Vail Resorts finalizes purchase of Jack Frost, Big Boulder

Colorado-based Vail Resorts Inc. completed its purchase on Tuesday of Peak Resorts Inc., former owner of Jack Frost and Big Boulder ski resorts, at a purchase price of $11 per share. In addition to the two local resorts, Vail Resorts also acquired another 15 U.S. ski areas in the deal.

Vail Resorts announced in July it planned to acquire 100% of the outstanding stocks of Peak Resorts Inc. The estimated value of all Peak Resorts common stock was $264 million. With this purchase, Vail Resorts now owns and operates 37 resorts worldwide.

Rob Katz, chairman and chief executive officer of Vail Resorts, said, “We are excited to welcome each of these ski areas into the Vail Resorts family and to continue to invest in what makes them unique.”

Vail Resorts said it plans to invest about $15 million over the next two years in one-time capital spending to elevate the guest experience at the 17 resorts. Additionally, it plans to spend about $10 million annually on capital expenditures to support and improve the new ski areas.

“I think the potential investment by Vail in two of our ski resorts will be a huge shot in the arm, not just for the industry but for the county as a whole,” said Kathy Henderson, director of economic development at the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce. “We feel pretty certain that Vail will be able to be a positive influence.”

Henderson said the resorts haven’t seen substantial improvements in recent years and need large investment in their infrastructure. But she thinks with investment in the resorts, business will increase there, too.

“We’ll see a lot of new customers coming into the area,” she said.

To keep the customers coming, Henderson thinks the area needs more businesses, such as restaurants and hotels near the resorts, to support those customers.

“The area needs a lot more businesses to support the people coming in and to entice the people to come back,” she said. “We should be looking at it now.”

In recent years, the number of empty store fronts and closed restaurants along Route 940 has increased. If business can be brought back then that would benefit the tax base in Kidder Township and the Weatherly Area School District, Henderson said.

Marlyn Kissner, executive vice president for the Northern Region, Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce, “This will also bring strength, growth and opportunities that may have not happened without the partnership, as well as the potential of job growth and community support.”

Vail’s newly acquired resorts in the mid-Atlantic region, along with Jack Frost in White Haven and Big Boulder in Lake Harmony, are: Liberty Mountain Resort, Roundtop Mountain Resort and Whitetail Resort, all in Pennsylvania.

In the Northeast, the resorts are: Mount Snow in Vermont; Hunter Mountain in New York; and Attitash Mountain Resort, Wildcat Mountain and Crotched Mountain in New Hampshire. They join the company’s existing Northeast resorts: Stowe Mountain Resort and Okemo Mountain Resort in Vermont, and Mount Sunapee Resort in New Hampshire.

And in the Midwest, the new resorts are: Alpine Valley, Boston Mills, Brandywine and Mad River Mountain in Ohio; Hidden Valley and Snow Creek in Missouri; and Paoli Peaks in Indiana. They join the company’s other urban resorts in the Midwest.

“We are thrilled that with this acquisition, skiers and riders living in and around some of the biggest cities in the country will now have access to both ski close to home and at renowned mountain resorts around the world — with just one pass,” said Vail Resorts CEO Rob Katz.