Industry News
Connecting the neighboring towns of Telluride and Mountain Village in southwest Colorado is a free public gondola that shuttles roughly three million skiers, hikers, residents, and commuters each year. Originally built in 1996, the town of Mountain Village owns and operates the gondola built to improve air quality by reducing car traffic. In June 2022, the Gondola Long-Term Planning Leadership Committee, which is comprised of representatives from Mountain Village, Telluride, San Miguel County, San Miguel Authority for Regional Transit (SMART), Telluride Mountain Village Owners Association, and Telluride Ski and Golf, decided to pursue a new gondola system called the “Locally Preferred Alternative.”
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The current plan is for construction to break ground at the beginning of 2028. The Locally Preferred Alternative was proposed to replace the 26-year-old gondola, which is nearing the end of its design life, with a new system. The new system will benefit from an increased capacity to handle the four million users estimated to use the gondola in 2037.
The Leadership Committee gathered on July 22 to provide updates on the new gondola system. They reviewed the initial build, design capacity, station planning, and a ballot for the November election. The ballot will let voters provide their input on approving the funding methods for the new gondola system.
Currently, 1% of all ticket sales from Telluride Ski & Golf (Telski) and Mountain Village go toward funding the operations and maintenance costs of the gondola. Telski is considering raising the fee on lift ticket sales by 4% to generate more revenue for the gondola. During the public comment period, the Telluride Daily Planet noted a statement made by Stacy Ticasy, a Telluride business owner.
The upcoming election will introduce a ballot measure to fund the operations and maintenance. SMART has the ability to leverage four methods that generate revenue: the issuance of bonds, a sales tax (not exceeding 2%), a visitor benefit tax (not exceeding 2%), and a mill levy of up to five mills on all taxable property. The November election will either allow or prevent SMART from utilizing the previously mentioned measures to fund the gondola. During the public comment period, the Telluride Daily Planet noted a statement made by Stacy Ticasy, a Telluride business owner.
“We have seen the effects of higher and higher short term rental taxes, and I don’t think that it is equitable,” Ticsay said. “You just don’t realize how expensive you’re making it when you keep adding more and more taxes, and you don’t know what visitors you’re pricing out. I just want to say that I am opposed to an additional lodging tax and in support of the sales tax.”
Ultimately, the funding strategy is one of the main pieces to be determined moving forward. The Leadership Committee also pursues grants and other low-interest loans to fund the project. Outside of the funding strategy, the engineering team is in the midst of the conceptual and preliminary design.
