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RAY BROOK — Adirondack Park Agency commissioners approved a permit for temporary reuse of ski facilities at Big Tupper.

Several trails on the mountain are slated to reopen Dec. 26.

The project was pulled together through a grassroots effort of Tupper Lake citizens organized as the non-profit Adirondack Residents Intent on Saving Their Economy (ARISE).

The primary reason for APA review, said staff planner Colleen Parker, was to establish the reclamation of Big Tupper Ski Area as separate from Adirondack Club and Resort, which is a much larger development project proposed around Mount Morris.

APA has jurisdiction over ski areas in the Adirondack Park.

The permit allows for temporary use through the 2009-10 ski season.

SPLIT LAND AREAS
Parker told commissioners that volunteers have worked to reclaim the ski lodge, get Chairlift 2 inspected and rebuild a rope tow.

The Ski Area is situated on 445 private acres split between two APA land-use classifications. About 65 percent of the mountain is in Resource Management, and the rest is Moderate Intensity Use.

WATER SYSTEM
Parker said the plan is to use the existing wastewater system to accommodate facilities at the ski lodge. Dye tests performed on the septic tanks showed no "undue adverse impact," she said.

But any use beyond this season may require engineering review of the septic system, which uses two 1,000-gallon septic tanks.

APA staff soil scientist Shaun LaLonde told commissioners the "inspection report could not provide the exact size of the leach-field area."

Existing septic systems may not support an expansion project, if ARISE opts to reclaim more of the ski center next year.

But for the proposed amount of use this season, the system is adequate, LaLonde said.

INVESTMENT
Commissioner Cecil Wray asked what kind of investment the group has made for the five-month ski season.

Parker told him ARISE projected $60,000 in expenses to renovate portions of Big Tupper Ski Center, including $20,000 to have engineers inspect and renovate Chairlift 2, $1,000 to rehabilitate the bathrooms, $3,000 for windows and $5,000 to rebuild one groomer using parts from four others.

Ticket sales have the potential to raise $87,000 this season, Parker said.

No snowmaking is planned on the mountain, and there will be no nighttime skiing, so operations are dependent on the weather and daylight.

HOURS, PRICES
The Ski Area is slated to operate from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday through Sunday, starting the day after Christmas.

Prices for ski passes have been set at $400 for a family of four, $250 for a couple (ages 19-69), $150 for an individual season's pass, $75 for juniors (ages 7-18) and $15 for a day pass.

Children up to age 6, seniors age 70 plus and active-duty military can ski for free.

SAFETY CHECK
Parker said the Department of Labor is monitoring overhaul of Chairlift 2, which delivers skiers to the large central section of ski trails on Mount Morris.

And that agency will conduct a final safety inspection of the lift before Big Tupper reopens.

This season is to be the first time skiers have been on the mountain since the ski center closed in 1999.

It was built in the early 1960s and run by the Town of Tupper Lake.

'COMMUNITY SPIRIT'
APA Commissioner Frank Mezzano, supervisor of Lake Pleasant in Hamilton County, likened the effort to community-based redevelopment of Oak Mountain in Speculator.

"It is also very important (to reopen Big Tupper) for the schoolchildren."

He asked why the septic system, if approved for use this year, would not be adequate for subsequent seasons.

Commissioners agreed that, since the permit is good for this season only, ARISE would have to come back for review next year.

Parker said ARISE has entered into a lease agreement with Big Tupper, LLC, which owns the ski hill, that is "good for one year only."

If the Ski Area is successful this year, LaLonde said, Tupper Lakers might do more substantial renovations next year.

Commissioner Arthur Lussi applauded "the community spirit behind this project."

Commissioner Leilani Ulrich asked APA staff to revisit the project at the end of the ski season to see how it went.

The permit goes to vote before the full agency today.

E-mail Kim Smith Dedam at: kdedam@pressrepublican.com