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8 dec. 14 - 27, 2012 loCal news what happened to big sky institute? this article is part one in a series by tyler allen big sky weekly staff writer bIG SKY – Montana State university shuttered its operation of the big Sky Institute on June 30, 2011, after 15 years of educational partnerships and outreach in science within the community. The program was funded, in large part, by grants through MSu, and also partly through annual fundraising in big Sky. The local monies – raised primarily during summer gala events in big Sky – amounted to about $625,000, and were intended for programming, staff and ultimately a facility planned next to Ophir School. “It is frustrating because it was a great idea,” said former bSI board member Chris wright. “It was going to be a confluence between science and research in the ecosystem, the university and the big Sky community. It was a great ambition, to have the woods Hole of the Rockies here in big Sky.” Many community members have since wondered what became of the organization, why it so suddenly closed, and where the remaining funds ended up. More than $75,000 of the locally raised money remains, and is held by the MSu Alumni foundation. It can only be used for a “like” purpose within the community, said Michael Stevenson, President and CEO of the MSu Alumni foundation. “MSu came to us [in 2006] and said they wanted to make [bSI] a much big- cvb, bsia to merge into visit big sky by josePh t. o'Connor big sky weekly editor bIG SKY – The big Sky Convention and Visitors bureau and the biggest Skiing in America community marketing campaign have joined forces. The new marketing entity will be called Visit big Sky. During the big Sky Resort Tax board’s monthly meeting on Dec. 5, Kitty Clemens, big Sky Chamber of Commerce Director, announced the collaboration in a briefing to the five-member board. “we feel the time will be better used this way,” Clemens said in the update. “It will be a more efficient use of volunteer efforts.” The Chamber plans to iron out the details of the merger in a Dec. 19 meeting. The CVb, a summer marketing arm of the Chamber, was historically funded by Montana bed tax and bSIA and was put in place four years ago as a Chamber marketing sub-committee with funds through the RTb. ger deal,” said bSI board member Loren bough. “but the community would have to step up.” The board obtained a donation of two acres next to Ophir School and found local developers interested in bidding on a new facility. “we launched an effort to raise more money, we successfully met the goal stated by MSu, and raised more than $100,000 for several years,” bough said. The Resort Tax board in 2008 allocated $47,000 for architectural drawings of the planned facility, and $57,000 in 2009 to fund the initial MSu and big Sky Community Education Partnership, funding earmarked for bSI and the MSu Extended university. but the facility was never built, the partnership never came to fruition, and there has been no indication – to the community or the board of directors – where the university intends to spend the remaining $75,000. “Any balance will be held by the foundation until [MSu] decides whether to dissolve the program, since there is no outreach going on right now,” Stevenson said. The university considers bSI an operating institution, although no programming or staff is currently active. In 2011, the same year MSu closed bSI, the university began the Montana Institute on Ecosystems in partnership with the Montana university System, resulting in a $20 million National Science foundation grant. The IoE, according to its website, is a group of scholars explorebigsky.com and partners with a shared vision to advance integrated environmental sciences and related fields. “The university was using its resources . . . to partner statewide for the creation of the federally funded IoE,” said Tracy Ellig, Director of the MSu News Service. “The IoE’s work will benefit the state as a whole and is one of the first such state-wide enterprises of its kind nationally.” Although the privately raised funds from bSI didn’t go to the IoE, MSu essentially decided to spend its own time, research efforts and state and federal grant money there instead. “The bSI was a great experiment,” said Todd Kipfer, former bSI staff member and current IoE Assistant Director. “It linked a university and a community, but it was meant to be much larger and link the Greater Yellowstone, to create something world-class.” bSI lacked the statewide funding appeal that grant applicants like IoE have, and the faculty and staff of university departments and colleges. It did not, however, lack a community of scholars. MSu professors Ed Adams, Jordy Hendricks, wyatt Cross and Mark Skidmore all still have active research projects in the area. bSI’s closure hasn’t changed this ongoing work, Kipfer said. None of this has been communicated to the bSI board, bough said. “The board members are equally in the dark about bSI as the community is. There has never been any official com- The Chamber created bSIA in 2008 as a winter marketing department and had an agreement with RTb through the end of 2012 for funding, based on