Last night, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis issued an executive order to close the state’s nearly 30 ski areas for one week amid the new coronavirus outbreak.
“Never would I have believed that a global pandemic would force the temporary closure of our world-class ski resorts,” Polis wrote in an email announcing the news. He went on to say that he and his family, like many others, were planning a spring break ski trip.
Message from Aspen Snowmass
Dear Loyal Aspen Snowmass Guest,
By order of the Governor of the State of Colorado we are closing all ski operations immediately. Additionally, we will close our ancillary businesses in an orderly manner over the course of the next week, with the exception of the Limelight Aspen. We will work closely with our current guests in house as they make travel arrangements. These actions are being done out of an abundance of caution and with concern for the capacity of local healthcare facilities should community spread increase.
We understand that this impacts a huge number of people; our employees, guests and the community as a whole. We are working now to address all of these issues and will work with each of these groups to minimize the impacts where we can.
We are closing The Little Nell and Limelight Snowmass for the season on March 23 and will reopen for the summer as scheduled. The Limelight Aspen will remain open. We will work with all of our guests who are currently in resort or who had future plans to visit this season. We will be offering refunds or credits and will work with each guest for the best desired outcome. If you are a guest in this situation, please be patient as we expect a large volume of calls and we will do everything we can to get to you as quickly as possible. You do not need to reach us right away to qualify for a refund or credit.
For employees, we are working diligently to provide them with a comprehensive list of what actions we will be taking. We will be offering two additional weeks of scheduled pay to all impacted seasonal employees. Employees will retain benefits status at the same level declared at the start of the season. We ask that our employees stay tuned for further detailed communications and understand the HR department will be overwhelmed with calls.
Our plan is to conduct some limited on-mountain maintenance to potentially have a limited late season opening if circumstances allow. We are all skiers at heart and we understand the therapeutic nature of our shared passion. Extreme circumstances call for extreme actions, and we make this decision in coordination with our local and state health agencies. Let’s work together as a community to support each other and will all come out stronger on the other side.
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