A good proportion of the building/design requirements over the years have actually come from the NPWS rather than KT. These have changed over time. In the 1960’s and 70’s timber was ok and a lot of large buildings were built and clad with it - like Silver Brumby and the Thredbo Alpine Hotel. In the 1980’s they were very strict on fire safety and most everything had to be largely built with masonry and concrete. You also had to have a certain proportion of granite stonework - which was mostly just stuck over masonry. The stone all came for free from a huge dump of debris (at Island Bend I think) left over from the Snowy Scheme tunnels. In the 1990’s they again allowed cladding board materials which are very popular as they are cheaper than masonry and can make attractive durable walls. Since the 1980’s at least there has also been a limited palette of fairly neutral colours that you are allowed to use. This seems to have been relaxed a little in the last few years.
My fam had a couple of places at Dinner Plain from very early on and it’s where I spent my winters as a child (80’s-90’s) so I have a verrrry soft spot for the Dinner Plain architecture and it’s village surrounded by snow gums. Our main place had whole raw gum trunks as support beams through the place, it gave it such a magical, uniquely Australian feel. For that reason I quite like the same/same areas of Thredbo- as someone that enjoys the restaurants and bars in Thredbo I just wish they were closer to the village centre though.
Novotel sold Lake Crackenback to a local developer around 20 years ago. He then sold part of the land for individual homes to be built... I don't know about the strata setups. But I know several people who built there. Again, similar to Crackenback Ridge, all have stuck to a defined architectural style while all being unique. It's a lovely spot.
Yep, all good points although I will point out that most of the original bessar brick buildings were built in the 70s, and the rendered stuff in the 80s. Our bessar lodge is 1974, got a photo of my parents outside the brand new Mowamba around '76.
Interview with Stuart Diver which outlines Thredbo's future development + time frame. "we're looking at a lift replacement plan over the next five to eight years, replacing all of our major lifts, as well as all of the major buildings, on-mountain restaurants, Friday Flat, Thredboland, all of those buildings as well"
Well I can certainly see them expanding things that will generate extra revenue like cafes and Threboland for the kiddies. But I doubt replacing all the lifts in the next few years will earn them extra money, so I'm dubious about the owners forking about big bucks to replace all major lifts... unless the 26 year long lift building drought means that all the chairlifts are so ancient and clapped out that they are nearing the end of their economical lives.
Was going to say... especially with one of the major lifts having lost chairs, including once with a passenger on board, and no real published understanding of why ('freak gust').
None of their current lifts comply with the Australian standards, so after the Dreamworld fiasco I can see they could be very nervous. It may not be economics driving the replacements.
I'd imagine it's out of necessity for the Gunbarrel as it is unsafe. For all the other lifts, it would be economics. There's the capacity issue. During normal winter and seasons, the Kosi runs every chair loaded at full pelt (2400-2800pph) and still has long queues. It gets far worse during windhold. More capacity means more lift tickets sold, summer and winter. Less windhold means less refunds. New lifts means lower maintenance costs. I also imagine Thredbo would be pushing for the NSW govt to widen the Alpine Way as part of the Go Jindabyne project
to be honest kosi runs with a queue for about 3-4hrs/day on weekends in peak season. Most of the time its ski straight on.
If you only skied school holidays and/or weekends and called it by lunch each day, you’d THINK there was always a queue
We can dream. Staying warm and dry, disembarking onto a covered walkway rather than being spat off onto wind scoured ice.... however the thing that makes it sometimes unpleasant would also mean a gondola cabin is maybe not the best option.
The road upgrade will be very welcome. Folks from Vic would love to have easier access to ‘skiable’ snow.
Weekends and peak season are the most profitable times in Winter. They're also times where KT can expand. More families, more day trippers. If there's a way to put more bums in seats and sell more hot chocs, KT will want to do it
I have a friend who has lived in Sasha's Apartments for years. I had a dream yesterday morning that I was walking down the hill and she was out on the front verandah. We started chatting about the Black Bear upgrade next door. She showed me a betting list inside the foyer of Sasha's' residents betting when it would be completed. My favourite bet was "not before St Kilda win their next grand final". Typical dream, so random!
the mexicans are no longer welcome north of the border. This is a measure that should remain in place
A couple of years ago I was talking to one of the Perisher managers and he said because the Oz lift infrastructure is so so small, we have adapted the Canadian standards as our standards, so they are the ones we must adhere to. At that time, there were only 2 lifts in Australia that were up to standard, Freedom at Guthega and Arthur's Seat at Mornington Peninsular (How ironic). Since then you can add Leichardt and Merrits, plus any that have been built in Vic since then. Some of the standards not met are insignificant, such as backup comms ccts etc, so it is not necessary to modify them. The problem the resorts have is that they come under the same WHS legislation as the Dreamworld ride, which was over 30 years old and not up to current standards, and look at the world of hurt they are in. How many Australian lifts are under 30?
