White Pine Ski Area put up for sale
February 7, 2020
Alan and Robyn Blackburn, majority owners of Citizens to Save White Pine LLC, which owns the assets of White Pine Ski Area and Resort, announced on Thursday, February 6th that they have decided to put the resort up for sale. In a press release, Alan Blackburn cited health issues and the devastating fire last summer that destroyed the lodge as some of the contributing factors in the decision. Blackburn said, "Any investor/purchaser of White Pine has a turn-key operation with experienced managers and employees willing and wanting to continue - we hope that this will happen."
Below is the media release from White Pine:
PRESS RELEASE / STATEMENT FEBRUARY 6, 2020
WHITE PINE SKI AND SUMMER RESORT FOR SALE
Alan and Robyn Blackburn, majority owners of Citizens to Save White Pine LLC (which owns the assets of White Pine Ski Area and Resort) have announced that they have decided to put the resort up for sale.
The resort has been managed by Katie Lane (General Manager) and Bryan Lane (Maintenance and Equipment Manager), and the Blackburn’s were delighted when the year to last May 31st produced a 19% increase in revenue, an operating profit, plus improved EBITDA.
Alan Blackburn, Managing Member of the LLC, stated that they measure financials on a June 1st to May 31st "year" as it more accurately reflects the ski season year with advance sales of season passes, plus the December/January peak activity.
"We were thrilled going into the summer wedding season in 2019, and looked forward to continuing successes" said Mr. Blackburn, "but then came July 12th and the devastating fire that destroyed the White Pine Lodge." On a positive note, no lives were lost and the lifts were not affected which has meant the 2019/2020 ski season was able to continue.
Much scrambling and adaptations, by Management and employees, resulted in all but two planned weddings taking place at White Pine over the summer, but it was an emotional drain for Robyn Blackburn, White Pine's Wedding Co-ordinator.
Robyn is currently spending the winter season with family in New Zealand (and keeping her skills honed as she plans and organizes her own niece's wedding in March). Alan, 72 this year, has health issues which have contributed to making the ultimate sale decision.
Both Robyn and Alan Blackburn acknowledge the great work done by Katie and Bryan Lane, and their teams of employees. "Any investor/purchaser of White Pine has a turn-key operation with experienced managers and employees willing and wanting to continue - we hope that this will happen."
As the resort sits on Federal land, final decisions regarding a change of ownership require approval from the USFS. The current business operates under a USFS permit which is not transferable. The local Forest Service office would work closely with the new owners to assist with issuing a new permit for the owners of continued operation of the ski resort.
The Blackburn’s agree that White Pine Ski & Summer Resort is an extremely valuable community asset which needs preserving so that it can continue to be enjoyed by future generations. They are hopeful that interested buyers/investor(s) will come forward quickly so that the transition is seamless and White Pine Resort will continue to operate into its 81st year - with this month, February 2020, being the 80th Anniversary of the first mechanized tow installed and operated by Mr. Sunny Korfanta!
At this time, any interested party should contact Alan Blackburn directly by emailing alan@whitepineski.com.
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