COURTESY / BIGROCK MOUNTAIN
Skiiers enjoy the last day of the 2022 season on the 1,748-foot-tall mountain, near the Canadian border.
August 18, 2022
Feds award $2.5M to BigRock Mountain for new chairlift
Courtesy / Doppelmayr
Seen here is the new lift BigRock plans to install.
BigRock Mountain, a nonprofit ski area in Mars Hill, announced a capital campaign last December to raise $2.9 million for upgrading its 50-year-old double chairlift.
The campaign got a major boost with a $2.5 million grant, announced Wednesday, from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Authority through its American Rescue Plan Travel, Tourism and Outdoor Recreation Program.
“The $2.5 million is granted toward a $5 million project that includes our capital campaign for a chairlift and expansion of our snow making infrastructure,” the mountain’s marketing director and assistant general manager, Aaron Damon, told Mainebiz. “The EDA grant, along with the $1.25 million raised from local donations, puts BigRock at 75% raised of the total project cost.”
BigRock hopes to install a new Doppelmayer quad chairlift. The popular resort is continuing to apply for federal and private grants and will continue fundraising to reach the total goal, Damon added.
The operational date of the new chairlift is still tentative, but the facility is looking at a 2024 installation for operation in the 2024-2025 ski season.
Double the capacity
The new quad lift is expected to more than double capacity, reduce lift lines and shorten the ride to the top of the mountain to eight minutes. The lift might also give a lift to BigRock's draw as a family-friendly ski destination.
BigRock is run by a nonprofit and overseen by a local board of businesspeople and winter recreation enthusiasts from Aroostook County and New Brunswick, Canada.
The ski area is on 1,748-foot-tall Mars Hill Mountain, near the Canadian border with New Brunswick. BigRock is the largest ski area in northern Maine and western New Brunswick.
The mountain’s first full season of operation was the 1961-62 season. Over the years, BigRock has installed multiple lifts, built a three-story lodge, purchased snowmaking equipment, and most recently developed a beginner terrain area serviced by a chairlift.
The existing main lift has serviced the ski area since 1993 and is over 50 years old. The new lift will be a modern quad chairlift built to the latest safety and dependability standards. It will have the potential to sustain Big Rock from any other major lift capital needs until 2060 or later, BigRock has said.
Skier visits average 20,000 people per year. The mountain has partnerships with over 13 schools, as well as local and regional race programs, and weekly ski for life group programs.
A goal is to grow market share in Bangor, New Brunswick and beyond. Installation of a modern quad chair to the top is expected to entice skiers to make the trip. Target skier visits are expected to grow 25% to 30%.
In the 2020-21 ski season, BigRock saw a 30% increase in pass holders.
The new lift will be a Doppelmayr Alpenstar Quad chair, which features modern design and safety standards that include technology such as a touchscreen interface that eases system operations and maintenance. It provides seating for four and increases lift capacity to 1,800 people per hour. Uphill speed is 450 feet per minute, which means a lift ride of eight minutes.
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