Second investor expresses interest in Schetteregg ski resort

A second investor is reportedly interested in the Schetteregg ski resort, but only for winter operations, ORF Vorarlberg reported on Thursday. The news follows the decision by the Alpe Brongen and Tristen agricultural association not to approve contracts for year-round operations with investor Jürgen Sutterlüty.

A year-round operation including a summer bike park had appeared secured in June after lengthy negotiations. However, the required two-thirds majority was not reached at a full assembly of the association.

Project operators said on Wednesday that the ski resort could therefore not open this winter and that the bike park was also on hold. The lessee and operator of Alpe Brongen said the association felt publicly pressured by that statement.

The association is not the only alpine pasture group that has not approved the contracts. A second group still has to vote. At Alpe Brongen, the negotiations with Sutterlüty had been conducted by the board, while all holders of grazing rights took part in the final vote.

The main objection was the proposed 20-year contract term. The association would have accepted 10 years with an option to extend, according to the lessee. He also said the pasture’s future water supply was not guaranteed.

The lessee said another investor was now also involved and was reportedly interested in Schetteregg specifically as a ski resort. That investor would operate it only in winter, as in the past, which he described as the ideal solution for the alpine pasture.

He said the mountain was too small for the planned bike park and agricultural use. Many grazing-rights holders therefore voted against Sutterlüty’s contracts in the hope that the other investor might be selected. The municipality knows the investor, the lessee said, while adding that a smaller and acceptable agreement with Sutterlüty remained possible.