Chicopee opens to public Monday

It's the news local skiers and snowboarders have been waiting for this winter. 

Chicopee is getting ready to open to the general public on Monday. 

“I know there are lots of people out there who got their new skis and boards for Christmas and are dying to get out and back at Canada's greatest family winter sport. It's something the whole family can do together, and they can't wait — so we're excited,” said Chicopee Ski & Summer Resort CEO Bill Creighton in an interview on Business to Business on CityNews 570. “We made a decision this year to stay off the snow as we built our base, so we didn't put the groomers on, so we didn't lose as much as some of the other resorts on the 401 corridor. So we're in great shape right now actually, the snow is fantastic.”

Creighton said Chicopee invested an additional $800,000 in an automated snow-making system this year to help get the hills ready. 

“The thing is, Mother Nature keeps getting more and more volatile,” said Creighton. 

Last year, Chicopee was able to open its ski hills on January 4. This week's opening day is almost two weeks later than that. 

Creighton said it's been a 'once-in-a-decade' January in terms of volatile, mild weather.

“As bleak as it is, last year we had the best snow we've had in over two decades. We stopped making snow last year on January 15. This year, I'm gonna say, is an anomaly,” said Creighton. “But it really made us strategically go back and say 'do we need to do more in our snow-making?' and we are looking at how we can increase our capacity on the hill in those really 'gold-seal' snow-making moments.”

Chicopee Ski Club was founded almost 90 years ago, in 1934. 

You can hear the full interview with Creighton on Business to Business on CityNews 570 this Sunday at noon.