stowe.
“If you have the Epic Pass, where are you going to go if you’re not out west?” he said. “You’re going to go to Stowe.”
Spencer Brown, service manager at AJ’s Ski and Sports, also on Mountain Road in Stowe, said Vail is a well-respected player in the ski industry.
“I can see it being a positive thing,” he said. “Vail is obviously a beautiful resort.”
