2. Business from ManagerTHE Nu
swMOUNTAIN
November 27, 1995
Dear Kalispell City Council Members:
P.O. Box 1400
Whitefish, Montana 59937
Phone: (406) 862-1900
FAX: (406) 862-2955
On behalf of Winter Sports, Inc, (WSI) and all the
businesses and property owners up on the Mountain, I would
like to request your support in expediting the scheduled
reconstruction of the Big Mountain Road. This project was
requested by Flathead County Commissioners and approved by
the State Highway Commission in 1989. Two projects were
ahead of The Big Mountain Road in priority: the Whitefish
Viaduct and Foy's Canyon. All of these projects will be
funded by a combination of Federal and State highway funds.
A nominal amount ($25,000) of Flathead County money is
involved.
In 1994, County Commissioner Sharon Stratton announced that
Winter Sports, Inc. or The Big Mountain Resort Association
should pay for half of this project. The State Highway
Department has estimated the total cost for the project at
$6.0 million, so Ms. Stratton is looking for a $3.0 million
contribution. Needless to say, neither WSI nor the
Association has financial means to make this size of
contribution for this basic infrastructure.
As most of you probably already know, The Big Mountain
Resort is a major economic generator for the entire Flathead
Valley. In 1994/95, direct skier expenditures for all ski
related businesses (meals, lodging, transportation, and
retail) totaled over $28 million in the Valley. Using a
conservative economic multiplier (how many times the money
turns over in the local economy) of 2.2, these winter
visitors added over $60 million to our economy.
In addition please consider the following:
The Big Mountain Road has the highest traffic counts of any
Secondary road in Flathead County during December through
April.
Safety is a primary concern with the old road. While there
has been only one reported vehicle accident -related death on
The Big Mountain Road, there are significant numbers of
accidents on this road every winter. Traffic blockage and
accidents involving multiple vehicles are common
occurrences, particularly when snow is falling.
Page 2
Collins/Kalispell City Council
November 27, 1995
The Big Mountain community is the fifth largest in Flathead
County, and during the winter is the fourth largest
community. The Big Mountain Road serves many homes and
businesses besides just Winter Sports, Inc. Currently over
1500 residents or guests can be accommodated in the resort
area, and sixteen businesses operate in the village.
The Big Mountain community is the only one in Flathead
County that is accessible by a single road. In addition,
all of the roads that serve the other major Flathead
communities have been upgraded or scheduled for upgrading in
the next couple of years.
Almost all Flathead Valley schools have ski programs on The
Big Mountain, and drive their school buses up and down this
road every week. On any given Saturday, it is common to see
15-25 school buses up on the Mountain. We believe our
children should be on the safest roads possible.
If the State Highway Commission removes the road from the
priority list, it would cost Flathead County taxpayers
$290,000 (they would have to reimburse the MDOT for
engineering cost to date), whereas actual reconstruction
would only cost Flathead County taxpayers $25,000 (their
share of a scheduled rebuild; State and Federal gas tax
funds pay for the remainder of the reconstruction).
Why should Flathead County taxpayers shoulder this burden?
We need your help to insure this project remains a high
priority and that funding remains in place. Would the
Kalispell City Council consider our request and communicate
their position to all our County Commissioners?
Thank you for your consideration
Sin/cerel ,
Michael Collins
President
Winter Sports, Inc.
MC/cls