Tahoe ski resorts planning $750 million in improvements

Thursday, Jan. 20, 2000 | 9:07 a.m.

Projects are planned or already under way at several of the most popular resorts in the Tahoe area, including Kirkwood, Heavenly, Northstar-at-Tahoe and Squaw Valley USA.

Most of the changes are aimed at creating village-like atmospheres that broaden the resorts offerings and appeal more to travelers looking for deluxe accommodations, shopping, dining and entertainment.

More mountain improvements are on the drawing board as well, including sophisticated lifts, mountaintop dining and more activities beyond skiing and snowboarding.

Local developers say Tahoe has the terrain, the highway and air access, and the Nevada-side casino nightlife to make it a wold-class destination.

"I think its the lodging, retail, dining interface that we can do a better job on. And this is what that's all designed to address," Carl Ribaudo, principal of the Strategic Marketing Group of South Lake Tahoe promoting several of the projects.

The improvements bode well for the Lake Tahoe areas tourism-based economy.

Tourism in Reno and Sparks also stands to gain as it markets its proximity to the lake as an integral part of the cities appeal beyond gambling. Northern Nevada is trying to become known as a four-season, year-round destination with golf, skiing and convention facilities, with gambling as an added attraction.

"Tahoe is playing catch-up" in diversifying its resort operations, said Phil McKenney, executive director of the North Lake Tahoe Resort Association.

Leisure industry analyst Bear Stearns & Co. Inc. of New York said in a December report that destination ski resorts need more than excellent skiing to compete.

"Creating a resort village to complement the on-mountain experience is essential in our view," Bear Stearns said. "We believe the baby boomers and their children (the echo boomers), when considering a ski vacation, are increasingly expecting a total resort vacation experience, rather than just good skiing and lift service.

"In our view, vacationers, with or without children, are not interested in ending their day on the mountain by grabbing a burger or hot dog at the lone cafeteria-style base lodge and then heading back to the motel down the road for a repeat of the same experience the next day," Bear Stearns said.

"A village that offers varying levels of dining and retail shopping, as well as warm-bed accommodations close enough to walk to the action, has proven to be very appealing to skiers and nonskiers alike. Furthermore, a village tends to encourage visitors to stay longer than they would otherwise."

Getting more of visitors money for longer periods of time is key as skier visits remain essentially flat across the country. The industry would be in decline if not for growth in snowboarding, McKenney said.

Bear Stearns estimates that lift-ticket revenues for the major resort operators will grow about 3 percent to 5 percent annually, while nonlift businesses will grow 10 percent to 15 percent annually if more related services were offered.