Mammoth Mountain CEO Rusty Gregory told the crowd that firm financial requirements led to the closure of June Mountain.
With a standing room only crowd in two rooms of the June Lake Community Center Tuesday night, Mammoth Mountain CEO Rusty Gregory faced off with a sometimes hostile and tearful crowd as they all talked for more than three hours about the closure of June Mountain. The final word – all stakeholders will try to come up with a plan in the next two weeks to try to open June next winter. Guarantees for that outcome still remain slim. Mammoth Mountain will have to deal with the Forest Service on the June Mountain permit.
Gigi Van der Riet covered the meeting for Sierra Wave Media. She reported that some 200 people crowded into the main room of the community center with overflow in an adjoining room that offered speakers and audio of the meeting which was chaired by the June Lake Citizens Advisory Committee and the Mono Supervisors.
The standing room only crowd burst into anger and tears at times.
Gregory stood up to say he was there to let people know what is happening, face the community and move forward. The citizen response started with a teacher and students who sold lemonade to save June Mountain. They handed Gregory a check for $134. Then the mood turned more angry and emotional. People stood up to ask for cheaper lift tickets, more investment in improvements at June Mountain and better marketing. Others spoke of personal suffering with the closure of the town’s main attraction.
To questions of why he closed down June Mountain so suddenly and without notice, Gregory said the banks that hold Mammoth Mountain loans were calling on the loan covenants which require a certain revenue and financial condition of the company. Gregory said Mammoth is paying the bank but that revenue which is usually $45 million a year had dropped to $25 million this season. The terms, he explained, require Mammoth to remain financially viable. The situation, he said, required major operational cuts.
Gregory had earlier stated that June has lost $1.5 million per year for the last six or so years. Gregory said, “We got one week’s notice ourselves.” He said he went public at once with the news.
Many pushed Gregory to sell June Mountain. He said he would not stand in the way but that no one would invest in a losing venture. He said he has received no offers but did say
USFS Ed Armenta told the crowd that the Forest will issue a Notice of Non-compliance regarding the Forest permit requirements.
he would consider an offer.
Inyo National Forest Supervisor Ed Armenta stood up to report that while the Forest Service sees Mammoth Mountain’s position, there is an obligation to run June Mountain as a facility under the Forest permit. He said that the Forest Service will issue a letter of non-compliance to Mammoth. The crowd broke out in applause. Armenta said the Forest Service also can’t force Mammoth to run a failing business.
Gregory made it clear that the town of June Lake needs 1,000 beds to accommodate more visitors to the Mountain. He repeatedly asked for the community vision. Citizens said they didn’t want a high-end, glitzy resort, but without more amenities would the Mountain succeed?
The CEO brought up another current issue – air service subsidies. He pushed the Mono Supervisors to contribute $100,000 for air service as part of the sustainable future picture for both Mammoth and June. He said, “Get off your wallets and put some money into air service.” A citizen shouted out, “How dare you speak to them like that.” Mono Supervisors said they have many other issues constituents want before air service. That was during a very tense start of the meeting.
To the idea of lowering the price of lift tickets, Gregory said that would mean the need to push hard for more skiers to make up for the loss of revenue. The community continued to push hard for opening June Mountain this coming winter. Gregory said he saw their point but would have to have a good, 
workable plan to show the bank.
Connie Black, owner of Double Eagle Resort, supported coming up with a viable plan in the next two weeks with meetings of major stakeholders to hash out a new idea.
Tim Alpers, newly elected County Supervisor for June Lake, told Gregory that he had done something no one else could do – galvanize the community. But, he said, “We still need a result.”
A Native American woman suggested Mammoth Mountain partner with one of the tribes and put a casino in June Lake. Some at the meeting described the more than 3-hour dynamic as a rubber band – Gregory would pull people in and they would pull back. Some asked Gregory why he couldn’t put people before profit. He said that’s what he’s been doing, but now he has to think of profit to save the whole business.
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I am liking the civil war idea more and more.
We can beat the hardcore right wingers back to thier grassroots in the south!
These are not the best of times to be hyper-partisan. It’s too easy to inspire hatred for the government at all levels. The vast majority of government-workers are good and decent people who love their country. Now, politicians … that’s another matter. No elected official should have that much power – period. The “drive-by media” (as in a drive-by gang shooting) is inspired by pure jealousy and/or hatred for anybody in any Bureau most likely because they earn a decent living and have job security. And, believe it or not – most are not filthy rich at all.
Judging by the number of postings/opinions by the moderator – I think this forum has gone down the slippery slope and is starting to resemble the Rush Limbaugh show.
Like the word liberal, the word bureaucrat has morphed into a dirty word only used to deliberately demonize and hurt other people.
