Bear Valley Mountain Resort may not look much different for the 2014-15 ski season, but there will be a significant change.
Skyline International Development Inc. (TASE: SKLN) of Toronto, Ontario, says it has entered into a binding agreement to buy Bear Valley Mountain Resort in the Sierra Nevada east of Stockton.
The agreement comes after several weeks of discussion with the current ownership and local community leaders that had formed the Bear Valley Mountain Cooperative and who were also in the process of purchasing the resort, Skyline says.
Financial terms of the deal were not revealed.
Closing is subject to the U.S. Forest Service issuance of a permit to operate the resort, which is in the Stanislaus National Forest, is expected in 30 to 60 days.
Skyline, Canada’s largest owner, operator and developer of hospitality resorts and destination communities, will acquire the 1,700-acre Bear Valley ski area, including nine chair lifts, an approximately 2,000 stall parking lot, and a 40,000 square foot mountain base lodge.
Bear Valley Mountain’s elevation is 8,500 vertical feet with a vertical drop of 1,900 feet.
With the purchase of the ski area, Skyline has an option to purchase development land in Bear Valley Village for 350 residential units and add a 40,000-square-foot Village center that would include a 53-room lodge and a 17,000-square-foot commercial complex.
“We are delighted to add Bear Valley to our growing portfolio of hotels and resorts,” says Skyline CEO Michael Sneyd. “Given Bear Valley’s spectacular beauty, excellent terrain and potential for improvement, we believe it is a great fit.”
Bear Valley Mountain Resort is located in the Sierra between Lake Tahoe and Yosemite.
It operates year-round, with water sports, biking, music festivals and golf during the non-skiing months.
Bear Valley first opened as Mt. Reba Ski Bowl in 1967. In 1991, it became Bear Valley Mountain.
Founded in 1998 by entrepreneur Gil Blutrich, Skyline has expanded rapidly over the past five years, growing its asset base from $26 million to $311 million with the acquisition of hotel and resort properties in Ontario and the Northern Tier. Bear Valley is the company’s second U.S. acquisition. In 2011, Skyline acquired the Hyatt Regency and Cleveland Arcade in Northern Ohio.
“Bear Valley is a family and community-based resort with many similarities to our Canadian Horseshoe Resort near Barrie, Ontario,” says Chairman and President Gil Blutrich. “Both appeal to families and local groups while benefiting from their close proximity to large urban centers – in Horseshoe’s case, the 8.8 million people who live in the Greater Golden Horseshoe and for Bear Valley, nearly 5 million who live in the Bay Area. Bear Valley is a perfect, natural and quiet alternative to Lake Tahoe.”
For more information on Bear Valley, visit www.bearvalley.com or call 209 753-2301.
