Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that Eldora is seeking to change a special use permit in order to build a new parking lot.

Skiers and snowboarders frustrated by seemingly always-full parking lots at Eldora Mountain Resort could get some relief if a special use proposal is approved by Boulder County officials.

Eldora is seeking to change a special use permit to construct a new 560-space parking lot above its north lot and to add 235 spaces to an existing lot near the Nordic Center, according to spokesman Sam Bass.

The proposal will be heard by the Boulder County Planning Commission on Wednesday.

Eldora has worked with the Regional Transportation District and other organizations to incentivize carpooling, public transportation and shuttles, efforts Bass said have been “hugely successful.”

The resort gives away nearly $2,000 in bus tickets every weekend and the carpool program reserves 250 spaces for vehicles with three or more passengers, Bass said, and a free weekend shuttle transports people between the Boulder County Justice Center and the mountain.

But the resort’s 1,600 spaces are often full within hours of opening on weekends and holidays, and cars frequently line access roads.

Bass attributes Eldora’s rising popularity to millions of dollars in upgrades and renovations by the resort’s parent company, Powdr Corp. It also is typical for the resort to be flooded with guests when Interstate 70 — and access to other ski resorts — is shut down due to weather, rockslides or accidents, Bass said.

Expansion at Eldora has been a point of contention between the resort, its neighbors and county leaders in the past, but public comments submitted with the planning commission report show that locals and visitors alike largely support adding additional parking.

The proposal is recommended for approval by Boulder County staff on several conditions, including addressing drainage, storm water, revegetation and more.

A transportation study included in the planning commission report found that adding more parking might not cure the resort’s traffic woes.

Most people arrive at Eldora in single-occupant passenger vehicles, according to an impact study by the county Transportation Department. County staff recommended resort officials consider charging fees for single-occupant vehicles, work with RTD to expand bus service and add more carpool incentives.

Bass said Eldora will continue looking at different ways to improve access to the resort.

“We believe a parking capacity expansion, combined with our continued activation of alternative transportation and carpool incentive programs, will be the best, most holistic combination of solutions to improve access to Eldora for the locals and visitors who cherish the mountain as a community resource,” Bass wrote in an email.

County commissioners declined to comment on the proposal through spokeswoman Barb Halpin.

“As this issue will likely come to the Board of County Commissioners at a later date for public testimony and discussion/decision at a public hearing, it would not be appropriate for any of the commissioners to comment on the docket outside of that official process,” Halpin wrote in an email.

If you go

What: Boulder County Planning Commission public hearing on whether to allow Eldora to update a special use proposal to expand and build parking lots.

When: 1:30 p.m. Wednesday

Where: Commissioners hearing room, Boulder County Courthouse, 1325 Pearl St., Boulder

More information: www.bouldercounty.org/events