Timothy McVeigh is a good example of how far Bureaucrat-hatred can go.
Hmmmmmm
Jack Lunch has his “tax-eater” government-bashing in his paper.
You have your” Bureaucrat Beat” government-bashing game.
I swear you so-called journalists are all cut from the same mold.
And now you’ve become so bored you are stooping to censoring things that are getting too close to the real deal.
Dear Truth, If you really read Bureaucrat Beat you know it goes way beyond government-bashing.
What mold is it you think I am cut from?
Benett
The power of media, whether direct or indirect, is a real power which acts on us, which modifies our behavior, our tastes, and probably our thoughts. Like all authority, it cannot be applied at random. Otherwise, that power could become arbitrary and irresponsible.
The power gives mediamen responsibility comparable to religious or political responsibility. In their own way they contribute to the establishment and maintenance of a human community. The well being of that community should be their first concern.
The Dalai Lama – From “The Path To Tranquility”
This may not be a popular stance, for this right-leaning blog, but if we could take down right-wing hate radio at the expense of liberal talk radio, I would make that trade in a heartbeat. Talk radio tilts so far to the right that the harm the right-wing talkies inflict far outweighs the good that progressive radio could ever hope to accomplish.
But it’s that “if” that I’m hung up on. Liberal radio has always been much more financially precarious, and doesn’t have the sugar daddy support system that conservative radio (and conservative everything else) has. So if attacks on projectile haters like Limbaugh make advertisers squeamish about advertising on any political shows, it could actually result in a talk radio space that’s even more lopsided than it is now.
And yet despite all that, I still can’t bring myself to advocate giving Rush and his ilk a free pass to say whatever they like without consequences. Even if the loss of advertisers doesn’t drive them off the air (and remember, that would be free enterprise at work, not censorship), it’s still worthwhile to broaden public awareness of the bile the right is spewing. The die-hard fans are a lost cause, but if every non-crazy person’s reaction to the words “Rush Limbaugh says…” is “Oh yeah, he’s that guy that calls women whores. Why should I listen to anything he says?”, this country will be a much better place.
So, why not detail some of Limbaugh’s inaccuracies and poor taste instead of just generically attacking Limbaugh (other than the whore thing)?
Benett Kessler
What’s the problem?
Nobody listens to Limbaugh or reads Ann Coulter’s I hate liberals! books.
To use your reasoning:
Why not detail the left, the progressives, the democrats inaccuracies and poor taste instead of just generically attacking liberals?
Dear Whoever you are, and remember I’m stating plainly who I am, I trashed your second comment because of its untruth, block-headedness,
and now – yes – you have bored me.
Benett
Thank you Benett!
http://thegrio.com/2012/03/06/rush-limbaughs-10-most-offensive-comments/#s:scared-rush-limbaugh-jpg
Thank you, necon. I do know how unjournalistic and untruthful Rush Limbaugh is.
I have no issue with you on that.
Benett Kessler
Listen to Fox News (for as long as you can stand it)
Then …
Tune in to CNN.
This will tell you how and why the country is more divided than during the Civil War era.
Then pay attention how the rabid right has found itself on formats like these.
They “thumbs down” everything smacking of liberal (aka Democrat)
Which is very interesting as the state of California is most often referred to as : The Most Liberal state in America.
Right, right-wing and rightist have been defined as acceptance or support of social hierarchy. Inequality is viewed by the Right as either inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable,whether it arises through traditional social differences.
Right-wing politics involves in varying degrees the rejection of egalitarian objectives of left-wing politics, claiming either that equality is artificial or that the imposition of social equality is detrimental to society.
Right-wing ideologies and movements support social order. Right-wing politics typically justifies a hierarchical society on the basis of natural law or tradition.
Translation: All Men Are NOT created equal.
Thank God I live in oh-so-left-leaning California!
Benett- “Listen to some Beetles’ songs.” (I think she meant Beatles)
Okay. But I’m afraid we have many on this blog (based on the overwhelming amount of “thumbs down” to everything that remotely sounds left, these types would be listening to John Lennon’s Revolution.
The song seemed to convey a clear message: “we all want to change the world”, but “count me out” of any talk about destruction as a means to an end. In a year characterized by student protests that stretched from Warsaw to Paris to Chicago, the response from the left was scathing.
One clearly unhappy soul on this blog is even preaching a Civil War for this country.
