Blueprint approved for massive expansion of B.C. mountain resort near Harrison

Plans for a massive ski resort expansion in British Columbia have cleared another hurdle.

The Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD) has approved an official community plan for the Hemlock Valley, which lays out a 15- to 20-year massive growth plan for Sasquatch Mountain Resort near Harrison B.C.

The resort is owned by the Berezan Group which purchased it in 2006 and wants to be able increase the number of visitors who can play and stay. At a price tag of $1.5 billion, the plan includes expanding accommodations, activity options and the amount of commercial and retail space.

The alpine ski hill currently includes four ski lifts servicing 35 named trails on 146.8 hectares of terrain. The new vision ups the number of lifts to 23 and expands the terrain to over 1,000 hectares.

Berezan wants to grow the number of visitors and capacity to accommodate them on the mountain, from the current maximum of 1,600 per day to over 16,000. Right now, the resort can sleep 1,072, and the development plans would result in 19,969 beds.

And to keep those visitors wined, dined and spending their money, commercial and retail space is also expected to skyrocket to almost 280,000 square feet from the current 16,200 square feet available for those purposes.

"In terms of scale, it'll be one of the largest in the province for sure," said FVRD board chair Jason Lum, speaking Monday on CBC's On The Coast. 

The project has been in the works since Berezan bought it and the full build-out could be decades away. 

The provincial government greenlit the project in 2014 but will still be required to make further regulatory approvals as development gets underway. Lum says while construction is starting soon, it could be decades before it is finally complete

"It's a number of years away because I think there's quite a few hurdles that still need to be overcome by the developer," said Lum. "But certainly the [plan] kind of lays out the process and how the developer will work with FVRD and with the province and with First Nations to continue realizing the vision."

Lum said the plan provides guidelines for mitigating the impacts of climate change such as fires and floods, saying those costs will be shouldered by the developer.