Snowmass's Winter Changes Arrive at the Front Gate and at Big Burn
October 8, 2026
October 8, 2026
The Elk Camp Six-Pack and the Cirque T-Bar were Snowmass's lift upgrades for the 2025/26 season. The Aspen Times preview of winter 2026/27 in Snowmass Village lists no new lift. The ski-area project it does name is a different kind of work. One is an $8.5 million roundabout where Brush Creek Road meets Owl Creek Road. The other is a $42 million rebuild of Ullrhof at the base of the Big Burn lift. Both are scheduled to finish in roughly the same window, which ends Nov. 26, 2026, Snowmass's opening day.
So this year's money went into where you pull in, where you wait for a bus, and where you sit down mid-morning. If both projects hold their schedules, the drive into the village and the lunch break will both feel different this winter.
Four projects make up most of what changes in the village for 2026/27. Two are lodging renovations that have finished or are about to. The other two sit on the routes people use every day.
| Project | Reported cost | Status as of early October 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Brush Creek/Owl Creek roundabout | $8.5 million | Phase 4 underway; completion targeted Nov. 15 |
| Ullrhof rebuild, base of Big Burn | $42 million | Scheduled to reopen November 2026 |
| Stonebridge Inn, 93 rooms | $15.7 million | Scheduled to reopen in December |
| Timberline Condominiums | $25 million | Final stage of renovation complete |
The Stonebridge Inn opened shortly after Snowmass welcomed its first guests in 1967, and CoralTree Hospitality manages it. The Aspen Times describes its renovation as a "top-to-bottom transformation." At the Timberline, the multi-year work covered exterior siding and architectural finishes, common areas, infrastructure and guest amenities. These two are the bookends. The roundabout and Ullrhof are the projects with tight deadlines.
This is the published schedule as of the Town of Snowmass Village's Sept. 21 weekly update and the operators' own announcements. Construction dates can move, so read the list as a schedule, not a promise.
If the town hits its target, the roundabout will be finished 11 days before opening day. Winter bus service begins in between.
The town calls the Brush Creek/Owl Creek intersection a primary gateway to the village. It lists safety and level-of-service concerns as the reasons for rebuilding it. Better traffic flow, better pedestrian and transit access, and replacement of aging utilities underground are also on the list. Public outreach began in mid-2024. Construction began in mid-March 2026, with Gould Construction as the contractor.
The schedule has already slipped once. The town's March plan put Phase 4, the paving and final connections, in mid-to-late August. The actual traffic switch began Sept. 16. Even so, the Sept. 21 update still called the project on track for Nov. 15. Here is what Phase 4 changes on the ground today:
Town Council paid for the work by amending the 2026 Capital Improvement Projects Fund budget on March 2, 2026. The roundabout shares that capital list with the Draw Site workforce housing project. When council kept both in the budget, the Aspen Times reported that members wanted to avoid significant construction overlap and that staff would try to coordinate the schedules. That helps explain why the roundabout has to be finished before ski traffic arrives. A third town idea, a Snowmass Mall Transit Center, was still under evaluation in September with no council decision. It is not part of this winter's construction.
The old Ullrhof was a familiar mid-mountain stop. Aspen Skiing Company began a complete rebuild in summer 2025. Alterra's Sept. 24 release describes the new building as about 26,000 square feet. It says capacity more than doubled, to more than 600 seats, and that four concepts will share one roof: Ullr Market, Ullr Signature Restaurant, Ullr Bar and Ullr Grill. The capacity figure has grown during construction. Snowmass Tourism's April release said 500-plus seats. Shaw Construction, the builder, lists 425 seats indoors and 175 outdoors.
The building itself is a departure from the old one. Shaw names Bull Stockwell Allen as architect and describes a multi-floor structure in modern heavy timber and glulam, designed to sit within the surrounding forest. It will be Aspen Snowmass's first all-electric on-mountain restaurant, which Alterra ties to Aspen One's sustainability commitment. The menu runs from coffee to cocktails, sit-down or grab-and-go. Aspen Snowmass's Ullrhof page still promotes burgers, fries and shakes.
The Ullrhof page lists the reopening as November 2026. No announcement reviewed so far ties it to opening day on Nov. 26. Aspen Snowmass calls the project part of "a multi-year initiative to elevate guest dining experiences at Snowmass and add restaurant seating across the mountain."
Extra seating at Big Burn comes in the same season Snowmass widens its pass access. For 2026/27, Aspen Snowmass joins the Ikon Base Pass, which gives holders five days at Snowmass with selected blackout dates. Those days are valid only at Snowmass. They do not include Aspen Mountain, Aspen Highlands or Buttermilk. American's new Charlotte route joins its existing Aspen flights from Dallas/Fort Worth, Chicago O'Hare, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Austin.
Parking information posted by Snowmass Tourism as of September 2026 shows how the base areas are priced:
Neither free lot allows overnight parking. Before you plan around a holiday weekend, confirm the peak-period dates with the town, because the posted ranges are inconsistent. Until Nov. 22, RFTA's fall schedule runs Snowmass Valley service seven days a week, with three added trips.
Changes off the mountain follow the same pattern: places to stop and gather. The Collective Snowmass is adding several programs for winter 2026/27. Collective Conversations has community members presenting on topics they care about, and Lunch & Learn workshops run over the midday hour. Wellness sessions include sound healing, breathwork and New Moon events, and the Sunday Social Club rotates game nights and craft workshops. Toddler Time returns on Sunday mornings from 9 a.m. to noon for children under 5. It is free in the Game Lounge. Chess Club, Mahjong Nights, On the Rise Open Mics, two-step dancing and ACES Wild Perspectives also continue.
Two dining rooms are entering their first full winter. Slope & Hatch opened its third location inside The Collective in December 2025. Lift Line Tavern opened at the Viceroy in January 2026, with chef Matt Zubrod leading the kitchen. On the Mall, One Vibe Snowmass sells gifts, clothing and souvenirs and spent 2026 marking its first summer season.
Snowmass's next project after this winter is already scheduled. In 2027, the town, Snowmass Water & Sanitation District and the Denver Museum of Nature & Science will begin a new dig at Ziegler Reservoir, the site of the 2010 Ice Age discovery. That work comes with a planned expansion adding 40 million gallons of storage.
For owners near the Brush Creek gateway or around Base Village, a new intersection, a larger Ullrhof and two newly renovated lodges will be part of how your property is described this winter. If you'd like to talk through what this season's changes mean for a home you own or are considering in Snowmass Village, the Engel Lansburgh Team would be glad to help. Request a Confidential Consultation.
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