Homewood Resort to Remain Open to Public
For years, Homewood Mountain Resort developers have struggled to compete with other local ski resorts like Northstar California and Palisades Tahoe. Traffic issues surrounding Homewood and the popularity of the Ikon and Epic Passes at other resorts had reduced visitors 40% since 2011.
Opened in 1962, Homewood Mountain Resort has remained a popular resort for beginning skiers and families. Its views of Lake Tahoe are unmatched by any other ski resort. The trails meander through the forest, offering breathtaking views of the lake.
Homewood Mountain Resort Master Plan
In 2011, they developed a Master Plan for redevelopment, in an effort to modernize the resort. They had planned to add a hotel, mid-mountain lodge, and to replace some of their lifts. Additionally, they aimed to build in a style that maintained the feel of Old Tahoe architecture.
Their vision was stated as:
- Restore Homewood as the community center of the west shore of Lake Tahoe.
- Preserve the character of Homewood by developing new facilities that reflect the existing architectural quality and scale of the community.
- Preserve HMR reputation as a small, no-crowds-on-the-slopes, family friendly enclave that can be enjoyed equally by local residents and visitors alike.
While little has been done to begin the improvements at Homewood, Palisades Tahoe and Northstar have made many renovations. Currently, they have only one high-speed chairlift.
Once the plan was approved, they switched direction and made statements that they wanted to eliminate access to commuter skiers that didn’t own real estate around the area.
Keep Homewood Public
Pushback by Tahoe residents was relentless. Keep Homewood Public, is an organization of community members behind the ongoing resistance to the proposed private resort model. They felt that denying public access diverged from the approved 2011 Homewood Master Plan. They also cited how building with mountain modern architecture was different from the ‘classic Old Tahoe’ lodge style in the plan.
Keep Home Public’s Statement:
“Our advocacy also elicited a surprising response from Homewood partner Discovery Land Company. Last week, Discovery representatives met with several West Shore community members, including KHP representatives, to learn the community’s wishes for the project. (Notably, JMA did not participate in the meetings.) Your West Shore neighbors all relayed the same message: We want what was promised in the Master Plan. As a result of these meetings, we expect Discovery to have a stronger hand in crafting the developers’ upcoming proposal to TRPA.”
At a community meeting on November 7, 2023, the developers announced that they’ve abandoned plans to make Homewood Ski Resort into a private and members-only ski resort. Homewood staff announced that they would continue to offer daily lift ticket sales to the public.
Their statement:
“Homewood Mountain Resort has been part of the West Shore and Lake Tahoe business community for over 60 years. We understand the significance the mountain has in the region as it is our home. The Homewood Mountain Resort redevelopment project continues to conform to the approved master plan and does not privatize the mountain. The plan will deliver significant environmental benefits to the Tahoe Basin and will continue to support community access to the mountain during all seasons.”
Homewood still plans to sell lifetime memberships to a ‘private club’ that offers mountain access, but will not eliminate season passes, daily lift-tickets and public access to the mountain.
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