With Saddleback sale finalized, focus turns to opening for 2020-21 season
Courtesy / Flickr, Jack Flanagan
A skier on the slopes of the Saddleback Mountain ski resort, which will reopen in December under new ownership after being closed since 2015. Arctaris Impact Fund LP closed on the sale Jan. 31.
Arctaris Impact Fund LP has completed the purchase of Saddleback Mountain ski resort, and is now focused on renovations to get the mountain open for the 2020-21 ski season.
The $6.5 million sale of the Rangeley ski area closed Friday, part of a $23.5 million financing package put together by the new owners, who have said they plan to invest $38 million in the resort.
"We will immediately begin preparations for relaunching ski operations for December 2020," said General Manager Andy Shepard in a statement posted on the Friends of Saddleback Facebook page. "We’d like to thank the Berry family for their commitment to the mountain as we look forward to finishing the job they started."
Saddleback, the state's third-largest ski resort after Sugarloaf and Sunday River, has been closed since 2015 after 12 years of ownership by the Berry family, of Farmington.
"Our focus will now shift to launching the redevelopment effort, completing our philanthropic campaign to fund the mountain improvements, placing the order for a detachable-grip quad chairlift, building a more powerful and efficient snowmaking system, and renovating the lodge," Shepard said.
Investment will be in more than just the resort, he noted. Arctaris also plans to work with the state and other stakeholders to develop solutions for affordable housing, affordable day care, workforce development, transportation and access to health care benefits. The economy of the Rangeley Lakes region, in western Franklin County, heavily depended on the ski resort.
Long road to sale
The sale comes after some tough ups and downs for the previous owners, who made a number of improvements during the decade-plus that they owned it.
The resort was almost sold in 2017 to Sebastian Monsour, of the Australian Majella Group, but before that deal could close, Monsour was arrested as part of a long-running investigation into a $5 million investment fraud scheme. Arctaris expressed interest in buying the resort after that, but stepped back after Rangeley wasn't included in Maine's 32 Opportunity Zones in 2019. The zones allow long-term investors to get a large tax break on capital gains that are reinvested in one of the zones.
Arctaris, though, regrouped and said it would again seek to buy the mountain, announcing in November a sale would be completed in time to open for the 2020-21 ski season. A loan guarantee from the Finance Authority of Maine last week was the last piece of the puzzle for making that happen.
FAME agreed to insure of 20% (or $2.5 million) on a $12.5 million loan by Arctaris to the Saddleback Community Loan Fund, as well as a $1 million FAME direct loan as part of the $23.5 million financing package.
The new owners said they will create 71 full-time and 134 seasonal jobs.
The funding package also includes private equity, New Market Tax Credits, community loans and community grants for the acquisition of the ski resort at Saddleback. Arctaris has also raised approximately $2 million in private donations from condominium owners, philanthropists and the community at large.
After the business acquisition costs, the balance will be used for renovations, as well as facility upgrades, new equipment, primarily lifts and snowmaking machines, the release said.
The previous owners made a number of improvements over the past several years, including a new base lodge and lifts; expanded snowmaking; a new grooming fleet; and increased four-season destination programs for weddings and other functions.
Saddleback Mountain is one of three ski resorts in Maine with a 2,000-foot vertical drop — the other two are Sugarloaf, in Carrabassett Valley, and Sunday River, in Newry. Saddleback is one of seven New England mountains with a top-lift elevation of more than 4,000 feet, and third in Maine as far as number of trails. The resort has five lifts, 66 trails and a 7-acre terrain park, and plans to expand more than 20 acres by the 2020-21 ski season.
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It's probably a good time to start creating a marketing, advertising and PR strategy as well! They will need to get the word out beyond the people who have been watching their social media posts in order to grow the audience and lift ticket sales.
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