Lake County staff recommend leasing snowcats, prioritize Mineral Belt Trail grooming for 2025–26 season

Lake County staff and community volunteers discussed options to expand winter grooming for the 2025–26 season at a June 11 work session, with staff recommending leased snowcats, a dedicated seasonal operator, and a focus on grooming the Mineral Belt Trail before expanding to the golf-course Nordic venue.

Duncan Chisholm, director of Pathway Creation with Open Space for Lake County, told the meeting he and public works recommend leasing snowcats to increase grooming frequency. "My recommendation along with public works is to lease 2 of them for 2 seasons," Chisholm said, calling the two-season lease a way to test machines before deciding whether to buy. Chisholm presented a range of lease scenarios and said staff estimated roughly $247,300 per season for two leased machines in one set of assumptions and later described a separate public-works estimate that was "just under $350,000" per season when staffing and other costs are included. He described those figures as estimates that depend on the number of machines and service level chosen.

Volunteer groomer Dan (no last name given) and several community members urged the county to prioritize the Mineral Belt Trail, arguing earlier grooming and more frequent touch-ups will preserve trail quality and attract users. "The person who's who grooms the trails just needs to be available 7 days a week," Dan said, describing industry practice of responding to weather rather than a fixed schedule. Dan and others also recommended tree trimming along the Mineral Belt to remove branches that create bare spots and "tree wells" that melt snow earlier than surrounding areas.

Staff described operational details under consideration: lease terms with hourly caps (Chisholm said some lease options include a 500-hour-per-season limit per machine), delivery and return logistics for leased machines (Chisholm cited examples of delivery fees), maintenance responsibilities under lease (manufacturer-provided maintenance packages versus lessee labor), fuel use (Chisholm estimated roughly 2.5 gallons per hour), and training included with some leases. Chisholm said lessor training would cover operators during the lease period.

County staff outlined three broad service options discussed previously: minimal grooming of the golf-course trails, a higher level of service focused on Nordic and the Mineral Belt, and an expanded option reaching more miles of trail and additional amenities. Staff said a single new full-season equivalent (FTE) or a dedicated seasonal operator would be required to sustain a higher service level; Chisholm gave a ballpark of several hundred operator hours for season work and mentioned a budget estimate for a groomer position and related costs. He also described ticketing ideas (day passes or season passes via QR codes) as a possible partial revenue source while noting the Mineral Belt Trail historically has been free and that any fee proposals would need further legal and public review.

Board members and meeting participants raised fiscal concerns and alternatives. One elected official said, "This is a ton of money" and asked the county to pursue public–private partnerships, donations, and cost-sharing before committing county funds. Multiple speakers suggested asking the Mineral Belt Trail Committee to share costs; Chisholm and others proposed a first-year cost-share or one-year lease test to gather usage and revenue data before larger commitments. Adam (identified in the meeting as a staff member able to track trail use) offered to help capture trail counters and geofenced data to quantify trail users for future grant applications and budget decisions.

Participants also discussed logistics and constraints: storage for machines if moved between venues, whether to move the county's older snowcat from the golf course to the Mineral Belt as a backup, the condition of bridges and trail segments that may require repairs before a heavier machine uses them, and permitting for grooming on Forest Service and BLM lands. Staff noted some trail-clearance and bridge work will require coordination with federal land managers and engineers.

No formal motion or vote was taken at the session. The meeting closed with staff directed to pursue outreach to the Mineral Belt Trail Committee about a cost-share and to develop a supplemental budget request and a more detailed procurement plan to present in advance of the county budget process. Chisholm said the procurement would follow public-procurement rules and that lease figures presented were initial estimates.

Notes on attribution and status: the estimates and proposals described in this article were presented by county staff and meeting participants during the June 11 work session and remain proposals under consideration; the county did not approve purchases, leases, hires, or budget transfers at the meeting.