Barrick Gold Corp. is floating the idea of turning an old nickel mine near Hope into a year-round recreational resort
Is there gold in the hills above Hope? Barrick Gold Corp. is floating the idea of turning an old nickel mine in the area into a year-round recreational playground called the Giant Nickel All Season Resort. It would include a ski hill and gondola and restaurants that grow their own vegetables.
The 10-run ski hill in terms of vertical drop would fall between Whistler Blackcomb and Sun Peaks, said Dennis Adamson, electoral director of Electoral Area B of the Fraser Valley Regional District, and the project’s No. 1 booster.
“I’ve been pushing this for years,” said Adamson, who’s the elected official of the area, which includes communities like Yale, Spuzzum, Dogwood Valley, Othello and Ruby Creek, total population 721.
“It’s the No. 1 question I get (from constituents),” he said. “Not a day goes by when I don’t get someone asking me when the ski hill will be open.” He said the area, which has relied on mining and logging in the past, is desperate for an economic kickstart, especially after the loss of 450 union jobs at the mill in Boston Bar a decade ago.
“You need jobs or you’re going to become a ghost town,” he said. “I see it as something that could replace the lost jobs and bring a lot of youths to the area, families with kids.”
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