Resurrection of Powder Ridge Moving Forward

One of the things that impresses Middlefield First Selectman Jon Brayshaw about the “resurrection of Powder Ridge” ski area is new owner Sean Hayes’ decision to rebuild and refurbish everything he can. “All the other various potential buyers talked about knocking everything down and starting again,” Brayshaw explained.

Due to extensive vandalism to the four buildings and assorted ski lifts and other equipment, starting from scratch was not necessarily a bad idea. However, Hayes, who also runs Brownstone Exploration and Discovery Park in Portland, was determined to resurrect the ski area differently – using as many of the structures and pieces of equipment as possible. And even though vandalism has occurred since Hayes’ purchased the property, he now has surveillance cameras and lights in place to help deter such destruction.

Hayes purchased the bankrupt ski area from the town of Middlefield in August 2012 and has jumped right into planning, rebuilding and re-imagining the recreation venue, which was originally opened by the Zemel brothers in 1959. He proposes to reopen for business on November 27, 2013, just 15 months from the time he purchased the property.

Part of what will make this a do-able proposition, according to Hayes, is the fact that he is reusing the structures. In fact, the old/new rental building is almost 100 percent finished, right up to being filled with skis, poles, boots and a few mountain bikes.

On a tour of the facility a week ago, Hayes explained that even those skis were on the property when he bought it. “We found 900 pairs of skis or so tucked into various places,” he explained. “About 300 sets were good to go, another 300 or so needed refinishing or new bindings and we’ll do that. The rest were not usable.”

He bought the mountain bikes at state auction, and looks forward to opening the first year-round 1.5 mile mountain bike trail in New England. “There was a small ski mountain in New Hampshire that turned itself exclusively into a biking mountain, but they’re not open all year. Bikers have been calling from all around looking forward to this,” he continued.

One of the commercial vendors on site will sell mountain bikes and equipment. The bike trail itself will be located on the left (south) wooded side of the ski area and is almost complete.

Work is proceeding on the Lodge, whose first floor will remain a cafeteria with lockers and retail space while the second floor will be transformed into a restaurant. The original 25 “hotel” rooms on that floor will be replaced by a large, public eatery with a round fire pit at its center, a bar area and a small private dining room available for rent. Ten of the hotel rooms will remain as spaces that can be rented by wedding parties or other customers for the day and/or evening. Because the footprint and structure of the original Lodge will be the same, except for two outside staircases and a handicapped ramp, permits from Planning and Zoning were not needed.

In another nod to its history, Hayes intends to use the pond on-site for water for snowmaking. He will expand the pond eastward toward the parking fields and dredge it. “It will go from four million gallons capacity to eight million and that’s enough to cover the 40 acres of ski trails with a base one foot deep,” he explained. Using the pond will also eliminate the need to pipe water from Lake Beseck, which has always been a sticking point for potential owners. Hayes is confident that the recharging capacity of the pond, which is estimated at about 750,000 gallons a day, will be sufficient to keep the area snow-covered. Permits for the dredging have been approved by the Middlefield Inland Wetlands Commission.

Hayes notes that the lifts have all been tested and certified and that the existing lift chairs will be repainted and refurbished with Trex slats rather than wood to cut down on future maintenance. They have also been rewired as thieves stole every bit of copper on the premises while it was vacant.

Two structures that are not part of the phase one resurrection of the property are the former restaurant just west of the pond and the outdoor pool. “They will be part of phase two,” said Hayes, who would like to enclose the pool to make it available year-round and sell inexpensive day passes to use it. Hayes is also looking at options for solar panels and/or wind turbines to generate some of the electricity needed on-site. Plans are not finalized for what the former restaurant may become.

He aims to be user-friendly with all of his pricing -- with top of the hill lift tickets, halfway lift tickets and night tickets available. “Customers will be able to take their tubes, snowboards, bikes or skis to the top or get off halfway.” A mile-long snow tube run will be located on the south side of the ski area close to the bike trail. The most southerly part of the hill will be reserved for racing and club use, the center hill will be for skiers and boarders and the northernmost slope have terrain features such as jumps and rails. The center slope on the bottom will feature ski and boarding lessons.

And the whole thing will be open by Nov. 27, Hayes promises. On that day before Thanksgiving, snow or not, the lower half of the hill will be ready to go, using artificial snow if necessary. “Artificial snow is like artificial turf,” explained Hayes. “It’s been used in Europe for years, but it’s not very well known here.” It will allow early visitors to the park to tube, ski and snowboard without depending on the weather for either “real” snow or manmade snow.

He also plans an Alpine Village pop-up retail attraction with Klotter Farms buildings brought in for the season and placed along the new stamped concrete walkway that will circle the pond. He envisions crafters, snack shops and sports-oriented vendors populating the seasonal buildings. The one entirely new structure Hayes plans is a gazebo at the top of the mountain for leaf-peeping in the fall, picnics in the summer and possible weddings or other events.

All of this would be impressive enough in its own right, but Hayes has years of experience leasing an abandoned brownstone quarry in nearby Portland that he and several business associates turned in to Brownstone Exploration and Discovery Park, a successful recreational and adventure venue in a surprising place. Hayes figures that the two businesses will complement each other very well, with summer Brownstone users a prime audience for the skiing, snowboarding, tubing and biking that Powder Ridge will offer in the winter, or in the case of biking, all year.

Hayes continues to invite residents and other interested persons to visit him at Blackbird Tavern on Route 147 in Middlefield any Tuesday from 4-6 pm. This is where he entertains ideas from visitors and answers questions about his plans.

Meanwhile, circle Nov. 27 on your calendar and prepare to come and be a witness to the resurrection of Powder Ridge.