December 16, 2004

A call for a new Mt. Ashland Ski Area board

By Tom Dimitre
Ashland

It's time for change at the Mt. Ashland Association Board of Directors.

The MAA board is made up of self appointed members, who, we allege, routinely violate their own bylaws and who clearly make decisions that are not in the best interests of the citizens of Ashland. This "closed board" does not reflect the values or the diversity of the citizens of the City; instead it has a narrow focus, the costs to the community and the watershed be damned.

The board self-appoints its own members. There is no democracy here. Members can't even vote. Simple as that. In that way, the board can keep a tight reign on who gets on the board and their views.

This serves to isolate the MAA board from the real world and insulates them from public opinion and the needs of Ashland citizens.

This isolation takes place despite the fact that the ski area sits on national forest land (owned by you), uses the ski lifts and buildings - in fact all of the ski area infrastructure (owned by the citizens of Ashland) and receives $150,000 in subsidies from you (MAA pays only $1 per year to the city for the ski area lease).

Section 3.18 of the MAA bylaws clearly states that all board meetings must be noticed and open to the public. This has not been the case. The MAA board has not provided public notice of their monthly meetings nor have they been open to the public. Plans for expansion have taken place privately and behind closed doors.

The Mt. Ashland Ski Area recently made written comments on a Bush administration proposal to weaken protection for riparian/creek side areas on public lands. The ski area urged the Bush Administration to weaken these protections. This self-serving comment was made solely for the purpose of facilitating the expansion of the ski area, with little regard for the citizens of Ashland or their municipal watershed.

The ski area has also supported doing away with appeals of Forest Service and BLM decisions in an attempt to weaken the public participation process regarding activities on public lands.

And, the board is in reckless pursuit of clearcutting 80 acres in the city's municipal watershed - a proposal that flies in the face of the Environmental Protection Agency's recommendation to choose an alternative that does not include the Middle Branch area.

Clearcut old growth, cut rare Engelmann spruce, ruin habitat for rare plants and wildlife, develop a roadless area, add large quantities of sediment to streams, ruin wetlands and streams and you've got the proposed Mt. Ashland Ski Area Expansion.

Move 90,000 cubic yards of dirt (for the parking lot expansion), build an 800-foot long by 30-foot tall retaining wall, permanently clearcut 80 football fields of old growth, allow the Mt. Ashland Association to sell the old growth forest for a profit and you've got the proposed Mt. Ashland Ski Area expansion.

The MAA Board has stubbornly insisted that the Middle Branch be carved up for unneeded runs. This is the most egregious error of the board - an error that can be remedied only by reorganization.

To bring the MAA board in line with public values and beliefs and to ensure that the board acts in the best interests of the city, we recommend that the Ashland City Council review the bylaws of the Mt. Ashland Association and that the following changes be made:

o Charge fair market value for the Ski Area lease. Only 8 percent of the populations skis - why should all of us pay for subsidizing the ski area?

o Require that the MAA Board be democratically elected.

o Require the MAA Board to post dates/times of meetings at least seven days prior, by placing an ad in the Daily Tidings. These meetings must be open to the public.

o Require that the city council have oversight of the MAA board to ensure that they act in the best interests of the city and its citizens at all times.

The Mt. Ashland Ski Area exists due to the largess of the city of Ashland and its citizens through the ski area lease. It's time that the MAA Board act responsibly in a way that benefits the city and its residents.

Tom Dimitre is the chairman for the Rogue Group Sierra Club.