Wintergreen is economic engine for Nelson County

Wintergreen is economic engine for Nelson County

By Katrina Koerting

Nelson County Times

Wintergreen Resort turned on its snow machines last week to begin making snow for the ski season and by Saturday, four slopes were open.

“It’s projected to be a cold, dry season, which is great for us to make snow and to make a great product for our guests,” said Dana Quillen, the vice president of sales and marketing at the resort, Nelson County’s largest employer.

 “If it stays dry, then we can guarantee a great ski experience.”

Last year’s season began on Dec. 12, four days earlier than this year’s start date. The tubing park will open on Saturday, Dec. 17.

The start of the ski season also means more jobs available in Nelson County and an increase in tourism.

Wintergreen has a full-time staff of 350 employees, half of whom are from Nelson.

During the ski season, the staff size increases to more than 1,000 to handle the extra visitors. About 50 percent of the employees are from Nelson, 15 percent are international students from South American countries and 35 percent are from surrounding areas like Charlottesville and Augusta County, Quillen said.

The biggest employment area at the resort is mountain operations which includes ski patrol, snow sport instructors, lift operators and the rental shop.

Wintergreen not only provides jobs for people in the county, it also brings about 200,000 people into Nelson each ski season, which lasts from mid-December to mid-March.

About 25 percent of the visitors come from northern Virginia, 25 percent from Richmond, 20 percent from Virginia Beach and 20 percent from local areas like Nelson and Charlottesville. The remaining 5 percent come from places in North Carolina, like Raleigh and Durham, she said.

The busiest days are Saturdays with between 3,000 and 5,000 visitors throughout the day. Monday is the least busy with between 500 and 800 visitors, said Quillen.

She said it’s  hard to determine the percentage of visitors who come for only a day and the percentage of those who stay in the area because not everyone will stay with the resort. She said she estimates that it’s a 50/50 mix among the guests.

In November, Quillen spearheaded an effort that led to the governor of Virginia to declare January “Learn a snow sport” month. However, Quillen said she doesn’t expect it to affect their numbers.

Last year the resort accounted for about 40 percent of the real estate taxes in the county and 35 percent of the meal and lodging taxes, said Maureen Kelley, the director if economic development and tourism for Nelson.

Wintergreen was founded in 1976 and spans 11,000 acres. It has 26 slopes. About 3,000 people live there, about 800 living full-time either on the mountain or by the lake.

It is the only ski resort on the East Coast that covers 100 percent of its terrain with manufactured snow, according to its website.

The snow is made using Wintergreen’s York snow making system, which uses weather sensors, a network of air, water and computer cables underground and 400 snow guns. A central computer uses the data from the weather sensors on the slopes to determine the ratio of compressed air to water needed to make snow. Less water is needed in the mix in drier conditions.

The snow machines are often run at night, since the temperature needs to be 32 degrees or below to make the snow. It is usually made once the slopes close around 10 p.m. until 5 a.m. with a night crew manning the machine.

The week before the ski season opens, the crew will start later, around 1 a.m., to make the snow. It takes about a week to cover the mountain in snow so the season can start, said Quillen.

If the weather is really dry, the machines can cover a football field with 37 feet of snow in 24 hours, according to the website.

Between 150 million and 200 million gallons of water from Lake Monacan is used each ski season to make the snow. Most of the water will run back to the reservoirs through the watershed, said Quillen.