Hill springs into summer Ski area joins the pop-up patio craze, plans to operate between ski seasons as much as weather allows By: Eva Wasney Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Monday, Aug. 16, 2021

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This article was published 15/08/2021 (1131 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Picnic tables and fire pits are perched atop a ridge where, months ago, skiers and snowboarders were lined up ready to bomb down the hill. With one seasonal business well-in-hand, the owners of Springhill Winter Park have diversified with a summer patio nestled between the chair lift and the chalet.

“We always had planned on doing something in the summer to take advantage of what the venue can offer,” says Vivianne Julien, who purchased the recreation facility just outside the city with her son, Brayden Sosinkalo, in 2017. “(The hill) just sat empty for eight months of the year, so we wanted something that would draw people to the area.”

The goal was to open the patio last summer, but the pandemic threw a wrench in those plans. Public health restrictions put a damper on things yet again this year, but the family decided to follow through when the rules were relaxed in June. The following weeks were a blur of sawing, hammering and turning wood pallets into outdoor furniture.

The space has a full capacity of 750 and there are two bars — one built off the end of a shipping container and another situated in a retrofitted Westeel-Rosco grain bin — and a selection of yard games. With the municipal fire ban now lifted, the dozen large fire pits dotting the beer garden can finally be put to use — a welcome heat source for the often windy venue on the Red River Floodway.

Springhill’s patio opened mid-July and so far the concept has been well-received by the public.

“People are quite happy,” Julien says. “We have a lot of very loyal customers that come in all winter and now we’re seeing them trickle in over the summer, so that’s very nice to see.”

Weather permitting, the patio is open 4 p.m. to midnight Thursdays and Fridays and noon to midnight on weekends. The hill is just outside city limits but is serviced by Winnipeg taxis and rideshare companies; patrons can leave their vehicles onsite overnight to refrain from drinking and driving.

Dogs are welcome on the grounds — the resident pooches, Abby and Milo, were hanging out nearby when the Free Press visited — and there is live music scheduled on Thursday evenings most weeks. In the future, the proprietors hope to expand the venue’s musical offerings.

“Next year, we’re looking at possibly bringing in some concerts and using the whole hill as a big amphitheatre, we’ll set up the band at the bottom,” Julien says. “That should be interesting.”

Neither Julien nor Sosinkalo have prior experience running a ski hill or a beer garden or a live music venue. As such, they’ve gotten used to learning on the go.

“The community has been amazing,” she says. “We have some great people who have been very helpful and generous in sharing their knowledge and just giving us a helping hand.”

A full menu of fast-casual food is available through the chalet’s restaurant; although, like many service industry businesses, it’s been difficult to find kitchen and serving staff this summer. The owners may pivot to a food truck in the future. The location has also been hampered by ongoing bridge construction on Highway 59, which is set to be completed by the fall of 2023.

“We are hosting the Manitoba Winter Games in February of 2022 and I can’t say I’m pleased with the construction or how it’s been affecting our business,” Julien says.

Currently, visitors can only access the park on Spring Hill Drive via a detour at the Garven Road intersection.

“We have a lot of very loyal customers that come in all winter and now we’re seeing them trickle in over the summer, so that’s very nice to see.”
— Vivianne Julien, co-owner of Springhill Winter Park

As with the winter season, patio season is beholden to the weather.

“We’re gonna go according to what Mother Nature gives us,” Julien says of how long the beer gardens will be open. “Which is pretty much what we do in the winter too.”

Earlier this month, Holiday Mountain ski resort pre-emptively cancelled its 2021-22 season owing to ongoing drought conditions and a lack of water for snowmaking. Springhill relies on wells and will be open to ski bums as soon as its cold enough to start making snow. The park’s new ownership group had its busiest season to date amid the pandemic, and they’re gearing up for another busy season with one less local ski hill in the mix.

“We have a great relationship with all the ski hills in Manitoba, none of us feel that we are competition for each other,” Julien says. “We’re just wondering what’s going to happen because those (skiers) are gonna have to go somewhere else, so there might be overflow to us or Assessippi or Falcon — it’s hard to say at this point, but that’s definitely going to impact a lot of things.”

eva.wasney@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @evawasney