Here’s what conservative guru Limbaugh has to say about the Beatles:
RUSH: (singing) Come together — doo doo doo doo! — right now — doo-doo-doo — over me! Beatles. Do you know what the origins of Come Together were? John Lennon and the Beatles wrote that song in the support of Timothy Leary’s run for office. He ran for president, I think, and that was a song designed to support him. It was a campaign song for Timothy Leary and then Leary got busted for pot and embarrassed the Beatles. They pulled out the song and he never wound up running for anything. But that’s why they wrote Come Together. Let me tell you something out there, Lennie. (interruption) Yeah. Leary was running for governor against Reagan, is what it was. Timothy Leary was running for governor against Reagan, and the Beatles wrote Come Together as a thing to unify behind Timothy Leary’s 1969 campaign.
Dear say, Good grief. I was talking about “All You Need is Love” or “Let it Be.” Perhaps you should try meditation for a few
months and get a shift in your perspective. While you’re meditating, try to say “Om” and not “Rush”.
Benett
Civil war isn’t a bad idea if there isn’t any other way.
Lets go our seperate ways
Mark –
You DO know that Civil War was exactly what Timothy McVeigh preached?
The Young Turks.
look it up on internet, we all should be watching there journalism (non bias).
So if we go our own way then we need to take turns getting out of eachothers way rather then be bullied by one another.
The last thing i want to do is sit down to any kind of fox news
United we stand.
Divided we fall.
And the most clever (albiet dangerous) on the are achieving the most divided country since the Civil War. We even have a black president that I’m sure makes many on the Right furious.
Why is Limbaugh givin so much air time on this website? And why is the word “Liberal” such a bad thing to anyone?
Dont y’all know the Republican party my have views that you agree with, but they dont repersent you or those views. THEY REPERSENT THE TOP 2%. sorry to break the news to you.
If you dont believe me stop watching bias corporate news media and it might be more clear.
The Democrats arn’t that different but it is obvious the rich mans money is at stake with the Democrats in charge. hahaha
JeanGenie,
What are you shouting for?
JeanGenie –
“Lighten up and get a sense of humor before your liberal little heart has an attack.”
Reply:
Do as your neocon guru Limbaugh does and instead of breaking your OxyContin in half – why not just take the whole thing?
Touche’
Or take OxyCotin the liberal way, rub the time lapse outter shell off the OxyContin pill crush it up and smoke it on a piece of tin foil.
Mono County is in a out-of-control downward spiral.
I see the Limbaugh-worshippers have found their way onto this otherwise thoughtful blog.
Now, start counting how many times the word liberal pops up.
Your accusations are completely wrong. I have never listened to Limbaugh.
You spew a lot of stuff much of which is complete bs.
re: Mark
(Loud guffaws)
I know. I know …NOBODY listens to Limbaugh.
(More loud laughter)
Some just like using the word liberal (the demonized Limbaugh version of the word) every chance they get as “the last word.”
(Uncontrollable laughter)
Don’t ya love it when people like JeanGenie shout thinking they are making a profound point?
Kind of like watching a teaparty meeting.
It makes these types seem so … I don’t know … out of control.
Believe me JeanGenie – those glued to the talk-radio freaks who believe all they have to do is throw in the word liberal (the demonized definition) as the last word in any debated subject today (its all the neocons do) are fully entitled to being felt sorry for.
Sorry,
WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?
we are aware of what lawp is doing….the water trail literally starts about 2 miles from where i live at Reverse creek, Waugh,Gem Agnew and Grant Lakes. I think we are more aware of it than most socal residents. Once again we are not a bunch of bumpkins . I do know one thing, when LA calls for water use reductions we use as much as we want.
I hope you did not think that I was suggesting that anyone up there are “country bumpkins”. Because I was not. I have studied and read many books about the LADWP and I know very well that from the day Fred Eaton rode into Long Valley that the whole place was doomed. I even have had the unpleasant situation of personally knowing a Lippincott. The next book I beleive should be read is by Father Crowley. With respect to you and all the upper and lower valley residents I envy your part of the world. Thanks
I would very much like to supplement my last observation. and then I will shut up. Mammoth has always been a “beer and pizza town”. Thanks good ness.My first visit was the legendary winter season of 1968. But the vision of the ski resort has been very proprietary and closed minded since the Mccoy family departed. The village was a huge disappointment. Except for the gondola, rental ticket center, Starbucks and the elavator. How much fun would it have been to have a in and out burge, a Wahoo’s , a beer garden ,in door out door bar and a swim in and out lobby pool with swim up bar? Well, what everyone got was a gondola that shuts down after Easter, a sex shop and a bunch of empty retail locations. And I never meant to include June lakes as being anything like Encino. What a cool town! Most everyone down here is completly unaware of the horrible things that the LADWP has done and continue to do up there. But, some people remember. It’s been tough for us all. We are lucky to have a place called Mammoth to run to. Good luck to you all. You have always been nice to me and my family. GC
re: beach family
“Mammoth has always been a ‘beer and pizza town’ ”
I disagree.
