"We want to know: is it actually going to go ahead, or is it not going to go ahead?" Guy Turcotte, founder and CEO of Stone Creek Resorts, told the Rocky Mountain Outlook in late October. He was talking about the gondola, and about the Silvertip Resort Village build-out that partly depends on it.
The province opened a 30-day public notice period on October 27. Feedback is accepted until November 26, 2026. The October 2026 Master Development Plan puts a station in the middle of Silvertip and treats it as a way into the village that can keep carrying people after the summit has closed for the day.
A mid-station meant to be a front door
The proposal is a 3.2-kilometre gondola. It would run from a base station near Palliser Trail and the Trans-Canada Highway to a mid-station at the planned Silvertip Resort Village, then on to an upper terminal near the summit of Mount Lady Macdonald. The summit plans include a day lodge with a restaurant, bar and coffee bar, plus viewing platforms and about a kilometre of walking trails with a suspension bridge.
In the plan, the mid-station is more than a transfer point. It describes the station as "the central connection between the Gondola and Silvertip Resort Village," giving direct access to the village's existing and future accommodations, restaurants, commercial services, recreation and gathering spaces. Riders can start or end their trip there, or continue on to the summit. The station's own footprint is modest: 93 square metres for guest services and ticketing and another 93 for washrooms, or about 2,000 square feet in total.
The capacity section goes further. It says the approved Silvertip Village "will host conferences" and will create its own demand for the lower segment "both while the Summit is operating and after it has closed for the day." The plan presents the village trip figures as a supply ceiling. It says they are not a forecast of visitation.
Two closing times on one line
Read together, the operating sections give the summit and the village different evenings.
| Season | Final summit boarding | Village amenities modeled open until |
|---|---|---|
| Winter | 5 p.m. | 10 p.m. |
| Spring | 8 p.m. | 10 p.m. |
| Summer | 8 p.m. | 10 p.m. |
| Fall | 5 p.m. | 10 p.m. |
Boarding starts at 9 a.m. in every season. "Last Ride" is defined as the final boarding departure, and passengers are brought down after it. For the village trip estimates, the plan assumes village amenities stay open until 10 p.m. year-round. The summit is described as a day-use facility with no overnight accommodation. On a November evening, then, the last summit boarding would be at 5 p.m., and the lower line could keep serving the village for up to five more hours.
Where the cars would go
Visitor arrival is concentrated at the Palliser Base Area beside the Trans-Canada Highway. The plan lists 350 passenger-vehicle spaces, four bus bays, at least ten RV-sized spaces, bicycle parking, and bus parking for tour and shuttle operators. It also refers to regional transit, walking and cycling paths, and shuttle and drop-off facilities.
The numbers that parking would serve are set out too. The plan's "peak comfortable carrying capacity" is up to 1,253 guests at one time. Daily capacity is up to 3,683 visitors in fall and winter and 5,064 in spring and summer. Stone Creek has previously estimated 250,000 to 300,000 visitors a year. Against the five million visitors Mayor Sean Krausert says already come to the Bow Valley each year, that is a small share of the valley's total. It would still be concentrated on one hillside. In earlier consultation, according to the Outlook, the Town raised parking, traffic, the need for a pedestrian crossing over Highway 1, and emergency services as concerns.
Construction would come in stages. Stage 1 covers the ropeway, the tower foundations and all three stations. Stage 2 adds the base-area intercept parking, the transit and drop-off facilities, and visitor amenities. Stage 3 brings public-realm work, trail enhancements, restoration and some employee housing. Turcotte has said construction could begin as early as 2027 if the province approves the project.
Two wildlife corridors under the cable
The line would cross both the Lower and Upper Silvertip wildlife corridors at roughly right angles. The plan says aerial spans, small tower foundations, no new roads through corridor lands and limits on visitor access are meant to keep the corridors working. As the Rocky Mountain Outlook reported, the environmental assessment by Cascade Environmental Resource Group drew on Alberta Parks remote-camera data from 2012 to 2024. Winter tracking showed wolves mainly using the Upper Silvertip corridor, and cameras recorded bighorn sheep lambs four times between 2017 and 2019 within or right beside the proposed footprint.
The assessment expects low residual impacts with mitigation in place. It also acknowledges permanent habitat loss, and it names increased human activity as the main potential effect on wildlife movement. It recommends monitoring, access restrictions and temporary trail closures if unexpected impacts emerge. The development plan expects policies that may restrict pets, bicycles and other activities in sensitive areas. It says existing hiking routes to Mount Lady Macdonald will stay separate from the summit facilities.
Turcotte's position, as he told the Outlook: "People will be on the gondola and they're getting off either at our village, which is not in the corridor, or at the top, which is not in the corridor." Bill Hunt of the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative told the same paper that "we're bifurcating a really critical wildlife corridor." CPAWS Southern Alberta objected to the resort-area designation, pointing to its overlap with the Upper Silvertip corridor. The earlier provincial consultation on the designation drew more than 5,200 submissions, and a "No Gondola" campaign has put lawn signs up around Canmore.
Who decides, and how to weigh in by November 26
The province decides. On September 17 it designated the roughly 37-hectare Lady Macdonald All-Season Resort Area, which took about 30 hectares out of Bow Valley Wildland Provincial Park. A regulation passed at the same time says Part 17 of the Municipal Government Act, which governs most local planning and development, does not apply to "gondola development" in that area. "For this matter, the province is really the decision maker," Krausert told the Outlook. He added that Council could still consider variances or land-use bylaw changes but could not contradict the province's decision.
The application is listed as ASR LADYMACDONALD 2026 on the province's all-season resorts public notice page, which also links the public notice and the environmental assessment. There are two ways to comment:
- Use the application-specific online form, which asks for your contact details and how you are affected.
- Mail a written submission to All-Season Resorts, Suite 920, John J. Bowlen Building, 620 7 Avenue SW, Calgary, AB T2P 0Y8.
Comments become part of the public record and are shared with the applicant.
The village the line would serve is already filling in
The Outlook reported that roughly 400 residential units have been built at Silvertip, and that Stone Creek broke ground on August 18 on Cadence Pond, a 70-unit condo project at 300 Mountain Tranquility Gate, with completion expected in mid-2028.
The resort's off-season calendar is fuller this year too. Under executive chef Kevin Bourdages, who was appointed in June, Stoney's Grill began serving breakfast on November 9, 8 to 11 a.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. to noon on weekends. Happy hour runs Sunday to Thursday from 3 to 6 p.m., and the Sunday prime rib plate is $42 all day. Rustica serves dinner Wednesday to Sunday from 5 to 9 p.m., and The Market is open daily from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Rustica's Christmas brunches run November 29 and December 6, 13 and 20, from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., with Santa visiting from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. The resort's first holiday party at The Pavilion is December 11, starting at 5:30 p.m. Venue hours can change through the season, so check with the resort before you go.
The Town is also asking about trails this month. Its draft Open Space and Trails Plan has a Community Dinner & Discussion on Thursday, November 12, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., an online session on November 16, and a survey open until November 19.
If you have questions about what the gondola application could mean for your Silvertip property, Vincent & Wright Group can walk you through the plan's details and the province's timeline. Connect with a Canmore & Banff property specialist before the comment window closes on November 26.
