Ski season is right around the corner and ski areas are wrapping up pre-season renovations. Bogus Basin has spent $20 million in the past three years on these updates, and shows no signs of slowing down.
Bogus Basin is known to Boisians as the closest ski area to home, but snow slopes are only as good as the weather forecast. Last year, Bogus Basin bought a $6 million snow machine which will be working in full capacity this year, and could help extend the season.
“We have a full snow-making pond, so we have water to start the process,” says Brad Wilson, the General Manager of Bogus Basin. “We’re going to start snow as soon as the temperatures drop.”
The ski area operates with a Special Use Permit on the Boise National Forest under the USDA.
Bogus Basin is also the largest nonprofit ski area in the country, which means it handles improvements like the snow maker differently than a typical resort.
“We are a nonprofit so we have an obligation to take the funds that we make over the winter and reinvest them and improve the overall facility,” Wilson says.
This year, Bogus Basin spent more than $5 million on a new lift and lodge and trail improvements. Wilson says the reinvesting keeps the slopes up to date.
“We have a specific mission for the community and that is to provide affordable and accessible mountain recreation and education to the Treasure Valley,” Wilson says.
The summer season at Bogus Basin is open for the next few weekends. Skiers and snowboarders will be able to hit the slopes once snow is in the forecast or the snow machines are turned on.
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