Master plan review process to begin for proposed Rib Mountain State Park ski area expansion
MADISON - A proposed expansion of a downhill ski area within Rib Mountain State Park will be evaluated under a master plan amendment review process under a proposal approved by the state Natural Resources Board at their February meeting in Madison.
The park, located on one of the highest points in the state just west of Wausau in Marathon County, has offered alpine skiing since the 1930s. Since 2000, the ski area has been operated under a 30-years lease and concession agreement as the Granite Peak Ski Area (exit DNR). The ski area currently leases 385 acres of the 1,627-acre park. Granite Peak currently has 74 ski runs, eight chairlifts and a chalet that offers food, beverages and ski rentals.
In 2014, Charles Skinner, who owns and operates the ski area, submitted a request to the Department of Natural Resources to increase the leased area by an additional 150 acres to build additional ski runs, add more chairlifts and skier services. Granite Peak projects the expansion would allow skier visits to increase from 110,000 to 200,000 annually.
DNR staff conducted a preliminary review of the expansion request and determined an amendment to the park's master plan, which was completed in 2005, would be required to allow the lease expansion.
The amendment process will include an environmental assessment of the proposed expansion area that looks at the ecological and cultural impact of the expansion and its compatibility with existing use and management of the property. The amendment process will include a public meeting on the proposal.
After the department completes its evaluation of the expansion, the request will be brought back to the Natural Resources Board tentatively this fall with recommendations to either make no changes in the leased area, reducing the proposed lease expansion, or accepting the proposal as requested.
The environmental review and the amendment process is expected to take several months. Public meetings and a comment period will be announced after the department completes its review of the proposal, tentatively set for later in 2015.
For more information about the park, search the DNR website, dnr.wi.gov, for keywords "Rib Mountain."