Whistler Blackcomb plans $5.4-million property upgrade on Blackcomb Mountain

WHISTLER, B.C. – Whistler Blackcomb Holdings Inc. (TSX:WB) is planning a $5.4-million expansion of the Rendezvous Lodge restaurant on Blackcomb Mountain in British Columbia.

The company says the project will increase the restaurant’s seating capacity by 8.5 per cent and improve the experience for its guests.

The upgrade is expected to be completed before the start of next ski season.

The resort operator announced the project along with financial results from the three months ended Dec. 31, including a 7.6 per cent increase in adjusted earnings and a 9.6 per cent increase in revenue.

The company says skier visits were up 4.1 per cent to 407,000 in the quarter and revenue per visit was up 5.9 per cent to $123.90. Revenue was $54.6 million, up from $49.8 million.

However, the Whistler-based company says skier visits as of Feb. 8 were about the same as last winter following unseasonably warm and wet weather in January and February this year.

For Whistler Blackcomb’s first quarter of the 2014-15 financial year, adjusted earnings were $10.2 million, up from $9.5 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2013-14. Net loss was reduced to $4.5 million from $12.3 million.