BEAVER CREEK – When operating in an area that’s built to capacity, you have to be efficient with your use of space.
That’s the current scenario in Beaver Creek’s base area, which is in the finishing stages of a remodel to improve guest service and convenience.
Gone are view impediments such as the information kiosk on the western side of the ice rink, along with the building formerly known as the Zamboni house.
New for this season, will be a large fire pit area – a pedestrian-friendly gathering place on the eastern side of the ice rink – and two new sets of escalators where the grand staircase between the Park Hyatt and Ford Hall used to be.
“At Beaver Creek we don’t believe in stairs, so we try to eliminate them whenever possible,” said Tim Baker, the executive director of the Beaver Creek Resort Company. “ ... Stairs are not a real enjoyable experience when you’re trying to walk up them with two 6-year-old kids who have skis over their shoulders and are wearing ski boots.”
And by replacing those stairs with an escalator, another opportunity presented itself.
Beaver Creek had the dirt removed and replaced with a cavernous garage space under the lower escalator, where the ice rink’s Zamboni machine will now be stored.
The moving of the Zamboni storage facility doesn’t just create a much clearer line of view through the plaza, it also allows the thrice-a-day ice maintenance ritual to better observe one of the long-standing rules of showmanship: Make an entrance.