NEDERLAND — The deal for the Town of Nederland to purchase nearby Eldora Ski Resort is changing.

After months of relative silence on the deal, Nederland revealed it is restructuring the agreement after investors expressed hesitations on the initial proposal. Mayor Nichole Sterling met with The Mountain-Ear amid continued speculation from ski enthusiasts, business buffs, industry insiders, and Nederland residents.

“We are continuing to pursue the acquisition,” Sterling said, adding the town has been working toward a “more resilient” structure since they first heard from investors back in April.

“When we went to market it was kind of exciting in a couple of respects,” Sterling said. “Investors were like, ‘Wow, this is kind of neat, but we need a couple of things in order to really structure this deal well.’ And it turns out that some of those asks made it just a better deal for us as a municipality.”

As the Town explored adjustments to the agreement, the expected closing date of April went by, as did the expiration date of their original Asset Purchase Agreement with POWDR, originally approved on January 6, 2026. The agreement states it will be terminated “if the Closing has not occurred on or prior to 11:59 PM Mountain Time on April 30, 2026.” 

Expiration of the agreement with POWDR was not unexpected, Sterling said, given the time it took to develop the enterprise fund structure for the acquisition and the need to pull back and redesign the deal with the feedback from investors.

A spokesperson for the ski industry conglomerate told The Mountain-Ear there is no contractual obligation bounding POWDR to sell Eldora to Nederland, though the company says it is "still working with the Town.” 

“I'm still meeting with various parts of the POWDR team on a weekly basis,” Sterling said. 

The expiration opens the door for the town to share crucial information related to the acquisition's delay—and what it’s been doing to get back on track. 

In order to reach a more enticing deal for investors, the Town of Nederland is focusing on three adjustments to a new draft Asset Purchase Agreement. That starts with providing a “stronger security” tied to the asset Sterling said, so investments can be recouped in the event of a default.

The new agreement could include a sale-leaseback structure to provide that security for investors. The Town originally did not think they could provide such security due to restrictions involved with being a public entity, but further research indicated that a sale-leaseback structure could be considered. 

Sterling explained: “At closing, POWDR would transfer the resort assets to the Mountain Enterprise Fund,” the business entity Nederland created to manage the resort separately from Town operations. “Under the bond indenture and the bond documents, the enterprise then transfers title to the real property and improvements to the bond trustee.” 

Under this structure, a third party, sometimes a financial institution, leases the property back to the enterprise fund, which continues to own and operate the resort as it generates revenue. 

“The investors get to benefit from two sources of security: the revenue that the mountain already generates; and this mortgage-like collateral structure that's supported by the real estate and all the improvements that we make to the mountain," Sterling said.

The second adjustment aims to reduce the debt associated with the acquisition by carving the financing of certain capital improvement projects out from the “waterfall” of ski revenue. “If those capital improvement projects are tied to the waterfall, then that means that we're essentially tied to do them even during a down snow year.”

As for which projects, and how the Town intends to fund them without relying on Eldora’s revenue—at least for the first 10 years of ownership by the Town—Sterling offered further explanation in a letter posted on the Town’s website.

“There are major investments that we believe will strengthen Eldora over the long term, including the Jolly Jug expansion, an upgrade to the Corona lift, the construction of a mountaintop lodge, and jumpstarting summer operations. These projects have the potential to improve the guest experience, strengthen operations, and create additional revenue.”

Sterling wrote that the Town is actively developing a strategy to raise $20 million through philanthropic efforts for these capital improvement projects. According to the Town, this will provide an opportunity to prioritize debt obligations in a bad snow year, and invest in the mountain in a good year. 

“The first contributor we are exploring is the State of Colorado. We are in contact with their team to explore opportunities to jump-start our capital improvements to drive economic vitality.” 

Investors also expressed wanting to see the deal modeled against a down snow year, Sterling said, like the 2025-2026 season where Colorado ski area visitation dropped by 24% due in part to record low snow pack.

“Before this, it was all speculation. Nobody had the actual data as to what a down snow year would look like,” Sterling said. “In many respects, it was like ‘Actually what a blessing now that we have actual data that we can model against and know what a down snow year looks like.’”  

In addition to adjusting to investor feedback, Sterling said the acquisition team has been building without a blueprint. The Eldora acquisition is unique in many ways, and the team has been constantly pivoting to navigate the risks of changing weather and a fluctuating market. 

“When we first went to market and we started modeling this, we were modeling at like a 7.5% interest rate. Now we're having to model at 8.5% because it's just the volatility of the market,” Sterling said. “We’re taking these things into consideration again so that we can create the most resilient deal possible.”

The rising interest rates are not the only financial concerns. The current accrued debt to the Town of Nederland—which includes the costs of hiring outside firms, legal fees, and drafting the original Asset Purchase Agreement—is approximately $2.5 million. If the deal dies, the town will be on the hook for these costs.  

“This is not something that's gonna bankrupt the Town or anything, but those are the costs of doing diligence. This is why we also signed the bond repayment ordinance earlier this year, to be able to refund those payments.” Sterling added that number could increase, though she expects additional costs to be marginal.

“At this point it's incremental. We're not redrafting an entire purchase agreement; we're plugging and playing a couple of sentences….we’re not starting from scratch.”

Sterling also mentioned the $1.5 million the Town had invested in March 2023 into a Core and a Cash Fund with Colorado Surplus Asset Fund Trust (CSAFE), which she inferred could be used to help cover the costs if the sale doesn’t go through. If the Town closes the deal, the costs will be paid using revenue from Eldora.

As for what happens next, Sterling said that finalizing the acquisition comes first. But the resort’s potential beyond that point is still the driving force for her and the Board of Trustees to get the grand endeavor over the finish line. 

“If I could be so bold as to say, I don't trust anyone else coming in and owning that ski mountain and doing the cool stuff—doing the things that need to be done,” Sterling said. “I’m taking a little from Captain Planet here, but it's our powers combined that would make this a really amazing publicly-owned asset. And we're getting there, we just need a little bit more time.”

Sterling bolstered this sentiment by answering, within her letter released after the interview, a common question: Can Nederland buy Eldora and run it respectfully and successfully in the long term?

“We believe the answer is yes,” she wrote. “Your Board of Trustees continues to work hard to finalize this transaction. We aren't stopping. If anything, this process has given us a clearer understanding of what it will take to make community ownership of Eldora a reality and why that work matters so much. So, hang in there, Nederland.”