News from Greene County Coalition for Economic Equality

For more information contact: Russ Coloton, 518-263-4223

Bristol Mountain Joins Coalition Seeking Belleayre Accountability

ALBANY, NY (04/22/2008; 1130)(readMedia)-- Today Bristol Mountain joined the growing Coalition for Economic Equality, an organization of private companies who are seeing their businesses hurt by the unfair competitive practices of Belleayre, a state-owned and operated ski facility. Because it is a State facility, Belleayre pays no taxes, doesn’t buy health and other insurances or worker’s compensation or pay for dozens of usual and normal operating expenses. As a consequence, they can offer below-cost tickets – prices that have stolen business from competing recreation centers.

“Recently, a central New York ski club which had booked a trip to Bristol Mountain,” said Dan Fuller, owner of Bristol Mountain Ski Center “cancelled at the last moment because Belleayre offered them $15 tickets. We can’t sell $15 tickets and stay in business.

“At a time when State government is facing budget deficits and everyone is having a hard time financially,” he continued, “it seems silly that New York taxpayers are subsidizing millions of dollars worth of ski tickets so Belleayre can give them away or sell them at a loss.”

Over the past two years, despite receiving millions of taxpayer dollars, Belleayre lost more than $1.1 million a year,

“This will only get worse,” said Russ Coloton, President of Hunter Mountain Ski Resort and head of the Coalition, “if the expansion of Belleayre which former Governor Spitzer championed, goes forward and if the State Department of Environmental Conservation continues its policy of operating its ski resort without any financial controls and allowing it to act in a fiscally irresponsible manner.

“If the State goes forward with its plans and the result is putting a number of private recreation enterprises out of business,” he continued, “it will means millions of dollars of local taxes lost, thousands of people put out of work, and it will be bad news for the communities we have been a part of for years.”

“The facts are clear. Just go to nytaxpayers4equality.org and you can see how they are losing vast amounts of public money at a time Governor Paterson has said only State jobs essential to health and safety are to be filled.”

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