There are more choices in Mammoth than that. Especially as the economy turns more and more sour, money dries up, and those that do have money want many more amenities than beer and pizza. The ski resort does not have the luxury of prohibiting snowboarders (as Park City’s Deer Valley) thus attracting a demographic that dines at McDonald’s, sleeps 8 to a room, and whose idea of culture is getting wasted at any nearby bar and throwing up in the streets afterwards. What does it care? It still sells lift tickets.
Steps are being taken to change the redneck and tattoo perception of Mammoth that the poster above makes note of. Though Mammoth may never be a Vail, or Park City, it can definitely head in the very wise direction and market to those who still have money.
You can’t rely on those from the south who have been coming here for years. Any business must change with the times and branch out.
I think what ‘beach family’ is saying, is that Mammoth, in the beginning, had been an affordable attraction – you came and skied, and was able to find affordable, good grub to make it worthwhile….it WAS the ultimate destination!
The town however, has disallowed, or rather, overpriced anything marketable to appear…..God knows that Vons doesn’t want any competion – nor does any other well established entity in town. Between McDonalds, Carl’s Jr. and Subway, what other choices are there? Any one else has to charge $10 for a sandwhich just to meet their bottom line and, then maybe, they may be able to pay an employee or two for a few hours of work!
Beach family is right in their observation! Every one was sucked in for an overpriced (have you noticed that?) Starbucks, and an elevator! (somebody must care) and the great gondola that only runs 4 – 5 months out of the year….
Sad to say, but it is obvious that Mammoth – as a town, a destination and a ski area, has priced themselves out of a market that they cannot afford to lose.
Hello? Hello? This is Romeo….calling from a jackpot telephone….
On the eve of the death of Councilman Skip Harvey who also owned and
operated Base Camp Cafe, we would suggest you try a sandwich there.
You will feel at home, it will taste good and won’t cost a bloody fortune.
Benett Kessler
I say YEAH Beach family, since my voter button doesn’t work!
@ beach family
Thank you for your brutally honest observation.
Mammoth indeed looks like an Encino strip mall.
This is what happens when the town council sucks up to developers. In fact, the current mayor of Mammoth IS a developer.
Take the money and run is the name of the game.
I have never met Rusty Gregory. But he has a summer home about a block from here. I don’t know if he realizes it or not but two of his neighbors that were born and raised here in beach cottages have had to walk away from the homes that they were raised in. They were both in their 70s. It was too sad to ask where they moved to. And I will tell you Mr. Gregory’s house is very nice but not all that well taken care of. I don’t have any answers for you or him, but I have some suggestions. A long time ago Walt Disney was interested in developing a ski resort in the Eastern Sierras called “Silver King’, a documentary was done on it by PBS. I am not sure that there are answers there but it raises questions . You have the venue, the snowfall and the legend. Your town looks more like an Encino strip mall than Park City. The mountain and the 400” plus of snow fall have not failed you very often. RG is not driving around here in a Bentley like all the other residents. I think that your towns have to look beyond the money people and cash in on your built in equity. It’s a fabulous place.My favorite area All that built in equity and no foundation for the good people that make it all happen for us.Just like the two old hippie guys that walked away from Balboa Island and their homes after so many summers. Summers end winter begins..heart and that they deserve everyones
I’m familiar with Disney’s plans to build a ski resort in the Mineral King valley of Sequoia in the 60’s. Mineral King is out of Visalia, on the western slope and at the time was in Sequoia National Forest. Disney planned on building a world class ski resort and spent years studying it. A major problem was access since there was, and still is, a very difficult, two lane road through a steep canyon. The Sierra Club sued Disney and the plans for the project came to an end when the Sequoia National Forest was turned over the Sequoia National Park in the late 70’s or early 80’s. That put the final nail into the coffin of Disney’s ski resort.
Thanks for that! The documentary that I saw was a half of a lifetime ago. I remember that they wanted to build a rail system or train to get people in and out. Your the only person that has ever heard of this. Thanks GC
“I will tell you Mr. Gregory’s house is very nice but not all that well taken care of.”
He is a busy guy…Now tell us does his wife or Rusty own that home…?
I don’t know who own’s the home. And it’s really none of my business. And I hope he’s busy.
re: beach family
“Mr. Gregory’s house is very nice but not all that well taken care of”
That’s funny … Mr. Gregory always speaks highly of beach family’s house.
