From Main Street to the Mountain: Winter Park's Town-to-Resort Gondola Moves Forward
It's easy to see why Winter Park’s prime location (a quick drive from Denver and nestled in the stunning Fraser Valley) makes it an ideal place to call home as well as a favorite for Front Range skiers and vacationers looking for a mountain getaway close to the airport. And if you’ve spent any time here lately, you know the secret’s out: Winter Park is one of the best places to ski (and recreate in all seasons) in Colorado and the country! With all the growth in all the places, our cozy mountain town has held onto its small-town charm and that “get-away-from-it-all” feeling despite an understandable surge in popularity.
Our community is partnering with Winter Park Resort to address the growth and make Winter Park an even better place to live and play! There have been whispers in town and questions around the possibility of making it a reality, but the 10-person gondola connecting downtown Winter Park (starting at Cooper Creek Square -right by the in-town parking garage) and Winter Park Resort is officially happening! We'll join Vail, Telluride, and Breckenridge as the only Colorado towns with a gondola connecting to the local ski resort. The new Town Gondola will give direct access from downtown/main street to the resort, with a stop at Cooper Creek Summit (offering beginner and intermediate runs) and a final drop off at Discovery Park, home to the ski school and learning terrain.
Even better, there’s a planned ski-back trail that will wind right along the ridge above homes off the lower end of Vasquez Road and right past Beaver Village Condos, ending at the base of the Town Gondola - you'll be able to ski back to town after a day on the mountain. If you have already invested in or plan to invest in downtown Winter Park real estate (think neighborhoods like Roam, Elk Run, Leland Creek, Hi Country Haus, and Trailhead Lodges), the Town Gondola will make your investment all the more valuable!
The whole community is excited about the plans to connect the town to the resort - less traffic, easier parking, and expanding ski-in/ski-out access is a win for everyone! Construction on the Town Gondola is on track to start as early as summer 2026, pending final approval and permits.
A PIECE OF THE PUZZLE
The Town Gondola is a key piece in Winter Park Resort's long-term plan (dubbed Winter Park Unlocked) to keep up with growth and improve guest experience. Zoning approval for the gondola also includes rezoned areas for new hotels, office space, roads, trails, and open space. The rezoned area could allow up to 2,950 residential and hotel units and 250,000 square feet of commercial space. Three parcels of land will be dedicated to Winter Park Resort workforce housing.
Increasing connectivity is a primary goal of Winter Park Unlocked, and the creation of the Town Gondola is a huge step toward connecting Winter Park Resort to the the Town of Winter Park, other communities along the Front Range, and Colorado's northern mountains. Think a network of trains, buses (including The Lift), and gondolas that connects the Front Range through Grand County all the way past Steamboat to Craig, even making it possible to get to Rocky Mountain National Park without a car.
To help realize that dream, the Colorado Mountain Rail Project is underway, with daily round-trip service from Denver's Union Station to Granby planned to start in November 2026 and a daily round-trip from Granby to Denver will be added soon after. If you're heading from Grand County, you can spend a day in Denver and even catch a Rockies day game without ever getting in your car!
The Town Gondola is one of the initial steps toward creating a more vibrant Winter Park Resort base area as well as car-free connection throughout Colorado. We're looking forward to putting off those European transit vibes!
FUNDING
You might wonder who's footing the bill for the Town Gondola, especially if you're considering a real estate investment in the Winter Park area. Winter Park Resort is officially owned by the City of Denver, but day-to-day operations are managed by Alterra Mountain Company. The Town Gondola will be funded through a public-private partnership led by Alterra Mountain Company, which is investing significant private capital to plan, build, operate, and maintain the gondola. To support public infrastructure connected to the project, the Town of Winter Park established an Urban Renewal Authority (URA) that uses Tax Increment Financing (TIF) - a funding approach that channels increased property tax revenue from new development in the area back into improvements like trails, parks, and the gondola. Read: if your property value goes up as a result of the new development, that increase will go toward the funding of the project. A Regional Infrastructure Cooperation Agreement (RICA) between the Town and Alterra also created a Regional Transportation Authority (RTA), which will oversee the gondola’s financing and operations. The RTA will seek additional funding through state and federal transportation grants.
NOW IS THE TIME TO INVEST!
With these long-awaited plans moving forward, Winter Park is set to become more accessible and desirable than ever! Still offering relative affordability compared to other Colorado resort areas, now is the time to invest in real estate in the Winter Park area. Whether you're looking for a weekend getaway, a rental property, or a long-term investment, this is an ideal time to stake your claim in a town that’s growing in all the right ways. Let's connect - I would love to learn more about your real estate goals, give you all the details on the buying process, and support you with my decades of experience as a local Grand County realtor!
Posted by Leah Bishop on
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