Largest ski resort in New England announces closure of sale to local group, $30M in improvements

KILLINGTON, Vt. — The largest ski and snowboard destination in New England recently announced the closure of its sale to a local independent ownership group and unveiled planned investment projects valued at more than $30 million.

POWDR’s sale of Vermont’s Killington Resort and Pico Mountain to a group led by Phill Gross and Michael Ferri is officially in the books.

Gross and Ferri said this week that they are committed to reinvesting all profits into capital improvements for the foreseeable future, with this being the first of many phases of capital improvements.

With the sale’s closure, completed with zero net debt, the resort will begin to undertake several projects to improve the guest experience, according to Killington President and Chief Executive Officer, Mike Solimano.

Planned capital investment projects for the next two seasons include:

• A two-year, low-energy snowmaking investment: 1,000 new low-energy HKD Tower & Fan Guns.
• About 500 new guns are in the process of being installed at Killington and Pico ahead of the 2024-25 season, with the remainder being installed summer of 2025.
• Four new fully automated fan guns will be installed at the bottom of the Superstar trail ahead of this season.
• Superstar lift replacement: Replacement of the Superstar Express Quad to a high-speed six-pack with installation of the lift expected to happen summer of 2025.
• Skyeship Gondola revitalization: All new gondola cabins (116 in total) are expected to be installed summer of 2025 and a new gondola storage barn in Northbrook to be constructed in future years.
• Summer investment including mountain bike trail expansion.

“The timing of what’s going on here is really exciting: the timing of the village and the new housing in conjunction with investment in the mountain itself. I think it’s really going to be great to see over the next several years,” Ferri said in a news release.

Details of the sale, including the complete list of 16 investors and the final sale price will not be disclosed, however, Great Gulf and POWDR will remain involved as minority investors, according to Solimano.

Additional details on each capital improvement project are forthcoming.

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