I think you mis understood what I was trying to get across Mr. or Mrs. Kettle.But that’s ok. I was saying that when you take into consideration all of the drastic and painful lay offs at MMS and June Mountain that the CEO is living a fairly modest lifestyle here. I think it’s healthy and grounded not to live in an area where the only cars that are beat up are the gardeners and the people that work at some of the local businesses. Porches and Bentleys are like the VW bug of the 60s and 70s here. And they can’t scrape down the old houses here and build double lot, zero lot line cookie cuter homes fast enough. I guess the grass is always greener someplace else. Thanks, Beach Family
We are paying customers of both June and Mammoth who live in Southern California and have been patrons of both mountains since the early 90’s. We generally spend time at June or Mammoth 3-4 weekends a month during the winter and once a month during the summer and fall. We took off work and drove up to the town meeting because we love the town, the people and the mountain.
We sat, listened and processed everything we heard. We agree that a short and long term vision is required. If the “vision” was required, why wasn’t this completed years ago? We don’t agree with how Rusty has gone about shutting down the mountain, demanding a “vision” and then having the nerve to ask for money to support air service in front of a town for which he is to blame for what has transpired and what will happen should June not re-open (tisk tisk tisk).
Rusty should have been working with the appropriate stakeholders to create these visions starting back in 2006 until the visions were COMPLETE and APPROVED by the stakeholders. Dropping a ball this big as a CEO (who is supposed to be a leader) is negligent.
One of the things we noticed is that Rusty turned to the town to create the vision. Did Rusty create the vision for Mammoth? Just curious. If so, it blows. What is missing in creating the vision for June is the VOICE OF THE CUSTOMER. A business that creates a short and long term vision which excludes the input and/or validation by the customer will have a higher probability of failure. Just because Rusty has a “vision” does not mean that it is the same vision of the very customers he is trying to attract and RETAIN (can you say Mammoth)! Just because the town of June comes up with a vision does not mean that it is the same vision that the current and prospective (new) customers of June have.
It is one thing to attract out of state upscale clients who may or may not return say once per year (doubtful). It is another to abandon THOUSANDS of loyal customers from Southern California. That is what is happening. People down here quite frankly aren’t happy and they are starting to spend their vacation dollars locally and/or out of state.
Remember: It is one thing to attract a new customer that visits your business only once. It is another to attract a customer that becomes LOYAL to your business.
Concerning air service, the selected vendor of Alaska Air has a HORRIBLE record for on time service, flight cancellation and customer satisfaction. Flight service is not reliable. We wonder what the passenger loads are like. We tried flying once and the flight was cancelled. We have heard that the plans are under half capacity. We have had better luck flying into Aspen.
June= Good entertainment value for the money
Mammoth= Mediocre entertainment value for the money
If we have to hear or read the words “beds”, “destination” and/or “air service” one more time we are going to puke.
Pull it together and get back to basics!
It’s MMSA’s fault, no, it’s all Rusty and his cronies’ fault, no, it’s June Lake’s fault, no it’s hippies fault… What!?! How about the economy for starters? I know we would all love to think that the fate of June rests within some local jurisdiction, but we’re in a major national -if not worldwide- recession here. And from the looks of things, it’s one that isn’t going to be over for quite some time.
June has been our cherished little ‘locals’ mountain, and has served as an ‘overflow’ resort for season pass holders during the busier times of the year, but can it really stand on its own has a destination resort? The people and their dollars have said “NO!” -Especially in lean times. Now I’m not coming to the defense of MMSA, since it seems they could learn a thing or two about capitol budgeting (personally, I wouldn’t let them finance hot dog cart); however, I do believe they know how to OPERATE a ski resort. If MMSA cannot squeeze a profit out of June in these hard times, I sincerely doubt that a local coalition or even an out-of-town operation can.
Chet,
Maybe the problem is trying to make June a destination resort, why not try to make it a local’s mountain, a skiers and riders (not rich people’s) place. Not every ski mountain is a destination resort, but lots of them run merrily along without all the glitz and glamour because people like to have fun in the snow.
Here’s something that I haven’t heard anyone mention. There is a such thing as a municipally (publicly) owned Ski area: Chapman Hill, La Plata, Colorado. Cannon, Sunapee, Gunstock, McIntosh all in New Hampshire. Blue Hills, MA. Juneau, Alaska. Dartmouth College owns Dartmouth Skiway. Ski Cooper was run for 20 years by an all volunteer board and took NO tax money to operate, and is rustic like June Lake.
I’m sure there are more, I just did a quick search.
I love the people who think Rusty Gregory has done all he can to keep the mountain open. MMSA is owned by investors. What should that tell you? Investors are long for a return on their money they aren’t interested in the people. Those who would give me a thumbs down stand behind Rusty Gregory and his shenanigans and approve of his miss management of both mountains. June Mountain is just the scape goat for MMSA’s complainant business practices. Don’t be fooled but this charlatan.
i think the june june lake community needs to rip the bandaid off all at once. sounds to me like mammoth mt is out, time to start looking for a new owner operater. finding one with june mt’s limited customer base may be difficult but this is america and if theres profit to be made someone will step up. maybe the chinese i hear they like to invest in america.
