MOUNTAIN MAKEOVERS STYLISH VILLAGES ARE SPROUTING AT MAMMOTH AND TAHOE SKI RESORTS.

Byline: Jerry Rice Staff Writer

Mammoth Lakes is about to find out if change really is a good thing.

Long in the works - and dreamed about even longer - The Village at Mammoth will soon bring the year-round destination something it has lacked: a central gathering spot for residents and visitors. It's a 20-acre, pedestrian-friendly complex of condominiums, shops, a nightclub and places to refuel (a brew pub and Starbucks among them).

``It gives everyone a lot more options for off-hill activities, and it really creates a town center,'' said Mammoth Mountain Ski Area spokeswoman Joani Lynch. ``All of the development is within a very small area - the lodging properties, restaurants, retail, art galleries. It provides more of a resort experience here and kind of a town gathering spot.''

It's a ... well, mammoth undertaking, to be sure, and when the project's first phase opens later this season, it will be part of a nearly billion-dollar upgrade of the resort by Canada's Intrawest Corp. The goal is to turn Mammoth into the next Aspen, Colo. - a place with off-mountain diversions to match its world-class skiing.

``Intrawest not only develops, designs and builds resorts, they also stay around to operate them,'' Dave McCoy, president of Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, said in a release. ``These are people who love the mountains as much as we do.''

That should be good news for ski and snowboard fanatics, because among the nine mountain getaways Intrawest owns is Whistler/Blackcomb in British Columbia, which ranked third among all North American resorts in a recent Ski Magazine reader survey (Vail, Colo., finished atop the 15th annual poll).

Mammoth was No. 13 in the same survey, and the highest-ranking California location, beating three Lake Tahoe properties: Heavenly (No. 17), Northstar-at-Tahoe (No. 21) and Squaw Valley USA (No. 24).

The magazine dinged Mammoth for its off-slope offerings. ``The mountain is excellent, the town is not,'' wrote one reader. From another: ``The town needs to live up to the mountain.''

But some things can't be measured by the number of nightclubs.

``You can come here and get away from everything else, whereas (in) places like Tahoe, you never have that sense of community,'' said Jeff Skinner, Intrawest's director of sales and marketing and a five-year Mammoth resident. ``This is a resort and a community combined together, which is really cool - and you have this awesome mountain right next to it.''

Not to be outdone by Mammoth, Heavenly and Squaw Valley USA in the Lake Tahoe area are also in the midst of ambitious makeovers.

At Squaw, site of the 1960 Winter Olympics, a new 13-acre pedestrian village is open, representing the first stage of a four-phase, $250 million project.

Also built by Intrawest, First Ascent features 139 new mountainside condominiums, five restaurants and bars, several shops, an events plaza and an outdoor fire pit.

Once completed, the project will include 600 lodging units and about 80 shops, restaurants and galleries.

A new village at Heavenly - where one out of every 10 skiers hails from the Los Angeles area - is winning raves for amenities that include gaslit brick walking paths, a movie theater, ice-skating rink and, of course, specialty shops and restaurants. The five-story complex features two Marriott resorts with nearly 800 rooms.

``We also completed a fairly extensive renovation of several of our lodge facilities on the mountain,'' said John Wagnon, Heavenly's vice president of marketing.

Kirkwood is in the pedestrian village business as well. Theirs comes complete with luxury condos and ski-in town homes, a fitness center (with a 25-yard lap pool and two 16-person spas) and a $600,000 ice rink.

``All of the resorts in Lake Tahoe are seeing a significant amount of capital spent by their parent corporations to improve the overall experience,'' said Wagnon, who also serves as president of Ski Lake Tahoe, which represents six of the area's major resorts (Alpine Meadows, Heavenly, Kirkwood, Northstar-at-Tahoe, Sierra-at-Tahoe and Squaw Valley USA). ``We've seen a lot of improvement in the facilities, and it's going to continue over the next five years.''

These makeovers aren't proceeding without a little grumbling from the fringe, however.

At Mammoth, for example, conservationists fear the cost of Mammoth Lakes becoming a big-time resort includes damage to the fragile eastern Sierra Nevada environment and the loss of its small-town charm.

But critics seem to be in the minority. At least two out of three residents support the creation of the village, said Jane Dove Juneau, editor of the local newspaper, the Mammoth Times.

There's even support for a related issue, expansion of the dinky airport serving Mammoth. A plan calls for the lengthening of the runway by 1,200 feet to accommodate jets as large as the Boeing B-757 and building facilities to serve airline passengers.

``The development ... is going to help bring additional people to town,'' Juneau said. ``They are trying to fill in the quieter periods (generally the spring and fall). That will mean more guaranteed income for people who work here. The restaurants will be busier all week and not just on the weekends - off-season, too.''

Development within the town has certainly caught the attention of environmental organizations, but for the Wilderness Society there are concerns outside the town limits.

``Our primary issue has been the potential expansion of the actual ski area into the area between Mammoth and June Lakes,'' said Jay Watson, the society's western regional director. ``Right now there's no imminent plans by Mammoth to expand, although they have had their sights on it for a long time.''

Watson admits that more development is inevitable, especially if Mammoth wants to realize its dream of being more than simply a winter play area for Southern Californians (85 percent of the resort's lift tickets are sold to visitors from the greater L.A. area). It's a goal McCoy and others have held onto for decades.

``We're not involved in trying to regulate growth in Mammoth,'' Watson said. ``Our goal is, as Mammoth grows, the San Joaquin Roadless Area remains protected.''

Said Mammoth's Lynch: ``There are a few who are hesitant about (development) and would like everything to stay the same as it has been for many years, but it's part of the progress and what Mammoth needed to compete in this resort environment.''

The first stage of the project could be a 15-passenger gondola, which will whisk visitors from the village up the hill to Canyon Lodge, Canyon Express and the base of Chairs 7, 8 and 17. It was scheduled to open by Christmas, but the cargo logjam that congested West Coast ports in October delayed the arrival of key parts that could, in turn, push back the gondola's debut.

With its capacity of 3,000 riders per hour, the gondola will be the fourth access point to the slopes and should shorten the wait times at the other three locations.

Another addition that will be put to work immediately once the village opens (Intrawest is hoping for a February debut) is the condo complex with 166 two- and three-bedroom luxury units. Rates begin at $310 per night midweek, and purchase prices will start at $500,000.

The new lodgings would have come in handy earlier in the season, since bookings through the end of this month are running at a record pace - even ahead of last year's strong post-9/11 season when many Southern California skiers apparently canceled trips to Colorado, Utah and other destinations to experience slopes closer to home.

``Things seem to be going in the right direction,'' said Lynch.

CAPTION(S):

5 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- 2 -- color) When Mammoth's new village is complete, visitors will be able to ride a gondola up the mountain, there to link up with the mountain's many ski runs and its existing lifts. Construction, top right, will continue through much of this season - weather permitting.

(3) One out of 10 skiers at Heavenly Valley comes from the L.A. area. Heavenly came in 17th in a recent Ski Magazine survey.

(4) Lake Tahoe's Squaw Valley, home of the 1960 Winter Olympics, is in the first phase of a major upgrade.

Eric Noland/Travel Editor

(5) Mammoth Mountain hopes to attract more visitors with its 20-acre Village development.

Box:

2002-2003 SKI PREVIEW