Ownership Cloud Hangs Over Mountain Study Group’s Right To Operate The Ski Hill Disputed By Previous Operator

Skiers who frequent Mount Spokane Ski Area can rest assured the mountain will be open this season despite an ongoing ownership squabble.

But who will run the place remains far from decided.

The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission gave the 20-year concession to the Mount Spokane 2000 Study Group on July 26. After years of criticizing Mt. Spokane Skiing Corp. - which ran the ski hill the past 21 years - the study group finally won the right to run the hill.

Not so fast, said Gregg Sowder, president of the ski company. Sowder’s lawyers will amend a lawsuit filed in February against the state and the study group and are confident they can overturn the commission decision.

With the concession in hand, the study group wants to start negotiations to buy out Sowder and take control of Mount Spokane. Sowder wants to stop that process until his new suit can be heard in court.

A Sept. 23 hearing in Olympia will decide if Sowder gets his way. The court tangles and the buyout negotiations could mean that Mt. Spokane Skiing Corp. will open the mountain in December, snow permitting.

Or maybe not.

“We may get this all settled before then,” said Ted Stiles, spokesman for the study group. “We’re prepared to take over on very short notice.”

Sowder believes his company exercised its right of first refusal with the concession contract. The state made a deal with the study group, but the ski company had the right to match those terms and keep the concession.

Stiles’ group will run the ski hill as a non-profit entity, putting profits back into improvements. Sowder altered the non-profit language in the contract to allow his ski company to pay taxes and pay shareholders before putting more money into the mountain.

If Sowder agrees to be bought out, negotiating just what gets bought and for how much could take months. An appraisal in 1994 valued Sowder’s equipment and investment at Mount Spokane at $3.5 million. Stiles believes the value to be far less, and the issue likely will be decided by arbitration.

To pay for the equipment, the study group has turned itself into a public development authority. It has the right to sell bonds to help spread the cost of buying Sowder out over time, but its legality also was challenged in court by Sowder. That case has been appealed to the state Supreme Court.

Whichever party runs the hill this winter, both have pledged to keep Mount Spokane’s season and lift ticket prices the same.

The study group, operating as the Mount Spokane Public Development Authority, wants to advertise for a general manager to run the mountain. “We want to best person possible,” Stiles said.

If the two sides settle sometime during the ski season, the study group will use a consultant to swoop in when Sowder’s staff leaves.

With all the litigation and disagreement over how much the ski company’s equipment is worth, Sowder believes he’ll be running Mount Spokane this entire season.

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