USFS takes new look at Wolf Creek ski village

Posted by egable on August 15th, 2008 filed in Forests

The U.S. Forest Service has begun a new environmental assessment of Texas billionaire Ted McCombs’ plans to build a road to a proposed village next to Wolf Creek Ski Area.

Since the 287.5 acres of private land is surrounded by national forest, the Forest Service is required by law to provide the owners access for the “reasonable use and enjoyment of their land,” USFS officials said.

“The question is not whether access will be provided, but rather where and how the access will occur,” Dan Dallas, forest supervisor for the Rio Grande National Forest, said in a statement.

The new application for the construction and use of the road and the initiation of a new environmental analysis are the result of a legal settlement that requires the involvement of other agencies and completion of the environmental analysis by a Forest Service team rather than a private contractor.