Vail Resorts rejected an offer from the Town of Vail to purchase a local 23.3-acre plot of land for $12,000,000, with Vail Resorts COO Bill Rock stating that their decision to keep the land “has never been about money.”

The parcel involved has been a point of controversy for years, with Vail Resorts seeking to develop the East Vail plot for affordable employee housing after discovering that they owned it in 2016. Since announcing their plan, they’ve gotten big pushback from the Town of Vail – pushback the town attributes to potential impacts that development may have on a local herd of bighorn sheep.

“This is about building affordable housing that the Town desperately needs now to support the hundreds of employees who are the Town’s lifeblood and who make both Vail Mountain and the Town of Vail a world-class destination,” wrote Rock.

According to Rock, the Vail Resorts has been working with the Town of Vail for years to develop the land into a space that allows for the creation of affordable housing, while also preserving natural space of the area.

Rock states that Vail Resorts has sought to designate 17.9 acres of the space as a Natural Area Preservation District through re-zoning, limiting development to 5.4 acres of the site.

Rock also noted that while the Town of Vail has threatened to condemn the East Vail parcel in the name of wildlife, that they’ve also “allowed construction of new luxury homes and increased the Town’s permitted enrollment for a high-end private school by 120 students, all within the bighorn sheep habitat.”

According to Rock, “it appears this issue is less about protecting wildlife and more about preventing affordable housing near the luxury homeowners.”

“It should therefore come as no surprise that Vail Resorts is unwilling to voluntarily give up its land. Vail Resorts will not contribute to the already limited housing decline,” said Rock.

“We hope that the Town Council decides to use its valuable resources to implement meaningful measures that will actually protect the bighorn sheep herd habitat rather than to acquire land approved for affordable employee housing,” said Rock.

According to Rock, Vail Resorts intends to protect their property and will fight the case in court if it comes to that.

OutThere Colorado contacted the Town of Vail for comment. A Town spokesperson said they will be seeking legal advice during a Tuesday City Council meeting.

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