City Pivots After Hickory Hills Operator Drops Out

Plans to hire an outside operator to run Hickory Hills Ski Area this winter have hit a major bump. The City of Traverse City was unable to reach terms with North Country Alpine Services (NCAS) because of insurance and liability issues. With the operator dropping out, the city is taking back over and ramping up seasonal hiring with the goal of still opening before Christmas.

City commissioners in July approved a staff proposal to hire NCAS for one season as a trial run. The Traverse City-based ski area operations and infrastructure management company has experience with local ski properties including Hickory, Mt. Holiday, and The Homestead. Under the arrangement, the city would retain ownership while NCAS handled staffing, snowmaking, maintenance, and other operations.

The proposal was intended to address challenges at Hickory ranging from corroded or malfunctioning snowmaking equipment to climate change-affected winters that have dramatically shortened ski seasons at local resorts to staffing woes. Hickory didn’t open until January 4 last season and only had four of 16 runs available by mid-month, with the city citing employee shortages and equipment issues.

City Manager Benjamin Marentette told commissioners this summer the city could either hire a full-time manager and continue operating the park internally or try a “new and bold” approach by hiring an outside company.

Commissioners unanimously supported trying NCAS, as did the city’s Hickory Hills Advisory Committee. After testing the model for one winter, the city planned to decide whether to continue with an outside operator – which would then go out to bid – return to a city-run model, or consider a hybrid approach.

Since that vote, the city and NCAS have been working to finalize a contract. However, talks stalled over the complexity of insurance and liability issues, says Deputy City Manager Valarie Handy. Having a municipality run a ski hill is a “non-traditional way” to operate, she notes, including questions surrounding governmental immunity.

“The lines of where that immunity would remain intact and where the risk would fall on the vendor…could not be worked out in time,” Handy says. Though she believes those issues could be resolved with more runway, the rapidly approaching season prompted NCAS to back out.

“We wish it would’ve worked out better,” Handy says. “We just couldn't get everything (negotiated) in time.”

That has required the city to quickly pivot for the upcoming ski season. “We are pulling in anybody and everybody we can get to the hill open,” Handy says. “Our target is to open before Christmas break – we hope the weather cooperates – and then stay open up to or through spring break.”

The city has posted numerous Hickory job openings and is aggressively recruiting seasonal workers. Openings include a lodge supervisor, kitchen lead and food/beverage staff, slope supervisors, snowmakers, rentals/ticket sales staff, and tow operators. New perks include on-shift meals and an end-of-season bonus for workers who stay through the winter.

While Handy says the city is not planning to cut back ski runs or hours, concessions could be affected. “We might limit the hours there, or the types of food,” she says. “We could also look at having a food truck operator. We’re trying to figure out that piece of it. Getting the hill open is our highest priority.”

Staff are working closely with members of the Hickory Hills Advisory Committee for operational ideas and support. The group has extensive skiing and outdoor recreation expertise and is chaired by Mayor Pro Tem Laura Ness. Ness co-founded Preserve Hickory, chairs the city/Garfield Township Joint Rec Authority Board, and is a past president and Hall of Fame member of the Grand Traverse Ski Club.

“I think we were all disappointed this new approach didn’t work out,” Ness says. “It’s not to say the city won’t pursue similar approaches in the future, or consider hybrid approaches. I think there’s the potential for many different delivery models. It’s a very complicated business to operate a ski hill. It requires a lot of technical expertise.”

Even with the latest setback, Ness is bullish about Hickory’s future. While a municipally owned ski area requires a “long-term partnership between the community and city” to succeed, Hickory has a master plan intended to support a sustainable future, she says. That includes improving ski operations while expanding year-round amenities like mountain biking, lodge rentals, and disc golf.

“The fact of the matter is that Hickory is celebrating its seventy-fifth birthday in January,” Ness says. “It’s gone through other challenges over the decades. But seventy-five years ago, those lights were turned on, and I see no reason why we wouldn’t be here for another seventy-five years.”

As for this season, Ness says she’s “still very optimistic and confident we’ll be able to have an even better season than last year.”

She adds with a wary chuckle: “Weather dependent.”