THE GROUP wanting to buy the Shames Mountain Ski Corporation has been quietly asking local governments for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
My Mountain Co-op has asked each of Prince Rupert, Terrace and Kitimat councils for $200,000 to help it reach its goal of $2 million to buy the privately-held corporation now owned by a small group of northwest residents.
The co-op, which would run the mountain as a non-profit enterprise, has so far raised nearly $400,000.
Information to be considered by Terrace city council at its Aug. 8 meeting indicates that Prince Rupert has already turned down the co-op request.
The same information indicates Kitimat has yet to make a decision. Terrace council has not made a decision either.
Closed-door meetings between co-op representatives and various councils took place in July.
Although Terrace council has yet to make a decision, several council members spoke passionately at an Aug. 3 committee of the whole meeting about the need to keep the financially-troubled operation in business.
Councillors Bruce Martindale, Bruce Bidgood and Carole Leclerc, for example, spoke about sending the co-op approximately $100,000 from an unexpected grant sent to the city by the provincial government earlier this year.
The majority of the grant is to be used to tear down the city-owned former Terrace Co-op building.
Councillor Brad Pollard, however, said he'd be uncomfortable with the prospect of sending money to the co-op.
Mayor Dave Pernarowski said his wish would be to use what's left of the grant to help finance the city's airport's industrial lands plan.
Shames Mountain has been regularly losing money to the point its owners have had to make yearly contributions.
The owners have indicated they would sell the business to the co-op for $1.3 million.
The co-op says it will need another $700,000 for sale costs and to make improvements.
Information to be considered by council Aug. 8 lays out five scenarios for it to consider:
borrow money from the Northern Development Initiative Trust and then give it to My Mountain Co-op.
Call a contribution a grant of assistance.
Create a partnership with the co-op and secure any monies provided against assets on the mountain.
Set up a corporation with other local governments and have that corporation provide money secured against mountain assets.
Approve providing money in principle but waiting until the mountain is bought and financing found to run the operation before actually providing the money. The money would then be borrowed from the Northern Development Initiative Trust.
Aside from direct financial aid, council members say they are committed to convincing the provincial government to forgive as much as $400,000 in loan and land lease payments owed by the Shames Mountain Ski Corporation.
If that takes places, Shames Mountain has indicated it would drop the sales price by an equivalent amount.
My Mountain Co-op is also going to ask the Regional District of Kitimat-Stikine for money but has yet to formally make that request or set out the amount it wants.
The co-op is meeting with the regional district Aug. 19.