Casper City Council reviews Hogadon rates, tentatively backs 10% facility fee to help pay for lift replacement

Casper City Council members on Tuesday discussed proposed rate increases and a new facility fee for Hogadon Basin Recreation Area as staff outlined options intended to move the ski area closer to its 65% cost-recovery target and to fund capital work, including replacement of a chairlift.

Parks Division staffer Zulema (name spelled variously in the transcript as “Selima”/“Zalima”) told the council, “we are here to talk to you about two things: an evaluation of our rates…and the newer concept of a facility fee, which we hope can be used to help fund the capital project to replace [the] lift.” She said the fee could be used to repay a loan if terms were favorable and that staff sought provisional direction so they could bring a draft resolution back for formal consideration.

Why it matters: Hogadon is a city-operated recreational enterprise whose revenues and fees directly affect local users and the venue’s ability to pay for capital repairs. Staff says the proposed facility fee would be temporary — collected until funds for the lift replacement are raised — and would be added on top of any new ticket or pass prices.

Most important facts

- Staff history and rationale: Zulema told councilors the last general rate increase occurred in 2023 and that the city evaluates Hogadon rates roughly every other year. Staff said the primary goals are to remain competitive, show value to users and increase cost recovery toward the council’s 65% target.

- Proposed changes: Staff proposes (a) eliminating the longstanding preseason discount in favor of a simplified pricing scheme supported by the park’s new point-of-sale system and payment-plan capability; (b) using dynamic pricing for day tickets (lower weekday prices, higher weekend prices); and (c) raising certain day-ticket and night-skiing prices. Night skiing prices were singled out because operational costs and popularity have increased and prior donor restrictions that capped prices have ended.

- Facility fee: Staff described a proposed 10% facility fee that would be tacked onto existing rates to help fund the capital campaign and repay possible borrowing. Zulema said, “the facility fee would be added on top of that, and it is intended to be until we raise the funds for the capital campaign, in which case, that facility fee would go away.”

Council questions and direction

Councilors pressed staff for missing detail and asked for more data before final action. Councilor Kyle asked how many preseason passes have been sold historically; staff said that figure was not immediately available but that the new point-of-sale tools and data partnerships with Visit Casper and other partners are now being used to analyze customer origin and purchase behavior.

Several councilors, including Councilor Jensen and Councilor Jenna, urged retaining some form of a preseason discount or a local-resident incentive so longtime local users are not priced out. Councilor Pat flagged a printing error in the packet that showed an outdated proposed rate; staff acknowledged the error and said the correct proposed adult season-pass figure is $1,500 (the packet had printed $1,600 in one sheet). Staff committed to include the corrected pricing sheet in the information packet distributed on Friday.

Council consensus and next steps

No formal vote was taken. Instead, councilors gave provisional direction and asked staff to prepare a draft resolution for the council’s first regular meeting in August (staff noted there are procedural steps and the resolution language can be fashioned per council direction). Specific directions taken during the discussion include: staff should prepare the draft resolution that would (1) include the proposed 10% facility fee, (2) reflect the corrected pricing schedule, and (3) include reinstating a preseason discount or a local-resident incentive (councilors indicated support for adding preseason options back into the pricing structure). Councilors also asked staff to produce modeling showing how the proposed rate changes would affect the enterprise’s progress toward the 65% cost-recovery goal.

Operational and data notes

- Staff noted the new point-of-sale/payment-plan functionality will allow pass purchasers to pay in installments and will support better customer-origin tracking, which staff said will help marketing and planning.

- Night-skiing operations currently include Wednesday and Thursday training time reserved for local high-school and club teams; staff said those training nights are priced differently to cover operating costs.

What the council asked staff to deliver

Staff will: provide an updated, corrected pricing comparison in the packet on Friday; include a draft resolution for the first council meeting in August; return to the council at the next work session to discuss the draft; and provide projections showing how the proposed pricing and any facility fee would affect the cost-recovery percentage. Staff also said they will continue to explore capital fundraising options beyond the facility fee, including grants and sponsorships.

Ending

City staff emphasized that the facility fee and rate adjustments are components of a broader capital- and operations-financing strategy to keep the city-owned recreation area sustainable while pursuing a lift replacement. Councilors left the meeting with direction for staff to return a clear, corrected packet and a draft resolution for formal consideration later this summer.