Community effort to buy Mt. Bachelor ski area appears ended
Published 3:11 pm Wednesday, March 12, 2025
- The Mt. Bachelor ski area sign as seen from Century Drive in 2021. (Bulletin file photo)
The grassroots effort to put the ownership of Mt. Bachelor ski area in the hands of locals has died.
The community group trying to garner financial support to purchase Mt. Bachelor was unable to submit a bid because of time constraints, according to an email statement from the group.
Calling themselves the Mt. Bachelor Community Inc., the group said it was competing against bidders that had a five-month head start. But organizers of the grassroots effort vowed to maintain a voice in the future of the ski area.
Utah-based Powdr Corp., which owns Mt. Bachelor, said Tuesday it had no update on the sale to share publicly at this time, said Stacey Hutchinson, Powdr Corp. communications and government affairs vice president.
The ski area and Sun Country Tours, a Bend-based tour operator, were put up for sale in August.
“Although we tried and believe we have the capital backing to pay a premium over any other bidder, we know momentum is on the community’s side,” said Chris Porter, one of the main organizers in the local effort. “The conversations we’ve had and continue to have about community ownership of Mt. Bachelor are positive and we remain committed to exploring opportunities that align with the Mt. Bachelor Community Inc. vision.”
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The group seeking local ownership formed a for-profit corporation to help it move forward quickly and sought to bring key people into the organization. It created financial models necessary to show investors what the operations could look like.
“Our goal has always been to establish democratized ownership, ensuring the community has both an equity stake and board representation in Mt. Bachelor’s future,” the group’s statement says. “The structure would bring significant financial support from the community, ensuring that ownership remains focused on long-term growth and innovation.”
During the course of the effort, the group raised funds to pay for legal filings, accountants and attorneys.
Powdr Corp. has owned Mt. Bachelor since 2001. In the announcement to sell the ski area, it said it would also sell Eldora ski resort in Colorado and SilverStar in British Columbia. The three ski areas are listed with JP Morgan Chase.
“What is clear from our recent talks with industry leaders is that they are starting to look at community ownership as a natural evolution in the demand maximization model,” Porter said.
