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Park City Mountain Resort and Canyons will operate as one resort next ski season, according to operator Vail Resorts.

In what could be a boon to Utah tourism, Vail announced Monday plans to pour $50 million in improvements into Park City Mountain Resort for the 2015-16 ski season, including a gondola that would link PCMR to the Canyons Resort.

The linkage would create the nation's largest ski area, with a total of 7,300 acres of skiable terrain.

Vail acquired PCMR earlier this year after a protracted legal dispute with Powdr Corp.

According to the plan, the two resorts would be operated as one "unified experience" under the name Park City Mountain Resort. The Canyons base area will be renamed "Canyons at Park City."

The joint operation would continue to maintain the unique history and atmosphere of the two base areas, according to a statement from Vail.

The resorts would be joined by an eight-passenger, high-speed two-way gondola from the base of the existing Silverlode Lift at Park City to the Flatiron Lift at Canyons. Under the plan, the gondola also would unload skiers and boarders at the top of Pine Cone Ridge, providing access into Thaynes Canyon at Park City via new trails that would be created from the ridge.

The addition would be the first gondola at PCMR since the resort's original gondola was dismantled in 1983.

It is difficult to overstate the impact of the proposal, said Nathan Rafferty, president and CEO of Ski Utah.

"It's a big deal," he said. "Utah will be the featured destination for some time to come."

As the marketing arm of the industry, Ski Utah would be able to highlight the new, larger Park City Mountain Resort, Rafferty said. But Vail's massive marketing apparatus would bring even more visitors to Utah.

The $50 million Park City face-lift also would include upgrades of the King Con and Motherlode lifts: King Con would go from a four-person to a six-person, high-speed detachable chairlift; Motherlode would be upgraded from a fixed-grip triple to a four-person, high-speed detachable chairlift.

"This comprehensive capital plan for Park City and Canyons is one of the most ambitious and impactful plans undertaken at any resort in industry history," said Blaise Carrig, president of the mountain division for Vail Resorts. "The improvements [would] offer skiers and riders more terrain and upgraded lifts to enhance the guest experience and reduce crowding and lift lines."

The plan also calls for building a new Snow Hut restaurant at the base of the Silverlode Lift, next to the Park City terminal for the gondola, with 500 indoor seats and "a top-of-the-line kitchen and culinary experience."

Other planned improvements include additional snowmaking on two trails in the Iron Mountain area of Canyons, which would become increasingly central ski terrain given its proximity to the interconnect gondola.

Park City Councilwoman Liza Simpson, who also works on Main Street at Dolly's Bookstore, said Vail's investment in the community is "very impressive."

"It will bring people, and we are a people place," she said. "But I hope [the increase in visitors] will be measurable and predictable so that our infrastructure doesn't get overwhelmed."

The environmental group Save Our Canyons, which has voiced concerns about connecting resorts, doesn't see the interconnect gondola between Park City and Canyons as something to protest. Park City and Canyons encompass private land, unlike the Cottonwood canyons, which are mostly on U.S. Forest Service land.

Nonetheless, Carl Fisher, executive director of Save Our Canyons, said Vail's plan is merely a marketing tool.

"You spend the whole day traversing around and riding lifts," he said. "But I guess they can tout themselves as the Big Gulp of ski areas."

The overhaul is contingent on approvals from Park City Municipal Corp. and Summit County.

"The plan was based on feedback from guests and the local community as well as discussions with the senior operating teams at the two resorts," according to a statement from Vail. "We look forward to continuing to work with the county and the city and are hopeful we can bring this plan to life for the 2015-2016 ski season."