Deer Valley Resort earlier in the summer gathered responses from six developers interested in a joint venture to develop workforce housing along the Bonanza Drive corridor, which has not been widely publicized as the resort continues to pursue a project at the location.
An executive of Deer Valley owner Alterra Mountain Company described the July request for proposals during an event on Tuesday designed to introduce the Ski Rail concept, which is slated for resort-owned land at 1555 Lower Iron Horse Loop Road.
Willa Williford, the Alterra Mountain Company vice president of workforce housing, said the deadline for submittals has passed. Alterra Mountain Company is seeking a partner for a joint venture addressing development of the project and financing. She said local, regional and national firms responded to the request for proposals.
She said Alterra Mountain Company is “very impressed” with the wide range of funding strategies outlined in the responses, including several that have proposed to provide financial guarantees. Some responses describe a hope of tapping low-income tax credits as part of the strategy, she said.
Williford said a decision about whether Alterra Mountain Company enters into a partnership or pursues the project on its own is desired in September.
The information about the request for proposals is significant at a time when Deer Valley is beginning to introduce the Ski Rail proposal to the community. The upcoming decision about a partnership will be a key step for the Alterra Mountain Company and Deer Valley side that will influence the rest of the discussions.
Deer Valley owns the Lower Iron Horse Loop Road location where the project is envisioned. The resort operates a laundry facility on the land. The concept for housing for the resort’s workforce calls for a project with at least 200 beds. That number would be an especially large bloc of worker housing within the Park City limits.
The Ski Rail proposal is linked to Deer Valley’s efforts to build a major development outside Snow Park Lodge. Longstanding development rights are attached to the land where the vast Snow Park parking lots are located. Deer Valley, though, must secure another key approval from the Park City government before a project can proceed. Deer Valley has said the plan exceeds the minimum workforce housing required as part of the Snow Park concept.
Deer Valley touts the Ski Rail location as well situated for a workforce project, noting that nearby bus lines connect to the resort and the residents would be living inside Park City and close to services. The location is close to the Prospector district, the Iron Horse district and the Kearns Boulevard corridor.
The Tuesday event, billed as an open house, drew a medium-sized crowd to the Deer Valley Plaza lobby on the Snow Park entryway. Deer Valley representatives spoke to the group about the proximity to pedestrian, bicyclist and bus routes. They described a project would be three stories high with the possibility of four stories. There would be laundry facilities at the site and the units would be furnished. The project is forecast to be fully occupied in the winter with high occupancy numbers expected in the summer, the crowd heard.
Some in attendance told the Deer Valley officials storage space within a project would be important for the people who live there.
Deer Valley wants to ensure that the rents are affordable for the workforce and said the monthly dollar figure would not exceed 30% of a worker’s income.
Deer Valley hopes the project is ready for occupancy before the start of the 2027-28 ski season. The construction timeline, though, will depend on the City Hall review of an application.
There will likely be questions during the review about the traffic a project would generate along the busy Bonanza Drive corridor and the overall design of a project. Traffic issues can entangle an application during the review process.
An informational board on display at the event listed a series of ideas for Ski Rail amenities. They included a television room, a free library, games, communal seating, nooks, a quiet space and a coffee bar.
Another board covered ideas for amenities outdoors, such as a picnic table, games, artworks, a charging station for bicycles powered by electricity and a shade structure.
A diagram of the Ski Rail layout, meanwhile, showed green spaces labeled resident commons and resident green, with a landscaped buffer also included on the grounds. Two plazas are also shown on the diagram.
Deer Valley is pursuing an aggressive effort that involves significant development and terrain expansion. The Deer Valley East Village is underway in Wasatch County, while the planning work is continuing at Snow Park to essentially create a new base area.