Catskill Center Submits Comment Letter on Belleayre Mountain Draft Amendment

The Catskill Center recently submitted a comment letter to the New York State Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) on the Draft Amendment to the 2015 Belleayre Mountain Ski Center Unit Management Plan.

The Catskill Center supports the 11 management actions proposed in the Draft Amendment as necessary and important improvements for the Ski Center to remain an attractive recreation destination year round. Such improvements should result in a robust Belleayre Ski Center that will serve as a regional hub for outdoor recreational tourism.

“The Belleayre Mountain Ski Center represents one of the major economic drivers of the Central Catskills region. We support upgrades and improvements that ensure Belleayre attracts visitors to our region year round,” said Jeff Senterman, Executive Director of the Catskill Center. “By increasing opportunities for year-round recreation, Belleayre can be part of the long-term solution to addressing high use in the Catskills. We look forward to working with ORDA to ensure these opportunities are expanded, while environmental resources are protected.”

While the Catskill Center strongly supports the development of hiking and mountain biking trails that connect to the Shandaken Wild Forest and the developing Ulster County Rail Trail, we underscore the critical need for utmost care in guarding against erosion and other degradation of natural resources.

Similarly, we call for the same care applied to the proposed trail-widening in tandem with the creation of a ski trail loop.

Finally, we wholeheartedly support Belleayre’s proposal for the installation of electric vehicle charging stations. In fact, we’d like to see the proposal add more such stations.

Our comment letter.