Deer Valley Resort and the developer of the Mayflower Mountain Resort in Wasatch County remain in negotiations about what could be a significant Deer Valley role in the operations of the new skiing destination.

Mayflower Mountain Resort, an Extell Development Company project that is underway in conjunction with the state Military Installation Development Authority, is located adjacent to the eastern points of Deer Valley. The land is off U.S. 40 near the Jordanelle Reservoir.

It has seemed likely for decades Deer Valley would ultimately have some sort of involvement in the terrain that will become Mayflower Mountain Resort, but there have been comments in recent months that have provided mounting evidence of that being the case.

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A Deer Valley-retained consultant working on a separate development proposal — outside Snow Park Lodge — briefly addressed Mayflower Mountain Resort in a report submitted to City Hall as Deer Valley continues talks with Park City officials about the future of the Snow Park base.

Fehr & Peers in the April report discusses Mayflower Mountain Resort in the context of transportation plans for Snow Park. The consultant report says there is an agreement “under development that will provide parking, lift access and full base amenities to skiers going to Deer Valley at Mayflower base, along US-40.” The report also says the “potential agreement will also provide for employee parking with a shuttle program between Mayflower and Snow Park.”

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Deer Valley in a prepared statement in response to a Park Record inquiry about the consultant’s statements addressed the discussions regarding a role in Mayflower Mountain Resort.

“Deer Valley is continuing talks with Extell about the future operations of the Mayflower area mountain terrain. We are committed to providing an exceptional mountain experience and any agreement would need to support Deer Valley’s character and legacy first and foremost. The Mayflower base area has the potential to provide additional Deer Valley guest amenities such as resort access, parking, dining outlets and skier services facilities,” the statement said.

Neither the consultant report nor the Deer Valley statement detailed a timeline for the discussions about Mayflower Mountain Resort.

There will likely be widespread interest in the Park City area in the prospects of an agreement between Deer Valley and Mayflower Mountain Resort, even as the talks are expected to be private, since the ramifications of a deal would be broad.

An agreement of the breadth of the one described in the prepared statement seems to have the potential of opening another eastern portal to Deer Valley with parking, a route onto the slopes and base-area amenities. If that was to occur, there would appear to be an opportunity for skiers headed to Deer Valley from Wasatch County and the East Side of Summit County to park at Mayflower Mountain Resort rather than driving to Snow Park, possibly reducing traffic along the notoriously congested S.R. 248 entryway.

The consultant report mentions the possibility of such a scenario, saying it is inevitable there would be a reduction in vehicle trips to Snow Park due to “significant travel time reductions from both the Wasatch Front and the Heber Valley.”

The drafting of the April report by Fehr & Peers followed shortly after a March panel discussion in Park City about the ski industry that touched on a possible relationship between Deer Valley and Mayflower Mountain Resort.

Deer Valley President and Chief Operating Officer Todd Bennett during the March panel provided some of the most notable comments of the evening as he addressed Mayflower Mountain Resort. He described an ongoing discussion between Deer Valley and Mayflower Mountain Resort about the operations of the terrain. If the Mayflower Mountain Resort slopes are folded into Deer Valley, Bennett said at the event, Deer Valley’s ski-only policy would apply there.

City Hall released the Fehr & Peers report in anticipation of a meeting of the Park City Council slated for Thursday regarding the Snow Park proposal. The meeting is scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m. at the Marsac Building. The elected officials anticipate taking public input.