According to the latest news, uncertainty still weighed on the relaunch of the alpine ski season at Mont-Sainte-Anne, which had been compromised for nearly two weeks following the inadmissible fall of a gondola. The investigation by the Régie du bâtiment du Québec (RBQ) has barely begun, while the resort operator is preparing the slopes for a reopening that skiers and traders are hoping for like a gift under the Christmas tree.
Traders and hoteliers in the region are worried. They were anticipating 90% room occupancy for the holiday season, when it fell to around 60%. If the mountain does not start welcoming skiers again soon, it will be a disaster for the economy of the La Côte-de-Beaupré region. The opening of the school slope and the snowshoe, cross-country skiing and winter biking trails are limited arguments for Sainte-Anne retaining its immediate appeal.
Local elected officials denounce in The sun the “campaign of fear” of certain (unidentified) interest groups which would weaken the region in addition to paralyzing the local economy. The prefect of the MRC de La Côte-de-Beaupré, Pierre Lefrançois, emphasizes the importance of “consuming locally and visiting the Mont-Saint-Anne region”. The mayor of Beaupré, Pierre Renaud, holds a similar speech, by inviting the population not to “demonize” the Alberta operator of the resort, Resort of the Canadian Rockies (RCR), or to go hunting for the culprits.
In an open letter to Sun, some twenty entrepreneurs and merchants are also crying out. Weakened by two years of pandemic, they take the temporary closure of Mont-Sainte-Anne like a punch. They invite local stakeholders to unite behind a positive message, while asking representative associations in tourism and the hotel industry, as well as municipal and provincial elected officials, for concrete support measures. The Ministry of Tourism and its partners have promised advertising campaigns to boost the attractiveness of Sainte-Anne.
These speeches bear witness to the economic distress that is gripping the region of La Côte-de-Beaupré. Only, the local elites dream in color if they imagine that the tourists will swallow their beautiful stories of solidarity. They are satisfied with little, that is to play the role of simple belts of the corporate interests of RCR. Who will want to ride in these gondolas of uncertain reliability? Fortunately, the fall of a gondola, which occurred on December 10, occurred before the opening of the lift. There would have been serious injuries or even deaths if the incident had occurred minutes later as enthusiastic skiers prepared to board the gondolas.
The RBQ cannot take the situation lightly. She must put public safety ahead of the region’s economic imperatives, especially since Mont-Sainte-Anne has been in her sights for quite some time. Since 2015, the RBQ has issued more than 25 corrective notices related to the resort’s ski lifts. An inspection is not a dead end. Sooner or later, the ski lifts will regain their momentum. Even if the gondolas were to remain stationary, the aerial lifts would be sufficient to meet the demand of skiers, not without inconvenience and waiting times.
What is most serious about the chronic lack of maintenance and investment on the part of RCR is that it has undermined the brand image of Mont-Sainte-Anne, to the point where it is illusory to reduce the problem to a campaign of fear of real or imagined enemies, or of thinking that the advertisement will do the work of charm.
While this unique mountain was shrinking due to the lack of scope and vision of its owners, its immediate neighbour, Le Massif de Charlevoix, was experiencing remarkable expansion. Whether in the quality of the accommodation experience, the ski area, the addition of complementary recreational tourism activities, Mont-Sainte-Anne is being left behind, despite the site’s full potential. Incidentally, the latter is Alberta property while the Massif is Quebec property. The adage “out of sight, out of mind” sums up the drama experienced in the region of La Côte-de-Beaupré.
From there to demanding the expropriation of RCR, there is a limit, and the Legault government has done well to close the door to this possibility worthy of a “banana republic”, according to the expression of the minister responsible for the Capital. -National, Jonathan Julien. However, the government and local elites should step up the pressure on RCR and make its management understand that selling the assets is the only remedy for the broken bond of trust created by years of neglect. After which, and not before, we can collectively discuss possible public aid for the relaunch of the station.