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Protests Mark Vail's Expansion
Protesters from EarthFirst!, the Colorado Environmental Coalition, and the Coalition to Stop Vail's Expansion staged a peaceful protest a few hundreds yards up the road from the base of Vail's Vista Bahn chairlift as tourists shopped, rented mountain bikes and milled about in Vail Village below.
Meanwhile, Vail Associates had already taken most Category III construction equipment up the mountain on an alternative route as forest clear-cutting for trails and lift lines got underway. "All of the respective agencies have signed off on this project and we're moving ahead," Vail Resorts spokesman Paul Witt said at the protest site. "Everything about this project has been reviewed, and it has withstood five court attempts to block it," Witt added. The final court attempt to block the expansion was turned down by the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday.
"We have the obligation to the community to take up peaceful action and stop corporate greed," one protester said, who refused to give his name. "There is nothing we can do except follow our hearts and stand up to Vail Associates." Other protesters addressed Associates employees face-to-face during the protest. "We're tired of having our rights destroyed by corporate destruction," one female protester said to a senior member of VA's management team. "(Vail Associates) doesn't care about you the employees. They just care about their profits." Vail's Category III expansion includes four high-speed chairlifts in Pete's and Super Bowl, just south of Vail existing Back Bowls. The expansion, which features gladed skiing and mostly intermediate terrain, is set to open the 2000-2001 ski season. — Tom Horrocks, MountainZone.com Correspondent
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Protesters built a tripod over the access road from fallen trees as one member hung from the top, more than 20 feet up. Other members chained themselves to a cherry picker brought in by the town of Vail to hoist the protester from the tripod. The protest started at sunup and continued throughout most of the day.
Law enforcement personnel from the U.S. Forest Service and the Eagle County Sheriff's Department made sure the protest remained peaceful. However, there were a few arrests, including the protester hung from the tripod and another who locked his neck the drive shaft of a truck.
Last week the U.S. Forest Service issued a closure for the entire Category III area in hopes of avoiding another eco-terrorist attack like the one on Vail Mountain Oct. 19, 1998 in which arsonists damaged or destroyed seven buildings and cause $12 million in damage. The fires were claimed by the Earth Liberation Front. However, no arrests have been made.