It is true that a very vocal minority in June Lake was adamantly opposed to the Rodeo Grounds project, most of the rest of us sincerely want development but also want it to be sustainable. Consider balancing the three P’s of sustainability: People, Planet, and Prosperity. Just looking at what is happening in Mammoth right now does not reflect that balance.
Well, I just heard the Rodeo Grounds are up for sale. Maybe MMSA can purchase the property on it’s own and get this who;e ball rolling!
If getting a casino were that easy… Would the fine people of Mono County and their politicians support such a venture?
dingo- I can’t believe any one thinks Rusty and he’s corporation were really losing that much. The Dodgers claimed they were broke one day and sold for a billion dollar profit the next day. This is all about them cashing in on their investment at the publics expense.
Unfortunately development provides jobs, it seems SOME of the people of JL will never understand this. It seems SOME of them want their ski area and their town all to themselves. They want tourist dollars but not the tourists.
Can’t have it all folks.
I hate that I agree with Rusty but the dude is right.
Right, development creates jobs. There’s a lot of development in Carson City and Reno. Probably lots of jobs too — except for Nevada’s highest in the nation unemployment rate.
http://www.bls.gov/web/laus/laumstrk.htm/
When you’re right you’re right Ken, even though I disagree with a lot of things you say. Carson City is struggling, even though they have tons of new strip malls etc. , they have no tenants. Just like North Las Vegas, instead of build it and they will come, its build it anyway and let it rot empty.
How about my pet peeve about economy, probably not taught in ECON101: you can’t have infinite development and growth in a finite system, therefore all economic theories are flawed. How about a sustainable economy, based on reality, not the assumption that growth will always take place and is necessary to economic health.
PS: Sometimes I watch Glenn Beck or listen to Rush Limbaugh.Ha
LOL JG .. but yeah high hopes .. sure don’t always work out .. unfortunately, they sure take a lot of folks down with them when they crash and burn.
“Sometimes I watch Glenn Beck or listen to Rush Limbaugh”
I feel so sorry for you.
Dear Easily,
Not as sorry as I feel for you. You are obviously unable to perceive humor or facetiousness, or even sarcasm. Lighten up and get a sense of humor before your liberal little heart has an attack.
You are right JeanGenie. Sustainability and develop for growth is sort of an oxymoron.
I think a good model for small towns is adaptability to maintain equilibrium where the town keeps up with World trends (like internet based businesses) and adapts to new technologies and needs.
Like I always say, the three pillars of a sound economy are Education, Health Care and Renewable energy, You can only invite so many people into your home before your home is no longer Your home which is the tourism based economy and what has happened to Mammoth Lakes.
I am pretty tired of hearing from outsiders about what the people in June Lake want or don’t want. Like any community we are a diverse group with a variety of opinions, but we are not so “backwards” as so many would like to portray. We will welcome more guests to our town, and the need to build more lodging to accomodate them. We would also welcome a ski area operator who cares about our local resort and does not operate in a fashion so as to minimize it, and then blame the town of June Lake for its own shortcomings.
As a “local” I’m no “outsider” as you reference…..I was intimately involved with the “Rodeo Grounds” project and I reviewed the numerous documents generated for the project. The BIGGEST opponents to the project were the locals themselves, the USFS, and the Mono Lake Committee. With the rally cry of “Don’t turn June into Mammoth.” 95% of the comments received on the document were from a small vocal minority of opponents and the remaining 5% came as form opposition letters from the Mono Lake Committees “action center” on their website. You say that “ultimately” June Lake gave the go ahead for the Rodeo Grounds project and that Intrawest left. The reason Intrawest left wasn’t because June Lake gave the go ahead (which is not what CEQA is about), it was because Intrawest had so much opposition they didn’t want to invest millions of dollars in a project that was so controversial to the community. Trust me Ms. Mahogany, the community of June Lake isn’t the only one to blame for this….the USFS has a big burden to bear and so do the skiers, locals as well as tourists.
The exact truth of what-happened-when in terms of approvals and opposition is ultimately irrelevant. June was always a distant priority for the players involved, and it is highly-unlikely that they would have actually pulled the trigger on deploying the capital/loans that would have been necessary to develop the rodeo grounds and upgrade June Mtn’s infrastructure, even if the necessary approvals were more readily obtained.
