The recently merged parent company of Mammoth Mountain, Squaw Valley and Intrawest Resorts Holdings has agreed to acquire Utah's Deer Valley Resort in its continued efforts to challenge Colorado-based Vail Resorts in scope and winter-sports influence.
Boasting more than 2,000 skiable acres, Deer Valley is located in the town of Park City, and its base is about two miles southeast of Park City Mountain Resort's base. Park City Mountain Resort is owned by Vail.
The acquisition was announced Monday; financial terms were not disclosed. The company, which will be officially named and branded in time for the 2017-18 ski season, is headed by KSL Capital Partners and Henry Crown & Co. Henry Crown & Co. also owns Aspen Skiing Co., though that Colorado namesake resort and three affiliated and adjacent mountains aren't part of the group.
With Deer Valley, the group will control 13 resorts, including California's Mammoth Mountain, June Mountain and Snow Summit; the Lake Tahoe area's Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows; Colorado's Steamboat and Winter Park; Quebec's Mont Tremblant; and Vermont's Stratton Mountain Resort.
The new company, which was announced in April, was officially formed in July when KSL, which already owned Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows, and Henry Crown officially acquired Intrawest Resorts and Mammoth Resorts. Former Aspen Skiing Co. COO David Perry took over as the new company's president.
With the Deer Valley acquisition, the new company further challenges Vail Resorts' dominance of North American ski venues. Vail owns the two most popular ski resorts by visits in the U.S., in Vail, Colo., and Breckenridge, Colo. In addition, it owns Whistler Blackcomb in British Columbia. In all, Vail controls a dozen ski resorts, including one in Australia.