the number of skier days logged by big Sky Resort and Moonlight basin. with crossover in both the groups efforts and in their boards of directors, a merger made sense. “we kind of looked around and said, ‘this is ridiculous,’” said David O’Connor, president of the Chamber’s board of Directors. “It seemed really inefficient to us, and there was a lot of duplication. [Combining CVb and bSIA] will allow us to serve the community better.” The CVb receives on average, according to O’Connor, a total of $110,000 per year from the state. bSIA receives $200,000 annually through resort tax, and also $40,000 through private partner contributions. Through Visit big Sky, the funding requests will be streamlined, Clemens told the resort tax board. The explorebigsky.com Big Sky Weekly munication in writing with the board by MSu.” The MSu Alumni foundation also holds the land once slated for the bSI headquarters, which abuts the big Sky School District property line. The school district, one of the fastest growing in the state, is currently in the process of facilities planning for a second building, which would house elementary students. “Myself and [bSI] board member Taylor Middleton have approached the foundation about getting that land,” bough said. “we’re not clear why they refuse to commit to putting the land back into community use.” “use of the land falls under our strategic plan for the colleges and institutes like bSI,” Ellig said. The first phase of MSu’s strategic plan was recently finished, he added. “How that land gets used will be part of the second-tier process. I don’t have a timeline [for that process] right now.” while MSu has no plans to build a bSI facility on that property, this may not be the end of the institute in big Sky, according to Ellig. “The big Sky region is important to the university and we want to move forward in a deliberate, thoughtful and strategic manner with the institute,” he said. “The next chapter on the institute has not been written, but we don’t anticipate it being the last.” new marketing entity will remain eligible for state bed tax dollars and can also apply for funding through RTb. “The state doesn’t care whether we call ourselves the CVb, bSIA or Visit big Sky,” Clemons said. They just need to account for state funding. Montana requires the group keep state money separate from all other funding and Clemons says Visit big Sky will comply, while simultaneously placing efforts where they belong. “The Chamber needs to be in the business of helping people grow and start businesses,” she said. “Visit big Sky will be selling business to the outside world.” Clemens said the new collaboration allows one unified group to provide year-round service, with marketing as the primary focus.
loCal news big sky resort honors epic Passes for second year big sky weekly staff writer bIG SKY – Yet again, the Northern Rockies have been blessed with snow, snow and more snow. In an attempt to draw skiers from other parts of the country not faring so well, big Sky Resort for the second year in a row opened its doors to skiers with Epic Passes and any unlimited pass holder at any resort in the world, for that matter, to ski for free, through Christmas Day. Epic Passes allow skiing at all Vail Resorts – Vail, beaver Creek, breckenridge, Keystone, Arapahoe basin, Heavenly, Northstar and Kirkwood. “It was Epically successful last year,” wrote big Sky Resort Public Relations Director Chad Jones in an email. “we got coverage in the wall Street Journal, CO Public Radio, The Vail Daily, the San francisco Chronicle and a whole lot more.” To take advantage of this deal, pass holders must book lodging with big Sky Central Reservations and ask for the Gift Package. The resort is also extending its bring a buddy Coupon, allowing friends in their reservation without unlimited passes to ski at a discounted rate. Initially, the idea was “as much about getting people to change their plans and come to big Sky in January as it was to get them to come in february or March,” Jones said. “So many people look to Colorado as a bellwether to indicate snowfall. The assumption is if Colorado doesn’t have it then no one does, and we all know that’s not the case.” At press time, big Sky was 43 percent open, with 1,661 acres, and opening more each day. This weekend, they expect to be near 100 percent open, with the Lone Peak tram, Shedhorn and Dakata chairs running. “It is about sharing the love, no snow any place is not good for anyone in the industry. Let’s show folks that skiing and riding are still fun and there are places with snow.” Consistent snow drew skiers to hit big Sky in record numbers last season, and while most resorts in the Rockies struggled, big Sky and Moonlight both did well. Buying or selling a property? We want to help you. Tell us your dream We’ll show you where it lives. liveTHEDREAM. Craig Smit, Broker 406.581.5751 Craig@BigSkyRealEstate.com Kevin Butler, Broker 406.570.3890 Kevin@BigSkyRealEstate.com Real local knowledge that works for you. Almost 20 years serving the Big Sky market.
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Page 39 and 40: gear reviews the big sky weekly/exp
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