The “math” of the rodeo grounds just isn’t powerful enough to support the broad-overhaul June Mtn./June Lake would need to attract the type of modern customer who’d potentially be interested in purchasing a (“luxury”) rodeo grounds unit in the first place.
There really isn’t much blame to be laid here. This is really more of just a sign of the times…
Dont Mammoth June had nothing to do with ski areas. It had to do with towns that sell their souls to developers for short term financial gain and then are left to deal with mess after they make their money and leave town. There are 42,000,000 reasons to not Mammoth June
Who wants to go to June when there isn’t high end accommodations?
A defined downtown?
One bar?
The highway as the only route through the community?
Seven SLOW lifts?
Only open until April 15th?
And little advanced ski terrain?
Ten years ago there was a proposal to create a “village” at the intersection of 158 and “North Shore Drive” with a gondola that would speed skiers to the top of the mountain……the residents of June Lake and the Mono Lake Committee fought tooth and nail to scuttle the project. Looks like this is a perfect example of someone shooting themselves in the foot.
Bang!!!!
You are misinformed: the people of the community of June Lake ultimately approved and gave the go-ahead for the “Rodeo Grounds” development, but the developer (Intrawest) backed out of the deal
Mr Local: how wrong you are!
3 bars 2 high speed lifts…UNBELIEVABLE back country access[some of the best in the country]….face runs into town.all kinds of expert terrain with that….you just dont know where to find it..more of a DOWN TOWN than Mammoth
Unlike Mammoth our powder stashes stick around for days if not weeks not hours…
You haven’t spent enough time here to call yourself a ‘local’
those who know don’t .tell
those who tell don’t know…
The times-they-are-a-changin.
Offer the publlc (ski crowd) something worthwhile and maybe they’ll be interested.
You need more than mediocre slopes and the Tiger Bar to attract the money that is still out there.
Build it and they will come.
Drop the sour grapes. June has resisted anything resembling change and it has now come back to haunt you.
This is nonsense. It is not the people of June Lake who have held back development… Reference: the area plan which was written with local input and adopted by the county in 1991. Development has been called for! Mammoth Mountain has refused to provide anything to its sister resort and also shaped public opinion in Mammoth Lakes to portray June Lake residents as unintelligent bumpkins.
“The times-they-are-a-changin.”
You got that right Just look around (Reap) Open your eyes.
Things are NOT getting better and will get worse until mammoth gets rid of the GREED within the town and the Mountain.
GGW
you reap what you sow…….Yeah,but,when you look back to the 80’s,Mammoth WANTED all that change and development….remember ?….So it goes BOTH ways……with those in Mammoth Lakes that wanted to try to develop into the “West Coast” Aspen or Vail,that too has come back to haunt them…..
Slots and Slopes.
Skiing and Casinos.
But the people of June don’t want to even consider it.
So ….
One option,
The gambling option….. It sure seems to help our neighbors up north.
There are only two things Rusty cares about: air service and the Mammoth Mountain land exchange. He could care less about June, other than to hold on to it as a leverage point he can use against people to get what he wants on his priorities, as he did last night with air service and the Board of Supervisors. It was a pretty unbelievable show last night, especially how rude he was to the Board of Supervisors.
I think Rusty is doing what he has to do and I’m pretty sure all of us here would be forced to do it the same way if we were in his shoes. He can’t continue to bleed the company to make a few folks happy! At the end of the day he has to do what he has to do. Is it a good situation? Not at all!!!! But that’s the way it is.
Rusty was Rude??
No Way…
MMGW
SOOOOOO WEIRD! Rusty is an employee of a company and he was defending it? and “rude” to the people that have been making his life a pain in the ass? who woulda thunk?
mammothgal,
I’m pretty sure if you had to make the decisions Rusty had to make you would be right there with him. The Mountain isn’t a charity! It has to earn an income and a big one. That’s the way it is!! If this was another operator they would have to make choices based on profit and loss as every sustainable business does…. Econ 101.
SierraFan, Too bad you never got past Econ 101, its a little more complicated then that, but then you sound like a teacher, and we all know those who can do, and those who can’t teach!
JeanGeanie,
Nice try! I’m not a teacher. Thanks for the compliment though. I’ve been a business person for 30 years now both working for corporate and being a business owner. So Econ101 is what I do.
I understand that the people of June Lake are upset but they are stupid if they think it is a good business practice to run a business at a loss year after year. If they want the mountain open so bad, they should pool all of their money together and try to buy the mountain and if they do they will realize that it is a lot harder to manage it and make money than they will ever realize!
The slogan “Don’t Mammoth June” is what got the townspeople in this problem. June Lake has no infrastructure to sustain a Ski Area. There is no higher end hotels. Skiing is an expensive sport and draws a higher clientele and the town has no higher end amenities to cater to them.
