LACKAWAXEN, PA — The ski operations at Masthope Mountain Community (MMC) will continue on under new ownership, as community members will once again own and run the slopes themselves. 

The ski buisness—currently named Ski Big Bear at Masthope Mountain—has been owned and operated by Recreation Management Corporation (RMC) since 1993 through a contract with MMC property owners association. The contract expired this year in April. 

While MMC attempted to negotiate a renewed contract, it could not come to terms or find another ski operator to take it over, and ultimately entered into an agreement with RMC to assume operations. 

According to FAQ documents hosted at masthope.org, the sticking point was the access MMC property owners had to skiing at Masthope Mountain. RMC and other interested operators all wanted to change the current access model, making it less favorable to property owners; the MMC board believed it important to keep that model in place. 

According to a presentation hosted at masthope.org, in exchange for the ski business and all of its tangible assets MMC will pay RMC $1.8 million between 2025 and 2028, and will pay in addition a percentage of the profits from Ski Big Bear to RMC from 2025 to 2030, with the percentage decreasing over time. 

The tangible assets of the ski business acquired by MMC include rental equipment and heavy machinery. MMC already owns much of the infrastructure on the mountain, including ski lifts and snow making pumps, so does not need to purchase those as part of the deal. 

As part of the agreement, RMC will work with MMC over a three-year period to instruct MMC on how to operate the business and to ensure a smooth transition. 

Masthope resident Michael Guerieri told the River Reporter the community voted heavily in favor of making the deal. 

The community believes in the importance of the ski operations to its continued existence, said Guerieri. "The general attitude is, if there's no ski area, there's no mountain."

The MMC POA did not respond to requests to comment for this article.