Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include information provided by Breckenridge Ski Resort and the U.S. Forest Service.

Breckenridge Ski Resort is proposing multiple improvements to Peak 9, including the construction of a new gondola and the replacement of an existing chairlift.

The White River National Forest said in a news release Tuesday, May 14, that it is now seeking public comments on the proposal, which is located within the ski resort’s existing permitted. A majority of the project is on national forest lands.

Breckenridge Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Jon Copeland said in a statement that the ski resort is excited to turn its focus to Peak 9 after years of work at Peak 8 and Peak 7.

“This project aligns with our resort’s priorities to continue to improve flow and circulation across our Five Peaks, specifically in and around our base areas and main portals to the mountain, focusing on upgrades that make our resort better versus bigger,” Copeland said.

Under the proposal, a new Peak 9 Gondola would be constructed near the Quicksilver SuperChair, the release states. A new learning area — with two short conveyors, a ski and ride school warming hut, a bathroom and increased snowmaking coverage — is proposed to be built near the gondola’s midway station on the Frontier Trail.

Upon completion of the proposed gondola, the A-Chair lift would be removed. A-Chair, a three-person lift, was constructed 1975, making it the second oldest lift still running at Breckenridge, according to LiftBlog.com.

The existing double C-Chair — which was constructed in 1972 and, at 52 years old, is the oldest operating lift currently at Breckenridge — would also be replaced with a high-speed, six-person lift under the proposal.

Copeland said in his statement that the latest proposal is focused on improving the skier experience, specifically flow and circulation across the resort. Last year, Breckenridge completed an upgrade to 5-Chair, making all four of Peak 8’s chairlifts high speed. Before that, the Freedom SuperChair was installed in 2021 to help circulation at Peak 7.

While C-Chair replacement and new Peak 9 gondola are part of the same proposal, Breckenridge also shared that the two projects would likely happen on different timelines, with the gondola taking priority.

Dillon Ranger District mountain sports permit administrator Sarah Strehle, who is the project contact for the U.S. Forest Service, said the Peak 9 improvements are “fairly large in scale.” But since the project does not expand the ski resort’s footprint and focuses on improving outdated infrastructure to better the guest experience, Strehle said it is the kind of proposal the Forest Service wants to see.

Through the National Environmental Policy Act process, Forest Service experts as well as members of the public have the opportunity to comment on the proposal, Strehle said. The earliest the proposal could be approved is this winter, she said, noting this project, if approved, could take the resort multiple years to complete.

Breckenridge Ski Resort is hosting a public open house to provide information about the proposal May 22 from 4-6 p.m. at the Maggie in Breckenridge. Public comments will be most helpful if received by June 13, the release states.

More information, including how to comment, is available at FS.USDA.gov/project/whiteriver/?project=65446. 

“It’s pretty ambitious,” Strehle said. “But it is really in line with what we’re looking for in terms of ski area enhancements, working within the area they already have to offer a better experience to those guests because those guests are also national forest visitors.”