If I had to make the decision, I would keep June Mountain closed until it and the town could be configured to allow a profit to be made.
Dont Mammoth June has nothing to do w/ ski areas…Its a term that was coined when we saw what was happening to Mammoth Lakes. Once again, June Lake approved the rodeo grounds development. We elected a supervisor who’s platform was the developement and getting it started……economic times are what killed the project. Perhaps an econ 101 lesson should be in store for anyone who cant understand how markets work.
TOML sold their soul for short term money gain by letting bankers and developers dictate and arm twist to meet their greedy needs….and now what happening…..a 42 million dollar judgement for the greed….was it worth it?
Lets say it together….DONT MAMMOTH JUNE
Don’t buy into the bs. The miss management of June and Mammoth is much bigger than you know. Rusty Gregory has no business running the business of either mountain. He is a failure through and through.
That big badass house in the Bluffs, that I couldn’t afford to heat, looks like success to me.
Andrea,
So what you’re saying is that Rusty is why skier visits were down? Why skiers don’t flock to June Mountain where they have very few options to sleep and mingle? Why the economy tanked when it did or that it just tanked? Pretty bold saying the things you’re saying about something you know nothing about. Maybe you might think about asking Rusty for his job because you know better.
SierraFan
If you read my post why are you asking me twice what I said? Do you have a problem comprehending what you read? Rusty is the CEO of the mountain yes he shoulders the responsibility as CEO of MMSA hence the Forestry is Audit MMSA financials. Anyone who runs a seasonal business surely prepare for bad seasons and saves when the season is GOLDEN as it was in 2010. It’s called a prudent reserve. If you really think Rusty and clan have the best interest in June mountain and they people then he would have been upfront about what he was doing would he? If you want to believe this Charleston that is up to you. Its kind of what you do as a CEO run the business. And if you are a patron who has spent a lot of money on season passes I have the right to question that.
I agree with Andrea, I just realized that Rusty keeps saying that the banks are telling him what to do, including close June. Once your creditors are allowed to control your business, that means you are in or close to bankruptcy.
The bankruptcy of MMSA is next– I hope– come on Vail Associates.
don’t be stupid….the usfs won’t enter into a permit with ‘a group of people who pool their money together’ to run a ski area…they need to be meeting with other ski resort operator’s to see if one is interested in taking over June Mtn…that’s the only possible solution here, other then MMSA deciding to change their mind..
Sierragrl,
True to all but I’m not sure there’s anyone willing to take over a mountain that’s the sidekick to Mammoth. If Mammoth its self were willing to sell then I think June would have half a chance as long as the economy suggested that building a June Lake Village and housing would be beneficial. It would all have to make financial sense and I’m not sure if it would at this point. We do a pretty good job for getting what we get here considering how far we are from LA (comparing to Tahoe that is much closer to heavy population, has way more to do locally and has a real airport close by).
i have head the term ” Don’t Mammoth June” over and over and over. When Mammoth pulled out of June, the towns is in an uproar. Rusty is doing what he can with a failing business. Since the town still doesn’t want to make June Mountain appealing to crowds, the town is going to suffer. It is what it is. Mammoth has tried and tried to make changes that the town doesn’t want. Stop blaming Rusty and blame Vikki Bauer and June Lake community.
The meeting was surreal. Hard to imagine tough times and how it affects everyone but the meeting reflected that harsh reality. People got to vent but one could feel the capitalism in the air. Don’t take it personally – its only business was the surface message. But underneath it was “blah, blah, blah AIR SERVICE … blah, blah, blah, AIR SERVICE … all night long from Gregory. Only one district would benefit from air service and even that district supervisor balked at the notion of The People paying for empty seats – as he should. I did note how often Gregory mentioned “His partners.” Way more than the mention of the good people in that room. As if we are to be empathetic to he and his partners’ angst.
Hard to feel too sorry for those whose idea of paring down would be to sell a yacht or Lamborghini.
How rich is this? MMSA has to close June because it isn’t viable – and the USFS says that’s OK since we can’t make you run a non-profitable resort. But we can use it as pretext to dig the greedy hand of government deeper into the private sector’s pockets through notices of non-compliance, i.e., fines.
So tell us Armenta, that money you’re sucking out of MMSA – how is that supposed to help MMSA stop further job cuts? And are you going to give it to June – or keep it for your agency? If you keep it for your agency, do you plan to hire some out-of-work locals with the new-found cash you leached? Or just send it back to the gaping maw in Washington?
I would expect the end result of Armenta’s comments to be the termination of the permit with MMSA….a necessary step in finding someone else to take it over. I haven’t read the permit language, but I doubt there is a monetary penalty to USFS.