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In 2025, Mt. Bachelor Local Ownership Bid Maintains Momentum

Originally posted on Powder | By Izzy Lidsky | Last updated Jan 7, 2025 6:00 AM ET

Last fall, POWDR Corp. announced plans to sell several ski areas within its portfolio, including Mt. Bachelor in Oregon, Eldora in Colorado, and SilverStar in British Columbia.

Following the announcement, talk that a group of Mt. Bachelor locals were going to try and buy the mountain from POWDR quickly made its way around the ski industry. Efforts headed by Bend residents Dan Cochrane and Chris Porter quickly received an outpouring of support from the community.

Several months and feet of snow later, Cochrane and Porter, now working as Mt. Bachelor Community, Inc. (MBCI), have released an update on progress in an attempt to buy the resort.

"As we reflect on 2024, we are reminded of the incredible power of community and the values that bind us together—love for our shared outdoor spaces, respect for the environment, and a commitment to building a better future for Mount Bachelor and beyond," reads the email sent to subscribers of the organization's website.

In the update, MBCI explained that it has communicated directly with POWDR and engaged JP Morgan Chase alongside a "high net worth individual." JP Morgan Chase, a financial services company, is running the sales process of Mt. Bachelor.

The update also notes that while MBCI still awaits a due-diligence package, they remain confident that their bid presents a win-win situation for everyone involved in the sale of the mountain.

Public land management was another topic of the update. The email underlined MBCI's commitment to land stewardship as it pertains to Mt. Bachelor. The resort sits on public lands and MBCI hopes that their potential ownership will reflect the interests of the greater public recreating on them via providing a world-class experience through mountain operations.

On January 2nd, MBCI also met with the offices of Oregon state senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden to further discuss the structure and benefits of a community-owned piece of public lands. The organization brought forward concerns about out-of-state ownership of the resort and the potential risks it would hold.

The update also noted recent media coverage of the mountain—positive and negative. As one person writing at least some of the positive media coverage of Mt. Bachelor, I can say having the deepest snowpack in the country and several incredible powder days in the last few weeks have made it pretty easy to write great things.

However, despite me spraying about how fun skiing Bachelor is every week, the mountain has also received some negative press with guests getting stuck on older lifts for extended (30-plus minutes) periods of time during powder days due to ice, wind, and electric malfunctions.

MBCI noted that as community members themselves, user experience was of the upmost importance to them, especially given the $175-200 million in revenue that the mountain brings to the community in lodging, rentals, dining, and so on.

This is all to say that while nothing is certain yet, MBCI continues to make strides in their efforts to buy Mt. Bachelor and return the mountain to its community-led roots. It's hard to say still if their efforts will pay off given the weight of a $200 million price tag on the resort. Regardless, it's pretty inspiring to see the community motivate for the cause and to see folks value independent resort ownership so passionately.

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This article first appeared on Powder and was syndicated with permission.

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