Squaw-Alpine boss looks to turn page on ‘divisive’ fight

The past few years haven’t been easy for Lake Tahoe’s north shore communities.

An epic drought took a toll on winter resorts and small business which depend on them.

And in addition to the natural challenge the communities faced a political challenge in the form of an incorporation battle over the picturesque Olympic Valley, home to Squaw Valley Resort and some of North America’s most iconic winter sports terrain.

The good news for Andy Wirth, president and CEO of Squaw Valley Ski Holdings, LLC., is that there could be relief on both fronts.

“This has been a very, very tough four years,” Wirth said.

Mother Nature provided natural help in the form of early season storms that, combined with cold temperatures, helped Squaw Valley and other Tahoe-area resorts open weeks earlier than has been typical for the past decade.

And backers of the incorporation effort, which Wirth considered a threat to the area’s business and civic climate, provided political relief this week when they formally withdrew from their effort to incorporate Olympic Valley.

Squaw Valley Ski Holdings spent hundreds of thousands of dollars opposing the incorporation effort because, according to Wirth, it could have resulted in higher taxes on residents and businesses and decreased levels of services people depend on, such as road maintenance and snow plowing. He also said it would have isolated Olympic Valley from other north shore communities which pool resources to deal with regional issues.

“It was truly a recipe for disaster, for fiscal disaster,” Wirth said. “This was a fundamental long term threat to operating a business, whether it be a wine bar or a ski area in this valley.”

Incorporation backers say Squaw Valley Ski Holdings had more self-involved motives to oppose incorporation.

The company has plans to improve its real estate through more residential and commercial development. There are also plans for a gondola that would connect Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows ski areas.

Incorporation backers said Squaw Valley Ski Holdings feared answering to a town council and instead preferred to go through the Auburn, Calif., based Placer County Board of Supervisors for land use issues.

“My and most other people's opinion as to why the Ski Holdings spent so much money opposing incorporation is that they did not want local residents (future Town Council) making land use decisions, and instead are counting on influencing the Placer County supervisors, most of whom reside in Sacramento suburbs,” said incorporation drive organizer Fred Ilfield in an email.

Wirth rejected the interpretation and pointed out the incorporation group also raised and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The spending, however, couldn’t overcome California’s Local Agency Formation Commission which determined the proposed town wouldn’t be financially viable.

With the incorporation effort effectively stymied, Wirth says he wants the community to work on transportation and other issues as a cohesive community that goes beyond Olympic Valley.

“I bet you we could agree to what we love about this community and I bet we could agree on what we need,” he said. “This has been divisive … I just hope we all see this as chance for healing.”