In response to the announcement by Vail Resorts (June 4, 2018) that Vail intends to acquire the ski area lease and resort operations at Mount Sunapee State Park, Friends of Mount Sunapee released this statement:
FOMS Statement, June 4, 2018
Today Friends of Mount Sunapee read the press release from Vail Resorts about Vail’s pending purchase of the ski area lease and resort operations at Mount Sunapee State Park.
We are looking for assurances from the State that this matter will come before the Governor and Executive Council for review and that there will be a public process to get information and answers to people’s questions and concerns.
Vigorous oversight and transparent management are needed. As stewards of our public lands, the State has the responsibility to manage and protect the public interest at Mount Sunapee and to preserve the park’s unique natural resources.
Further, the State has a legal obligation to protect public lands that it owns in the name of the citizens of New Hampshire.
Less than a year ago, we learned after the fact that the ski area lease changed hands in April 2017 without public review. At that time, the criminally sanctioned hedge fund Och-Ziff had purchased the Sunapee lease without Governor and Council approval. State business should not happen that way. We need to know that the State has not lost control of the ski area lease to unaccountable corporate entities.
The Friends of Mount Sunapee advocates for the protection of Mount Sunapee State Park for its essential public values; conservation of the Mount Sunapee highlands and watersheds; and preservation of the unique character and natural beauty of the rural communities in the mountain’s shadow.