Well most of Buller's chairlifts are well under 30 years old, less so at the other major resorts with Hotham and Thredbo being especially guilty of having geriatric lift networks. You mean that lifts newer than "Freedom" (I tend to find myself shouting that word in an American accent) such as Falls Creek's Leitner-Poma detachable quad and the newest Dopp six pack at Buller aren't up to Canadian standards? I really doubt that the worlds two biggest lift companies would install sub-standard chairlifts in a first world country.
I didn't say they are sub standard, I said the only 2 lifts in Australia that were up to standard when I was talking to him were up to standard, but there were some built since then such as the NSW lifts that I know about but there could be some in Victoria that I don't know about. I'm well aware they would have been built to standard or they wouldn't be running.
Is this something that's currently got some local momentum? As an aside, it would be very challenging, the corridor is only 20m either side of the centreline (or to top or bottom of batter, whichever is larger), so moving beyond this would require amendment to the NP boundaries through Parliament. This does happen, but it is, at the very most, only really done once a year, often much much less.
At least double the road to the ski tube, that would deal with most of the traffic issues in a normal season.
Actually, I'm a Fitzroy supporter, but since they were done over by the AFL establishment, I find myself following the three battler teams that don't get the big money and support that other teams get. So I wish North, St Kilda and Melbourne all the best in a half hearted, heart broken way.
Yes that's my point, it's an achievable goal. Any days when I've had queues on that road its been due to a conga line going up to the ski tube, all the 2wd cars putting chain on at penderlea (as well as some of the more nervous 4wd owners) and a massive bottleneck on the way back after the merge from ski tube.
any changes are unlikely to see a change at Penderlea - it's already 2 lanes. Anything is achievable with funding and money but... hmmm. I can't ever recall a bottleneck after the eastbound merge at skitube. From the intersection with the Kosci Rd yes, or westbound in summer when the through lane isn't open, but at Skitube e/b no recollection at all. Given NSW is only now embarking on changing roads such as the Princes Highway south and Picton Rd beyond 1+1 or 1+2, I can't see that Alpine Way would be on a list at the moment.... but hey, election commitments happen.
Don't forget the Doggies! The team I actually love. I just don't want to be seen as a bandwagon jumper. Though living in Yarraville for 11 years really should be enough to stand up for what I believe in right?!
Is that the same as the new Aspen with the international airport and high speed rail that had its route cleared with directed energy weapons that caused the bushfires? Or is it the reason all the Australian saving brumbies that all deserve VCs (and I mean feral horses not the rugby team) are to be eradicated ?
Careful, Dan Andrews will fight you over that Aspen airport, don't you know he's planning out a whole new ski resort so that he can sell it to the Chinese Communist Party?
Really? Cool. We could do with another well funded ski resort in Victoria. If the owner can't be a benevolent and indulgent billionaire (waves to Buller), then I don't really care who owns it, the Chinese probably won't be any worse than the Septic Tanks (waves to Falls and Hotham). Any idea where this shiny new ski resort will be? Feathertop, Mt Howitt, Spion Kopje, Cairn Gully on Bogong... there are so many possibilities!
So does anyone have an update on whether Merritts restaurant or Thredboland redevelopment will happen this summer? I'm guessing they won't but it would be handy to have the extra capacity for food and kids Oh and Merritts gondola cost $15m according to this: https://snowymagazine.com.au/2020/06/18/the-new-thredbo-merritts-gondola/#:~:text=Meet the new $15 million,only alpine gondola in Australia.
I would like to think Merritts restaurant and Thredboland would be quite down the list below VT & Snowgums which are in desperate need of upgrade, as opposed to upgrading something that is newer and generally working pretty well (Merritts was refurbed by Sonia & Co and toilets have been ungraded as well making it all workable and comfortable for the near future). And Thredboland is around 30-35 years old, and spacious. Unlike pokey very old VT.
Much more likely. Beyond that it is a very constrained corridor with major hurdles to overcome and comparatively very few problems with capacity constraints. I struggle to see it being a priority, there are much bigger transport fish to fry between Jindabyne and the resorts.
I believe they have been put back 12 months. I’ve said before KT’s parent company are at the heart of ground zero in Victoria and are being splashed across every news article in the country. They are taking a big hit and I have a gut feeling will be ripe for sale.
always enjoy your insights zac and agree completely. IMO - as a skiier and from the outside looking in - thredbo seem to have needed more professional and competent management for a long time. seems like there'd be some decent efficiencies to be found. 'who you know' in senior staffing decisions, apparent ad hoc decision making, decisions not communicated to frontline staff who sometimes dont know whats going on until after it's happened or after rumours get out. theyve gotten away with it because its not too difficult to make money when youre one of only two big resorts in nsw with a big group of rusted on. just need to compare how thredbo's run with the well oiled machine that is perisher.
I think one of the issues I’ve seen in the past is people’s wants are getting out there as what is going to happen. In many cases they are just idea’s and possibles not actual’s. kt’s lack of investment really hurt them this year, and in reality have placed them in a hard space as investment needs to be done at a time cash flow is down. I think a company more in tune with resort management may have made different decisions when it comes to maintenance and replacement strategies. As for the local management to be fair, I don’t think they do that bad a job; I do think the previous board made some very poor decisions and they are paying for it now. Locally they needed a lot more support than what they got.
