The City and Borough of Juneau is poised to acquire a new-to-Juneau aerial gondola system for the city-owned Eaglecrest Ski Area.<\/p>\n
The CBJ Assembly on Monday OK’d a $2 million purchase of a gondola from an Austrian ski area. The approval came via a 5-4 vote and followed an amendment that requires that no money be spent on shipping the gondola to Juneau until the Eaglecrest board or general manager Dave Scanlan provides an update following an evaluation of the gondola and receives a go-ahead to proceed. <\/p>\n
”Overall, we’re very excited about the opportunity and very positive,” Scanlan said during a Monday morning phone call.<\/p>\n
The gondola is pitched as a step toward increased revenue for the ski area and could be part of a move toward year-round operations<\/a>. Scanlan said the gondola available is especially well-suited to Eaglecrest’s needs as it is a fixed-grip pulse gondola, a type of lift that Scanlan said has “fewer moving parts” than other models with enclosed cabins capable of arriving at a midway loading and unloading station.<\/p>\n Some CBJ Assembly members also spoke to the purchase as an opportunity to invest in a city asset.<\/p>\n “I believe this is an opportunity,” said Assembly member Greg Smith. “I have faith in Mr. Scanlan. I believe we could come to regret passing up this opportunity.”<\/p>\n Smith was among the five assembly members to vote for the conditional purchase of the gondola. Assembly members Wade Bryson, Michelle Bonnet Hale,<\/p>\n Maria Gladziszewski and Mayor Beth Weldon also voted for the motion. The approval came after well over an hour of discussion and public testimony.<\/p>\n Weldon said she was voting to give the Eaglecrest Board of Directors and the Eaglecrest Summer Operations Task Force time to strengthen its case for the gondola. She said her yes vote came after putting the board and Scanlan “through the wringer.”<\/p>\n Hale said her support was further solidified when she learned the gondola could be a bottom-drive system. Scanlan said that means the gondola, which will have a terminal located somewhere along the west bowl ridge, would be able to plug into Alaska Electric Light & Power’s power supply.<\/p>\n